Tehran Bus Workers' Syndicate Calls for Abolition of Death Penalty for Political and General Prisoners

The Tehran and Suburbs Bus Workers' Syndicate issued a statement on Saturday condemning the execution of Saleh Mirhashimi, Saeed Yaqoubi, and Majid Kazemi, calling for the unconditional halt of the death penalty and its abolition for all political and general prisoners. The syndicate noted that these three young protesters were executed in the early hours of Friday, May 29, stating: 'They were executed to remind us once again that the death penalty is the most blatant form of systematic governmental repression, and opposition to the death penalty must be absolute.' The statement continued: 'The Women, Life, Freedom uprising, which centers on life, insists on the right to life, a dignified existence for all segments of society free from exploitation, discrimination, and oppression, and fundamentally opposes the death penalty in its slogans.' The Tehran Bus Workers' Syndicate pointed out that 'instead of listening to the rightful protests of the people against injustice, inequality, discrimination, and exploitation, the ruling authorities have committed themselves to killing protesting youth and are seeking to suppress dissent through the most violent means possible, creating fear and terror.' This independent labor organization added: 'The history of Iran and all societies shows that human dignity cannot be stifled by repression.' In another part of the statement, emphasizing that 'the working class, syndicates, and other independent labor organizations oppose all forms of execution,' it stated that 'the abolition of the death penalty has been and remains a demand of all individuals, organizations, and labor groups, and it is everyone's duty to unanimously condemn such oppressive sentences and stand against them.' Previously, several labor and teachers' organizations condemned the execution of Saleh Mirhashimi, Saeed Yaqoubi, and Majid Kazemi, including the Free Workers' Union of Iran, the Coordination Council of Iranian Teachers' Trade Unions, and the Teachers' Trade Association of Harsin. The Coordination Council of Iranian Teachers' Trade Unions wrote on their Telegram channel regarding the recent executions: 'Our freest have been selected and chained in dungeons... There is not a day when a murderer is not taken away, and not a morning when a mother's heart is not burned.' This council described what it called 'cruelty' against the people, adding: 'They have sewn the black garment of mourning and wailing from city to city and region to region in this land, forgetting citizenship and rights, and every day spreading the feudal system further. They have created prisons the size of Iran, and one by one, they are chaining us all as a penalty for our desire for freedom and life.' This teachers' union further emphasized that 'these crimes and these killings will not go unpunished, and one day, we will bring you, the lords of injustice, to the tables of justice.' The Coordination Council of Iranian Teachers' Trade Unions also wrote: 'We endure these hellish days with the belief that one day, we will establish a court similar to the Nuremberg Trials for you criminals and murderers, a court that will become a history lesson for this suffering Middle East. Your trial will mark a new chapter in the life of the Middle East.'