NCRI – Thousands of Iranian teachers took to the streets in 28 cities across the country on Sunday demanding an end to discrimination against teacher by the regime, raising teachers’ salaries to at least poverty line.
The protest gatherings held in Tehran, the capital city, as well as the cities of Shiraz, Marivan, Khorramabad, Brujerd, Ilam, Kermanshah, Ravansar, Javanroud, Zanjan, Yasouj, Ardebil, Bandar Abbas, Sanandaj, Arak, Qazvin, Esfehan, Rasht, Qaemshahr, Hamedan, Paveh, Abadan, Bandar Gonaveh, Tabriz, Abhar and Karaj.
Teachers and employees of the education sector in Iran staged the gathering after a statement issued by teachers’ organizations on February 16. Sporadic protests began in a number of cities last week.
To rein in the protests, the clerical regime summoned a number of teachers and threatened them not to hold public protests in current situation of the country which authorities described to the teacher as being ‘critical’.
However, despite repressive measures taken by the regime, large scale gatherings swept many cities across Iran on Sunday.
Women who had a significant presence and role in these gatherings chanted slogans against discrimination.
In Tehran, the protest gathering was outside the regime’s parliament with six thousand teachers taking part. A number of the protesters were arrested by the regime’s intelligence agents, including a person holding a sign demanding political prisoners to be freed.
Some of the signs carried by protesters read:
“Free teachers’ activists”
“Teachers’ future should be taken care of”
“Poverty line is 3 million, teacher’s salary is 1 million”
“Political prisoner must be freed”
“No to prison, no to threat, no to expulsion, imprisoned teacher must be freed”
“Teacher does not belong in prison”
“Teacher’s should have security”
“It is our right to organize”
“Honor, livelihood is our unequivocal right”
“Complementary and effective insurance is our unequivocal right”
“We want a salary above the poverty line”
“Mr. Rouhani! Doubt your justice!”
“Social and economic humiliation of teacher for how long?”
“Our salaries have no relation with the crushing inflation”
“We demand lifting of discrimination from various levels of Department of Education”
“Teacher is conscious and hates bias”
“Organizing is our unequivocal right”
“Stop privatizing the schools”
“We want quality, equal and free education”
“We want modern education congruent with society’s needs”
“Teacher will die, but will not accept discrimination”.
The Iranian Resistance called on all students, the youth, and the freedom-loving people of Iran to support and express solidarity with the protest movement of noble Iranian teachers and employees of the education sector who are deprived of their most rudimentary rightful right in the wretched system of Velayat-e faqih.
The social honor of the members of hardworking education sector in Iran that traditionally have always been respected by the Iranian people has continues to be trampled by the ruling mullahs in Iran.
The religious dictatorship ruling Iran for the past 36 years, not only has refused to give teachers and education employees their rightful wages, but even has refrained from paying their meager salaries.
By plundering their salaries for several consecutive months, this regime has made life more difficult than ever for them to an extent that receiving a pay equal to the poverty line has become one of their main imperative demand.
Education Committee of the National Council of Resistance of Iran
March 1, 2015