Economic Protests in Iran; Pensioners, Welfare Workers, and Diesel Vehicle Drivers Gather

On the nineteenth day of the new year, economic protests continued with gatherings of pensioners from social security in Arak, Ahvaz, Kermanshah, Dezful, and Shush. Additionally, pensioners from the steel industry took to the streets in Tehran and Isfahan, welfare workers in Kurdistan staged sit-ins, and diesel vehicle drivers gathered in Zabol. According to reports from trade sources on Sunday, April 8, pensioners from social security held protests in several cities in Iran, including Shush, Dezful, Kermanshah, and Arak. Protesters in Arak chanted slogans such as 'Enough promises, our table is empty' and 'Shame on us, our media is silent,' expressing their discontent with the authorities' inaction regarding their economic situation and the silence of the state media, IRIB. In Kermanshah, pensioners protested with slogans like 'The useless association, disband it,' 'Political prisoners must be freed,' 'Teachers must be freed,' 'Workers must be freed,' and 'Unity, unity, country, steel, security.' Furthermore, in Kermanshah, protesters voiced their grievances against the government's economic policies with chants like 'The subservient government has brought inflation' and 'Countless taxes, miserable facilities.' In Ahvaz, pensioners demanded their 'livelihood, medical, social, and human rights' through a protest march, chanting, 'Only on the streets can we obtain our rights.' In Shush, pensioners gathered in front of the labor office, highlighting the corruption and exploitation by the children and relatives of Islamic Republic officials, as well as the economic pressures on citizens due to the dollar price rising to 65,000 tomans, chanting, 'The son of the rich is in the cupboard, the dollar is sixty-five.' Pensioners from the steel industry also protested in front of the retirement fund office in Isfahan. In Tehran, pensioners from the steel industry gathered on Vezara Street. Additionally, reports from the Coordinating Council of Teachers' Trade Unions indicated that several welfare employees in Kurdistan staged sit-ins on Saturday and Sunday, April 8 and 9, protesting their 'livelihood situation and low salaries and benefits.' According to this report, welfare employees had previously requested their demands through various means, but the authorities remained 'completely indifferent' to their commitments to the disabled and other target groups of the welfare organization regarding the livelihood situation of employees. These protesters claim that the Islamic Republic government, through various inflationary and discriminatory policies, has refrained from increasing the budget for the disabled in line with the annual inflation rate and has 'left them alone.' In Zabol, diesel vehicle owners gathered in front of the oil company on Sunday, April 9, protesting the 'poor performance of the head of the Zabol oil company' and demanding his removal. The Iranian Pensioners Council also reported that pensioners from the 'Coal Company' in Kerman held a protest on Sunday, April 9, chanting, 'Only on the streets can we obtain our rights.' Citizens in Iran began the year 1403 with a new economic shock: a more than 3% increase in the dollar price; a trend that, although not new, adds additional pressure to the holiday expenses of Iranian families. Nevertheless, the leader and president of the Islamic Republic government, in their New Year messages, paid little attention to the inflation rate and the dire economic situation, deeming the country's economic conditions hopeful and naming the upcoming year as the year of production leap with public participation. However, exclusive conversations with citizens inside Iran reveal a significant gap between their sentiments and the government's slogans.