· The Islamic regime of Iran is a brutal dictatorship that crushes any attempt at setting up independent trade unions. Beatings, unlawful arrest, routine torture and even execution are used against labour activists.
· Iranian workers are denied basic trade union rights, including the right to strike, to form independent unions and to elect genuine representatives.
· Despite the election of Khatami as President over six years ago, and a 'reformist' majority in parliament for over four years, there have been no improvements in the living and working conditions of workers.
· The imminent opening of the office of the International Labour Organisation (ILO) in Iran will not fulfil all of the workers' demands.
· The Iranian Workers' Solidarity Network (IWSN) is one of the bodies active in mobilising international support for the daily and ongoing struggles of the Iranian working class. IWSN aims to help Iranian workers achieve all of their demands.
· The struggles of Iranian workers for the right to strike, to form unions independent of the regime (and its supporters) and to elect genuine representatives.
· The resistance of Iranian workers to unpaid wages, sackings and redundancies, factory closures and privatisation.
· The opposition of Iranian workers to any reduction to the already limited protection of the Labour Code, particularly in workshops.
· The actions of labour activists to put pressure on the Iranian regime and the ILO so that all the workers' demands are met.
· The work of IWSN in defending workers who have been imprisoned for demanding their basic rights.
· The efforts of IWSN to publicise the Iranian workers' lack of trade union rights and their economic plight.
BM IWSN, London WC1N 3XX, England.
iranwsn@yahoo.co.uk - http://iwsn.topcities.com/