The 96th annual conference of the International Labor Organization “I.L.O.” is on the way. Every year the government of Iran sends two representatives, one from the “Islamic Council” and another from “House of the Worker” to this conference. The ILO recognizes these two, as the official representatives of the Iranian workers. In reality, these two individuals, do not represent the interests of Iranian workers, rather, the government despite the repeated protest of this and other organizations chooses them.
Workers in Iran are prevented from forming unions and other labor interest groups. The Sherekat Vahed Otobusrani (Tehran public transportation) workers in Tehran have been working to gain the right to form unions for over two years. All this time, we have been under pressure and persecution from the authorities. Currently the chairman of our syndicate has been sentenced to a five-year prison term for his pursuit of our rights. Furthermore the mediation committee of the labor department of southern Tehran has summarily fired the following individuals, who were members of the board of the syndication, without any reason. These individuals are: Ebrahim Madadi , Seied Davood Razavi, Yaghub Salimi, Mansour Hayat Gheybi, Abbas Negand Kooki and,….. Also, the following individuals Sadigh Karimi, Shiss Amani, and Mahmud Salehi are currently in prison for organizing Labor Day celebrations (the first day of May) and for their defense of the rights of the worker.
The ILO is fully aware of the mistreatment of Iranian workers at the hands of the henchmen of the regime. By failing to acknowledge the mistreatment of workers in Iran and by officially recognizing the Iranian delegates and the representatives of labor in Iran, the ILO has in essence given its support to the Iranian regime and has turned its back on the Iranian worker. The workers of Iran are seriously distressed and saddened by these events and are asking the ILO to recognize our plight.
We the public transportation workers:
1. Believed that it is our right to form syndication and that it should be officially recognized. We are asking all the Labor organizations through the world to support us.
2. We demand the immediate freedom of the chairman of the board of our syndication, and the dropping of all charges against our unjustly accused board members. We also demand the immediate reinstitution of the unlawfully and unjustly fires workers.
3. We protest the ILO’s official recognition of the two official delegates of the Iranian government. These organizations not only do not support labor rights, rather they function as an internal security apparatus to quiet down labor organizers. The representatives of these two groups attacked and savagely beat members of our syndication on May 9, 2007( Ordibehesht 84).
We are asking all labor organizations in the world to support our cause and to help us in attaining our rights. Furthermore we are asking the ILO to expel the representatives of the “Islamic Counsel” and “House of Labor” and to invite the true representatives of labor to take part in the annual meeting.
The Workers of the Sherekat Vahed Otobusrani Tehran (Tehran Public transportation)

Translated by:International Labour Solidarity Committee of the Worker-communist Party of Iran
Co-ordinator:
Shahla Daneshfar shahla_daneshfar@yahoo.com
International Labour Relations: Bahram Soroush b.soroush@ukonline.co.uk