Several Workers and Labor Activists Summoned or Tried in Khuzestan and Kurdistan

Reports from the provinces of Khuzestan and Kurdistan indicate that several workers and labor activists have been summoned to court. These summonses come ahead of International Workers' Day on May 1st, with some of the summoned workers being released on bail while others await trial or sentencing. The Syndicate of Workers of Haft Tappeh Sugarcane Company reported on Tuesday, April 23, that six workers from this agricultural and industrial complex were summoned to the prosecutor's office in Shush County, with a bail set at 10 million tomans for them. According to this syndicate, Abdolrahim Bashagh, Ismail Bakhtiari, Karamat Pam, Jalil Ahmadi, Hassan Fazeli, and Hossein Hamdani were summoned based on a complaint from the private employer of Haft Tappeh Sugarcane Company and a report from the security police. The charges against these workers include 'disruption of public order through participation in a gathering on March 7 of last year' and 'participation in the intentional assault' of the chairman of the board of this company. The workers of Haft Tappeh Sugarcane Company had gone on strike and gathered in March of last year to protest unpaid wages and other labor demands. Such labor protests have occurred in previous years, especially after the privatization of Haft Tappeh Sugarcane Company in March 2016. These protests have led to security and judicial crackdowns against the workers and labor activists of Haft Tappeh Sugarcane Company, actions that have faced criticism from international labor unions. Meanwhile, the Coordination Committee to Help Establish Labor Organizations and the Free Workers' Union of Iran reported the separate summons of five labor activists in Sanandaj and their interrogation. These labor activists had been interrogated several times last year on charges of 'participating in the Nowruz 96 ceremony' at the Pardis Hall in Sanandaj. According to the Coordination Committee, Sharif Saedpanah, Habibollah Karimi, Ghaleb Hosseini, Khalid Hosseini, and Mozaffar Saleh Nia are set to be tried on April 28. In this context, Osman Ismaili, a labor activist in Saqez, announced on his Facebook page that he presented himself to the public and revolutionary prosecutor's office in Saqez on April 1 after being summoned to court. Mr. Ismaili noted that his summons occurred while he was serving a two-month prison sentence. According to this report, the 'Ministry of Intelligence' had filed a complaint against Osman Ismaili for an interview with what it called 'foreign and anti-revolutionary media.' Mr. Ismaili stated on his Facebook that he confirmed the interview and defended himself while supporting imprisoned labor activists. In recent years, several labor activists in various regions of Iran have been arrested and imprisoned on security charges. Human rights organizations and international labor unions have repeatedly criticized the security and judicial actions against labor activists. This occurs while officials of the Islamic Republic of Iran claim to engage with labor activists and organizations.