Tehran Merchants Strike in Protest Against Street Vendors

A new round of confrontations and the collection of street vendors began following a two-day strike by a section of Tehran's merchants and clashes between some of them and street vendors initiated by the Tehran municipality. These strikes started on Sunday, March 6, in the clothing market located on Amirakram Street and continued until the evening of Monday, March 7, resulting in some clashes. ISNA reported that shopkeepers had lowered their shop shutters since Sunday, chanting slogans demanding the removal of street vendors. Banners and fabrics with protest messages regarding the presence of street vendors were also installed at some shops. One of these banners stated, 'Due to the failure to remove the obstruction and street vendors until the end of working hours today and tomorrow (March 7), the merchants of Milad Qaim market have gone on strike and the passage is closed.' ISNA also reported some clashes on the second day of the merchants' strike, noting that several merchants from the Milad Qaim market resorted to force to prevent street vendors from operating and clashed with them. The protesting shopkeepers stated, 'The competition between us and the street vendors is not equal because they do not bear any of the costs that we do.' One protesting seller mentioned, 'Some street vendors easily operate in the market by paying very little, for example, 50,000 tomans to municipal agents.' One street vendor who clashed with shopkeepers told ISNA, 'Many people do not have enough financial means, and we also provide and sell cheaper goods of good quality.' In recent years, alongside the decline in people's purchasing power and the increase in economic recession, street vendors have become one of the challenges for the municipality and the Tehran market, with reports indicating that 18,000 street vendors have been organized so far. In recent weeks, multiple reports of clashes between municipal agents and street vendors have emerged from various areas of Tehran, with this increase in confrontations attributed to the heightened market activity in the days leading up to the New Year. Every year in March, as the Persian New Year approaches, Tehran's markets witness an increase in street vendor activity, which has become a serious issue this year. The two-day strike by some merchants is a sign of the seriousness of the street vendor issue in Tehran. Reza Ghadimi, the CEO of the Tehran Industries and Professions Organization, announced that street vendors will no longer be allowed to operate. Mr. Ghadimi stated, 'Some esteemed religious authorities have deemed obstruction of passage as haram in response to several inquiries, and the judiciary has also issued rulings to remove obstructions.' The Tehran municipality has created 54 day and night markets and seven sales centers for female heads of households to organize street vendors, but these measures have not resolved the street vending issue. In the past eight months, municipal agents have resorted to violence to address this problem, leading to the dismissal of '400 obstruction removal agents,' according to Reza Ghadimi. The two-day strike by merchants ultimately led to a joint meeting between the municipality of District 11 and the Greater Tehran Police Command, resulting in coordination to begin a new round of collecting street vendors.