Two Teacher Rights Activists Transferred to Evin Prison

Two Iranian teacher rights activists, Mohammad Reza Niknezhad and Mehdi Bahlooli, who were arrested on Tuesday, September 9, have been transferred to Evin Prison. Mr. Niknezhad is a member of the board of the Tehran Teachers' Association. According to Mohammad Habibi, a member of the Iranian Teachers' Association and the board of the Tehran Teachers' Association, security agents visited the homes of these two activists on the morning of September 9 and arrested them. This marks yet another instance in recent months where several teacher rights activists in Iran have been summoned or arrested by security and judicial authorities. Ismail Abdi, Ali Akbar Baghaei, Rasoul Badaqi, and Alireza Hashemi, all of whom are teacher rights activists in Iran, have been imprisoned for some time on security charges such as organizing protests. The arrests of Mr. Niknezhad and Mr. Bahlooli, as reported by news sources from Iran, were carried out under the order of Branch 2 of the Evin Prison prosecutor's office, and according to Mohammad Habibi, these two activists have now been transferred to Evin Prison. Mr. Habibi stated that the reason for their arrest was that 'these two individuals had repeatedly been warned by security agencies regarding teacher protests.' The arrests of teachers and teacher rights activists have so far drawn protests from international human rights and labor organizations. In recent years, teachers in Iran have repeatedly protested against their low wages and benefits, as well as the status of substitute teachers in various parts of Iran, especially in Tehran. Earlier, on Sunday, September 8, ILNA reported that a retired teacher in the city of Sanqur had self-immolated due to financial problems. Mansour Keyhani, who was 60 years old, was a retired teacher who cared for his sick wife for nearly 10 years. Mr. Keyhani self-immolated behind the administrative complex of Sanqur County, and according to witnesses at the scene, he cited severe financial difficulties as the reason for his act before self-immolating. Ali Asghar Fani, the Minister of Education, stated last week regarding the livelihood of teachers that the poor living conditions of educators are confirmed.