Iran's Teachers' Union Condemns 'Inhuman Sentences' Against Activists and Women

The Coordination Council of Iranian Teachers' Trade Unions condemned in a statement on Friday, April 10, the 'inhuman' and 'unjust' sentences against several trade activists and women's rights activists in Gilan. The statement described the rulings issued by the judiciary against these activists as a 'childish stubbornness of the regime in using pure violence against all discontent.' On Wednesday, April 8, the third branch of the Islamic Revolutionary Court in Rasht sentenced 11 women's rights activists and political activists in Gilan province to a total of more than 60 years in prison. These individuals, including 10 women and one man, who were arrested in August 2023, received prison sentences ranging from one to nine years on charges of 'gathering and collusion,' 'forming a group with the aim of undermining national security,' and 'membership in a group.' Previously, in Esfand, the third branch of the Islamic Revolutionary Court in Gilan had sentenced nine members of the board of directors and members of the Gilan Teachers' Trade Union to 18 years and 9 days in prison along with supplementary punishments. In the statement, the Coordination Council criticized the government's view on 'punishing' citizens 'by any means and with any tradition,' emphasizing that 'the process of transforming fear into anger among the people has increased to such an extent that everything hard and solid turns to smoke and rises into the air.' This trade union addressed the officials of the Islamic Republic, stating: 'The path we have taken for liberation and equality is irreversible; we will no longer be what your irrational demands of a force-based rule want us to be.' The council also noted that rights such as 'the right to life, the right to protest,' and 'the right to disobey absolute tyranny' reproduce 'us and our trade union and people-oriented activities.' The Iranian Writers' Association and the Human Rights Defenders Center also criticized the issuance of 60 years of prison sentences for 11 women's rights defenders and political activists in Gilan on Thursday, April 9. Simultaneously, the U.S. Department of State strongly condemned these sentences. Matthew Miller, the spokesperson for this department, described the sentencing of Gilan activists as 'unjust' and 'an attempt to intimidate and silence activists.' The issuance of over 60 years of prison sentences for 11 activists in Gilan was criticized in discussions with Soroush Mozaffar Moghaddam, and two civil and human rights organizations condemned the heavy sentences for Gilan activists. The U.S. condemned the heavy sentences for civil activists in Gilan, with Miller stating: 'It is an attempt to intimidate and silence activists.' Eleven women's rights activists in Gilan were sentenced to a total of more than 60 years in prison for 'gathering and collusion.'