Top Iranian union leader jailed by regime

[PRC-UTE]

In this week's mailing:

* Top Iranian union leader jailed by regime - international campaign launched
* More attacks on Russian auto workers union at GM
* Victory in Houston - thanks from the union

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TOP IRANIAN UNION LEADER JAILED BY REGIME - INTERNATIONAL CAMPAIGN LAUNCHED

Last winter, the Iranian capital city of Tehran was practically shut down by
striking bus drivers. The reaction of the regime was swift and brutal -- hundreds
of workers were arrested in an attempt to break their union. The union leader,
Mansour Osanloo, was jailed for 8 months and finally released on bail -- but last
Sunday was arrested again while on his way to the Labour Ministry. Osanloo was
verbally and physically assaulted, threatened with a gun, and driven away by
plain-clothes police.

Unions around the world are reacting, demanding that the Iranian government release
Osanloo immediately.

Please add your voice to this mounting wave of international protest - go here:

http://www.labourstart.org/cgi-bin/solidar...paign.cgi?c=167 (http://www.labourstart.org/cgi-bin/solidarityforever/show_campaign.cgi?c=167)

In addition, we'd like to you consider downloading and printing out an offline
version of this campaign, here:

http://www.labourstart.org/freemansour.pdf

You can make copies of this page and take it to meetings, signing up people offline.

Working together, we can turn this into the biggest online campaign LabourStart has
ever run -- and let's send a loud and clear message to Tehran that workers' rights
are human rights, and must be respected everywhere.

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MORE ATTACKS ON RUSSIAN AUTO WORKERS UNION AT GM

Three days ago, Ilsiyar Sherafutdinova, vice-chairwoman of the independent trade
union committee at the General Motors-AVTOVAZ factory in Russia, was fired by
management. According to the union, "This is a disgusting act of persecution of a
trade union activist, aiming at destroying the workers' organization independent
from the bosses." If you've not yet done so, please make sure to sign up to our
campaign, launched in September, in support of the workers at GM AVTOVAZ, here:

http://www.labourstart.org/cgi-bin/solidar...paign.cgi?c=143 (http://www.labourstart.org/cgi-bin/solidarityforever/show_campaign.cgi?c=143)

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VICTORY IN HOUSTON - THANKS FROM THE UNION

Diego Mendez, campaign field coordinator for the SEIU in Houston, asked for this
message to be passed on to all of you:

"Thank you for participating in the Houston Justice for Janitors LabourStart online
campaign. The thousands of emails sent through LabourStart were vital to the win
that will help thousands of working families in Houston climb out of poverty and
have access to affordable healthcare."

Online campaigns work! Please make sure that you are participating in all the
current LabourStart campaigns here:

http://www.labourstart.org/actnow.shtml

Thanks very much. Have a great weekend.

Eric

[Keyser]

This should not come as any suprise to any class struggle activist, socialist or communist/anarchist.

The repressive and fascistic regime of Iran's Islamist theocracy does not have any progressive features and is no better than the reactionary regime of the former Shah.

Both existed as agents and representatives of Iranian capitalism, the only difference being that they represented two different factions within the Iranian ruling capitalist class.

The Shah's regime was there for those elements within Iranian capitalism that were content with working with US and European imperialism in a manner of servitude and protecting imperialist interests in the region.

The Islamist dictatorship that has been in power since 1979 represents the other elements in Iranian capitalism that are more assertive in their own power and wish to develope a capitalist structure that is both independent and at times antagonistic towards imperialism, especially US imperialism.

The Islamist dictatorship is the state expression of an Iranian bourgeois that wishes to use the exploitation of Iran's resources and labour for it's own purposes rather than to sell off Iran's resources and labour to global imperialism and the US in particular.

The Iranian working class and all political elements who work and struggle towards the objective of working class liberation and a social revolution in Iran are the only side any of us here should give our support and solidarity to.

The Iranian regime is not worthy of any support and is just the other side of the coin in capitalist exploitation and oppression in the Middle East.

[Ol' Dirty]

Hear hear!

:D :D

[Keyser]

Hear hear!

Yes, but there are some on the political left, including many self proclaimed 'marxists' who do offer support to the Iranian islamist regime and the ayatollahs who run things there.

[Louis Pio]

Yes, but there are some on the political left, including many self proclaimed 'marxists' who do offer support to the Iranian islamist regime and the ayatollahs who run things there.


Indeed, alot of groups supported Khomeini because he was "anti-imperialist", also groups in Iran, this had terrible consequences since it enabled Khomeini to crush the workers movement.
The Tudeh party (communist) who had millions of members and even more supporters, had a line like this.

[Keyser]

Indeed, alot of groups supported Khomeini because he was "anti-imperialist", also groups in Iran, this had terrible consequences since it enabled Khomeini to crush the workers movement.

I know, a real fucking shame!

The unrest and social revolt in Iran in 1978-1979 was not in the main caused, organised or even led (in it's early stages) by Khomeini and his islamist thugs. There was a huge workers movement which itself reflected the anger of the Iranian proletariat at a time of rapid industrialisation and the process of Iran becoming a capitalist economy. The Iranian workers movement had many different components, from reformist socialists, leninists, maoists and anarcho-communists. It was only after the Shah had left that Khomeini flew in, took power and then turned on the left and the workers with brutal savagery that equaled the Shah's own barbarity.


The Tudeh party (communist) who had millions of members and even more supporters, had a line like this.

The sad irony of this was that the Tudeh Party suffered the most in terms of it's members killed and the repression given to them by Khomeini's dictatorship.

What happened to the Tudeh Party and other leftists and workers in Iran is a good example of why it is not a good idea to form united fronts and popular fronts with political and social forces outside of the workers struggle for class liberation and social revolution. In the end, those very political and social forces will turn against the workers and leftists as soon as possible, to put out any flame of a workers revolt, to preserve the capitalist system to which they are a part of.

[Louis Pio]

The most absurd thing is that the Tudeh party (well the sad leftovers) still follow the same line.
In 1979 they said unite with the bazar (what they say as the progressive bourgiosie) and Khomeini against the shah.
And today their line is unite with the bazar against the mullahs. They have shown themselves totally unable to learn from their past mistakes.