Most Detained Workers of Khatunabad Copper Complex Released on Bail

The lawyer of 28 detained workers from the Khatunabad Copper Complex in Kerman reported that 23 of these workers have been released on bail. Two days prior, the Global Union Federation had called on the Iranian government to free these workers in a letter. According to the Iranian Labor News Agency, ILNA, on Saturday, February 12, citing Somayeh Mahmoudi, the lawyer for the detained workers, it was reported that 23 workers were released on bail. ILNA added that 'apparently each of these workers was released from Babak prison with a bail of 50 million tomans in recent days.' According to the report, five workers remain in custody and 'are expected to be released on bail soon.' This complex belongs to the National Copper Industries Company of Iran and is located in Khatunabad, part of Babak city in Kerman. The workers at this factory have protested multiple times in recent months regarding their employment conditions and expressed concerns over 'job security,' gathering in front of the governor's office. According to ILNA, these 28 workers were arrested on January 26 after gathering to protest the dismissal of 170 contract workers from the factory, by law enforcement. The management of the Khatunabad Copper Complex had previously hired 150 workers out of about 300 after conducting a recruitment exam last October, leaving the remaining workers unemployed. In this context, the Teacher and Worker Rights website also reported that this exam was held while 'according to the resolution of the Babak Security Council,' all workers should have been absorbed into the complex and layoffs should not have occurred. Two days before the news of the release of most of these detained workers was published, the Global Union Federation, a member of the International Labour Organization (ILO) affiliated with the United Nations, had sent a letter to President Hassan Rouhani requesting attention to the situation of the protesting workers of Khatunabad and the release of those detained. The General Secretary of the Global Union Federation mentioned in his letter, which was published by ILNA and other websites, that he 'writes on behalf of the Global Union of Industrial Workers representing 50 million workers in the energy, mining, and manufacturing sectors in 140 countries' and calls for the Iranian government to intervene immediately for the release of the 28 workers from the Khatunabad copper mine and to ensure their freedom.