Iran union: Any suppression or threat of civil liberty condemned

From afar it's very difficult to say whether or not Ahmadinejad won the Iranian Presidential election only as a result of ballot rigging. The point of course is that whether or not this is the case the ruling clerics would have little hesitation in rigging any ballot, Presidential or otherwise if it suited their interests to do so and they felt they could get away with it. Undoubtedly many people in Iran are aware of this.

In any event both Ahmadinejad and Mousavi were bourgeois candidates and the differences between them merely reflected differences within both the ruling class and the clerical elite of Iran. This was a bourgeois election in the most literal and meaningful sense of the term given that any form of left or working class candidate if even on the most minimal reformist basis was absent. And not surprisingly given that any form of independent working class organisation has been subject to repression by the state.

Despite such repression there is though an incipient workers movement in Iran. The statement below on the election by the Vahed Busworkers syndicate has started to appear on various websites. It does take an elementary proletarian class position on the election and is one that we should support and publicise.

http://www.justiceforiranianworkers.org/?p=594

Vahed Syndicate - Any Suppression or threat of civil liberty condemned

Any Suppression or threat of civil liberty condemned 18 June Statement

In line with the recognition of the labour rights, we request that June 26 Action Day - Justice for Iranian workers - to include the human rights of all Iranians who have been deprived of their rights. In recent days, we continue witnessing the magnificent demonstration of millions of people from all ages, genders, and national and religious minorities in Iran. They request that their basic human rights, particularly the right to freedom and to choose independently and without deception be recognized. These rights are not only constitutional in most of the countries, but also have been protected against all odds.

Amid such turmoil, one witnesses threats, arrests, murders and brutal suppression that one fears only to escalate on all its aspects, resulting in more innocent bloodshed, more protests, and certainly no retreats. The Iranian society is facing a deep political-economical crisis. Million-strong silent protests, ironically loud with un-spoken words, have turned into iconic stature and are expanding from all sides. These protests demand reaction from each and every responsible individual and institution. As previously expressed in a statement published on-line in May of this year, since Syndicate Vahed does not view any of the candidates support the activities of the workers’ organizations in Iran, it would not endorse any presidential candidate in the election. Vahed members nevertheless have the right to participate or not to participate in the elections and vote for their individually selected candidate.

Moreover, the fact remains that demands of almost an absolute majority of the Iranians go far beyond the demands of a particular group. In the past, we have emphasized that until the freedom of choice and right to organize are not recognized, talk of any social or particular right would be more of a mockery than a reality. The Syndicate of Workers of Tehran and Suburbs Vahed Bus Company fully supports this movement of Iranian people to build a free and independent civil society and condemns any violence and oppression. In line with the recognition of the labour rights, the Syndicate requests that June 26 which has been called by the International Trade Unions Organization ‘Day of action’ for justice for Iranian workers to include the human rights of all Iranians who have been deprived of their rights.
With hope for freedom and equality

The Syndicate of Workers of Tehran and Suburbs Vahed Bus Company