Monday, June 27, 2016 7:33:05 PM
Canadian Senator Percy Mocker's
speech delivered last month in Canada's Senate Chambers in support of Iranian Labor Activists.
On
May 1, the people of Iran recognize May Day...International Workers'
Day, although not an officially recognized day in Iran, Iranians
gathered to peacefully call for an end to worker repression and
government corruption.
Iranian
authorities have always approached the day with violent crackdowns,
which usually result in the arrests of innocent workers and activists.
Honourable senators, the Iranian government does not allow its citizens
to exercise their fundamental and universal rights, and as a result does
not tolerate labour unions or protests by workers.
The
labour rights movement in Iran tackles issues like inflation, unpaid
wages of workers, child labour and government corruption, deceit and
mismanagement. I am surprised to learn, through human rights reports,
that, since the presidency of Hassan Rouhani, there has been an increase
in imprisoned workers and overall repression against labour activities
and unions in Iran.
Honourable senators, this brutality is unacceptable.
There
are currently dozens of labour activists, in addition to unpaid
workers, who are languishing in Iranian prisons. Today I would like to
share with you and highlight the cases of some of these political
prisoners for the benefit of the Senate of Canada.
Behnam
Ebraimzadeh was an employee at a piping company and a popular labour
rights activist, whose focus was on defending the rights of workers in
Iran also known as street children. Behnam was also involved in some
union activities through his membership in the committee to facilitate
the creation of free labour organization. For doing that, honourable
senators, he has been in and out of prison since May 1, International
Workers Day, in 2009. He is currently held in Rajai Shahr Prison, in
Karaj, where he is deprived of his basic prisoner rights. Throughout
this imprisonment, he has been repeatedly tortured and interrogated and
held for long durations of solitary confinement. Inhumane. During one
his arrests in 2010, Iranian authorities reportedly broke Behnam's ribs.
This type of brutality is unacceptable.
Honourable senators, another striking example of this type of brutality is the case of Reza Shahabi.
He
is a board member of the syndicate of workers of Tehran and suburban
bus company, also known as Vahed Syndicate, a union organization
defending the rights of workers. His crime is peaceful and as an
organized activist. His first arrest was in 2005, while participating in
a bus driver strike. He has been in and out of prison since then,
enduring, honourable senators, long, long durations in solitary
confinement in addition to reported brutal physical and psychological
torture. Reza was released from prison in September of 2014 on a medical
leave to undergo surgery on his back, but, according to human rights
reports, he is in danger of returning to prison any day now.
Think
of Mr. Jafar Azimzadeh. He is a prominent labour activist and President
of the Free Union of Workers of Iran, who is locked in Tehran's Evin
prison. He is sentenced to six years in prison for his peaceful
activism. Like the other political prisoners in Iran, Jafar has also
endured time in solitary confinement, been subjected to physical and
psychological torture and pressured to confess on camera.
Honourable
senators, yes, we must be reminded of Mohammad Jarahi, a labour
activist held in Tabriz Central Prison, who is sentenced to five years
in prison for his peaceful activism, exercising his fundamental rights
to freedom of association.
Honourable
senators, I will stop here, but there are dozens more in prison,
workers in Iran, who the world has never heard of. Each and every single
one of these courageous, resilient individuals, is paying a
tremendously high price fighting for human rights in Iran. The political
prisoners who I have highlighted today and the other imprisoned workers
are charged with assembling and colluding with intent to act against
national security.
In Canada, we
know very well that, yes, freedom of assembly or association is a
fundamental right of all people, including Iranians. Why should Behnam,
Reza, Mohammad and Jafar not be able to peacefully demand equal or fair
wages and better working conditions? It is very telling when Iranian
authorities are so threatened by peaceful activism.
Please
join me...in calling on, in the Senate of Canada, Iranian authorities
to end this systematic practice of charging labour activists and workers
with assembling and colluding with intent to act against national
security.
May 12, 2016
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