Contradictory Statements After the Promise of 'Quick Resolution' for Nurses' Issues; Minister of Health: Financial Expectations Will Be Addressed Within the Country's Capacity

Mohammad Reza Zafarghandi, the Minister of Health, on Friday, September 2, despite having promised the resolution of the protesting nurses' issues 'as soon as possible' and 'quickly' just a day earlier, stated: 'I will pursue the financial expectations of nurses within the country's capacity.' In his remarks published by the ISNA news agency, he did not provide further explanation on how to resolve the nurses' issues and meet their demands, saying: 'Of course, I have also started discussions with the President and members of the government to enhance the professional and identity status of nurses.' This comes after he mentioned on Thursday, September 1, without specifying a timeline for fulfilling the demands of the striking and protesting nurses, that the costs of resolving nurses' issues had been calculated and approved by the government, and 'this money should gradually be given to universities and insurance companies.' In another statement published on the Ministry of Health's website, Mohammad Reza Zafarghandi said: 'The problem of accumulating demands from the nursing community will be resolved within the next two weeks.' Furthermore, the nurses' strike continues in dozens of public hospitals despite security pressures. Over the years, Islamic Republic officials have made similar promises in response to professional protests in various regions of Iran. However, in practice, some of these promises have been partially implemented or not fulfilled at all. For instance, recent promises regarding the payment of wheat farmers' debts have not been met, as a significant portion of them have not received payment for their products sold to the government. Nurses are protesting against the non-implementation of the pricing law, mandatory overtime, and low wages, stating that the Ministry of Health must hear their voices and fulfill their demands. In this context, nurses from dozens of public hospitals in at least 21 cities in Iran have recently gone on strike and held protests against difficult working and living conditions. The protests of nurses have even been reflected in state media, and Islamic Republic officials have promised to fulfill their demands. However, on the other hand, security measures have been taken against the protesting nurses. In this regard, the Coordinating Council of Nurses' Protests reported on Friday the arrest of Firouzeh Mojarrian Shargh, a nurse from Qaem Hospital in Mashhad, by 'security and intelligence forces.' The council had previously reported the arrest of Zahra Tamadon, the head nurse of Ward 10 at Masih Daneshvari Hospital in Tehran, on Tuesday, August 30, stating that she was arrested by Islamic Republic intelligence agents in the hospital's emergency room. According to the council, her arrest was on charges of 'participating in protests by medical staff and encouraging personnel to strike.' Based on this report, several other medical staff members from this hospital have also been arrested. Earlier, according to the Mehr news agency, Ehsan Anqi, the cultural and social deputy of the Islamic Republic's police command in Markazi province, stated on Tuesday, August 29, that two individuals he referred to as 'disturbers' of the nurses' gathering in Arak had been arrested. This police official claimed that these two were 'not part of the medical staff.' On Tuesday, a video was released showing nurses protesting against the arrest of a person by government agents. The Telegram channel 'Post Keshik' (Medical Students' Club) also reported on Tuesday that following the protests of nurses in various hospitals in Iran, including Amir Alam Hospital in Tehran, some of them had been dismissed due to their participation in these protests, adding: 'This way of dealing with individuals who had peaceful professional protests has led to increased dissatisfaction and broader protests within the nursing community.' In this regard, the 'Civil Market Protest' channel reported that following the protest gathering of nurses from public hospitals in Tabriz, some of these nurses received threatening text messages. Despite all this, Mohammad Sharifi-Moghadam, the Secretary-General of the Nurses' House, stated on Tuesday to Khabar Online: 'For the first time in the 100-year history of modern nursing in Iran, protests have taken the form of a work stoppage,' and announced: 'Nurses know that when they strike, they are threatened with dismissal. They say, 'Go ahead, dismiss us.' This means that the situation has reached a point where it does not matter to nurses if they are dismissed for striking.' Protests by nurses in Chabahar coincide with nationwide strikes by nurses in various cities. Protests by nurses in Arak included chants of 'If we don't get our rights, we won't go to our shifts.' Images from protests by nurses in Kermanshah included slogans like 'Enough promises, our table is empty.' Videos from protests by nurses in Tabriz featured chants of 'Nurse, shout out, demand your rights.' The slogan 'Incompetent official, resign' was heard at protests by nurses in Tabriz. Other videos from protests by nurses in Isfahan featured similar chants. In Gilan, protesting nurses in Rasht shouted, 'Enough promises, our table is empty.' Protesting nurses in Marivan expressed, 'Overtime of twenty tomans, shame, shame.' Protesting nurses in Tehran echoed, 'Enough promises, our table is empty.' Protests by nurses continued outside the Medical Sciences University in Kermanshah and in front of the Ministry of Health in Tehran, with chants of 'Without nurses, the system will collapse.' The expansion of nurses' protests to over 20 cities in Iran and the violence of security forces coincide with the silence of officials. Protests by nurses continue in Arak and Chabahar: 'If we don't get our rights, we won't go to our shifts.'