Students of Oil Universities Continue Their Protests and Sit-ins

The Oil Engineering Faculty in Abadan has been closed until 'further notice' following the students' protests. Meanwhile, students continue their sit-in in front of the Ministry of Oil, stating they will persist in their protests. According to ISNA news agency, the Oil Engineering Faculty announced via a text message to students on Saturday, December 2, that it would remain closed until further notice. In this context, one student from the Oil Industry Faculty told the Young Journalists Club website: 'The meaning of the phrase until further notice is clear to us. This situation will continue until we return to classes and abandon our legitimate demands.' According to the report, the university's cafeteria has also been closed. The closure of this faculty follows more than two weeks of protests and sit-ins by students and graduates of oil universities in Abadan and Ahvaz. The Oil Industry University is affiliated with the Iranian Ministry of Oil and began its activities in 1939 as the Abadan Technical School, with the Ahvaz, Abadan, and Tehran oil faculties being its subsidiaries. The protesting students, by boycotting classes, say they will continue their sit-in until they receive a response from government officials regarding their 'employment status determination.' The protesting students claim that the Ministry of Oil is obligated by the employment regulations of 2001 to meet its human resource needs from the Oil Industry University. According to the Ana news agency, affiliated with Azad University, under this regulation, graduates ranked A from the Oil University have been prioritized for employment and were hired in the Ministry of Oil and its affiliated companies without exams; graduates ranked B and C also had separate quotas in employment exams. Previously, a protesting student from the Oil Industry University told Radio Farda about the employment challenges faced by students and graduates of this university: 'We gave a notarized commitment to work for eight years in the Ministry of Oil, but now the Ministry does not accept the contract it itself signed.' According to some Iranian media, students and graduates of the Oil Industry University have held protests in front of the Ministry of Oil and Parliament in recent months to achieve their demands, which have so far been fruitless for the protesters. In this regard, Kamran Dehghani, the Director General of Education, Planning, and Administrative Transformation at the Ministry of Oil, responded to these protests on Thursday, December 9, stating that the ministry is 'not obligated to indiscriminately employ' students and graduates of oil universities. According to ILNA news agency, he also stated that with the establishment of dozens of oil-related fields in universities across Iran and the education of thousands in these fields, the rights of other graduates cannot be overlooked, and is it not a violation of the rights of graduates from other universities that the Ministry of Oil must hire 90% of graduates even without interviews and contrary to its own regulations? In this context, according to ISNA news agency, a 'large number' of students and graduates from the Oil Industry University protested against the Ministry of Oil's employment conditions and the elimination of employment without exams for graduates ranked A from this university, gathering in Pasteur Square in Tehran in front of the Presidential Office. Neda Nabavi, a graduate of the Oil Industry University and representative of the protesting students, told ISNA that the law for the employment of ranked A graduates from the Oil Industry University without exams in the Ministry of Oil was abolished in 2015, adding: 'Protesters individually complained to the Administrative Justice Court, which ultimately ruled in favor of the protesters, obliging the Ministry of Oil to employ graduates ranked A from this university, but this ministry appealed the court's ruling, and we have been waiting for the court's opinion for over a year now.' She emphasized that students will continue their protests, noting that officials at the Oil Industry University are forcing students to return to classes through 'fear and intimidation from the disciplinary committee.' Previously, a protesting student from the Oil Industry University told Radio Farda that '20 students from Abadan and 30 from Ahvaz were summoned, and they were accused of inciting students to riot and strike at the university and also of being members of a think tank.' According to ISNA, the students and graduates of the Oil Industry University who gathered in front of the Presidential Office issued a statement on Saturday calling on Hassan Rouhani, the President of Iran, to order the implementation of the law for the employment of all graduates ranked A from the Oil Industry University based on the previous process (before June 2015) by the Ministry of Oil. They also demanded the implementation of the Administrative Justice Court's ruling, which, according to this resolution, obliges the Ministry of Oil to employ all graduates ranked A from the Oil Industry University unconditionally. Meanwhile, according to the Young Journalists Club, following the students' sit-in in front of the Ministry of Oil building in Tehran, ministry officials coordinated with the Tehran Municipality and used watering vehicles after 9 PM on Saturday to dismantle the tents of the protesting students in front of the Ministry of Oil building. Nevertheless, reports from this site indicate that the students of the Oil Industry University formed a human chain on Sunday in front of the Ministry of Oil building, stating they would continue their sit-in until their demands are met.