Originally Posted by CP Iran
"THE COUNCILS AND THE SOVEREIGNTY OF THE PEOPLE"
The worldwide experience, and now also the experience of Iran, has well proved that the parliamentary democracy, under deceitful guise, has always been the means of practically depriving the workers and the masses of effectively determining their own fate. In our point of view, a soviet system is the best and most available means by which the whole working class and all of the people can function as legislative and executive bodies in the society, and, thereby, determine their own life. Under the present conditions that technological progress has, more than ever, developed the International communication so that everyone can access the information in every field of knowledge, a soviet system will facilitate the direct participation of workers and masses in the administration of the social affairs more than ever. This system can also prevent the establishment of a bureaucratic system, which can be placed superior to the revolution and people, thereby, making them an incapable audience of the political scene.
Local soviets, the soviets of the people’s representatives at all levels, and the all-Iran congress of the deputies of the people’s soviets, as the country’s supreme ruling organ, form the structure of the political power in the country and will provide the real opportunity and possibility for workers and all of the people to participate in both the administration of the societal affairs and in the determination of their own political and economical future.
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" THE ABOLITION OF THE BEAURACRACY APPARATUS SUPREIOR TO PEOPLE"
The direct participation of the people in the administration of the country’s affairs, all of the administrative and political authorities of the country to be elective, and also recallable whenever the majority of the electors decide; Persons elected to such posts in this way should receive salaries at most equal to the wage of a skilled worker. The individuals have the right to lodge complaints against any state official through civil courts.
The judges and other judicial authorities to be elective, and recallable whenever the majority of the electors decide; the strict abolition of any kind of special courts; public hearing of all trials.
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"DISSOLUTION OF THE ARMY AND OTHER PROFESSIONAL ARMED FORCES"
The army, Pasdaran Corps, and the other suppressive organs of the Islamic Republic must be disbanded. Our final aim is to dissolve all of the professional armed forces; but, when there is a situation in which the professional army has not completely disbanded, it must be controlled and commanded by the general congress of the soviets, and we also struggle for democratizing the official relations inside the army. We stand for the absolute prohibition of any interference of the army in the internal affairs and consider it merely a defensive organ, not an aggressive one.
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"PERSONAL, POLITICAL AND SOCIAL RIGHTS AND FREEDOMS"
1- Universal, equal, direct and secret suffrage for all individuals, man or woman, above the age of 16; the right of every individual above 18 to be elected for any representative institution or organ;
2- Unconditional political freedom; the freedom of belief, expression, press; the freedom of assembly, elections, demonstrations, strikes, sit-ins; the formation of syndicates, unions and any kind of guild and political association. Provision of public access to the mass media, journals, radio and TV channels, and abolition of any kind of censorship;
3-The complete separation of religion from the State; strict abolition of: any kind of privilege and discrimination in government posts and in the legal rights of individuals according to the religion or the religious position of individuals, or their belief or disbelief in religion; any kind of state-aid, financial or otherwise, to religious activities and institutions; any kind of compulsory religious subjects, customs and rituals in the state schools and educational and training institutions; non of the religions to be recognized as the country’s official religion; religion is regarded as a private affair of individuals and all citizens are free to choose any kind of religion or no religion.
4- The complete equality of the legal rights of all citizens irrespective of religion, ideology and political belief; the elimination of any kind of legal discrimination and restriction on religious minorities and the elimination of any kind of restriction of the legal rights of the individuals on the bases of ideology and political belief.
5- The freedom of choice for job and place of residence, the legal immunity of any individual and his or her place of residence, the elimination of all laws and principals which lead to police-like interference in the private life of individuals, and disbanding all of the organs that execute these laws. Freedom of traveling, residing in all parts of the country, and freedom of traveling abroad for everyone.
6- Iran is a country that accepts immigrants. In Iran, political refugees are accepted unexceptionally. Every immigrant worker, or any refugee, in case of intention, can be naturalized, and otherwise, also, can enjoy the complete rights and equal to an Iranian native.
7- The complete supervision of the people over the foreign policy; the abolition of every kind of secret diplomacy, recognition of the equal rights of all nations, and supporting the workers, socialist and liberation movements throughout the world;
8- Inclusion of a law in the constitution indicating the abolition of death sentence.
" THE ABOLITION OF DISCRIMINATION AGAINST WOMEN, THE EQUALITY OF MEN AND WOMEN"
The Communist Party of Iran struggles for the establishment of the complete equality of men and women in all of the fields of their activities in political, economical, social and familial fields; therefore, in our point of view, the realization of the followings is urgent:
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"SOCIAL AND POLITICAL RIGHTS"
Men and women must benefit equally the right of electing and being elected in any legislative, judiciary and administrative organs at any civil level. All of the laws and principals which restrict the women in their choice of clothes and the way they wear, like the compulsory law of Hejab (veil-wearing), must be abolished. Any law or principal expressing separation of the men and women in meetings, schools, universities and public places and means of transportation must be eliminated. Any kind of discrimination according to sex must be abolished. All of the studying classes must be transformed to coeducational ones. Women have the right for taking part in any athletic, artistic and scientific activities and must enjoy the complete facilities in the said fields.
Women must be set free from the burden of the housework, and, therefore, their participation in social affairs and relations must be facilitated; for this purpose, special welfare institutions like nursery, kindergarten, laundry, etc must be established in the residential areas and be available as pay-free services for the public.
Complete equal employment opportunities for both men and women, paying equal wages for similar work to men and women, and equal social insurance for men and women. Employed women’s enjoying of two days off every month; prohibition of committing pregnant women to heavy work; the prohibition of the dismissal of pregnant women with any pretext; preventing the pregnant women, and the women who have children, from work is illegal and is considered an unlawful act; the prohibition of stating the sex of applicant in educational or employment advertisements (unless specified by the law as exceptions.)
Specifying 16 weeks as leave of absence for women at the time of pregnancy, and one year as leave of absence for taking care of the baby; this one-year leave of absence may be used, in the case of agreement, either by the husband or by the wife.
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"WOMEN RIGHTS IN THE FAMILY"
Freedom in marriage and selecting a spouse. Prohibition of any form of financial transaction in marriage, such as fixing Mehriyye, Shirbaha, Jahizieh (dowry), etc. (various payments by the two parts of the marriage); recognition of marriage by registration at State Registration Office; prohibition of Seegheh (Islamic wife-renting) and polygamy; equal right for men and women in the case of divorce and in the custody of children. The prohibition of marriage for girls and boys of under 18; religious officials who run the marriage contract for persons under 18 must be prosecuted by court. The prohibition of sexual relationship between persons above 18 and those under 16.
In all aspects of familial life, husband and wife must have complete equal rights and responsibilities in their own relationship, and also in their relationships with their children. The place of residence must be chosen by the agreement of both sides. The law that only recognizes the husband’s right to choose the place of residence must be abolished. Women’s right to work and to travel must not be limited to their husbands permission.
All of the legal and common laws which, under the pretext of "defending the chastity", reduce the sentences of crimes against women must be abolished. Severe sentences must be passed for crimes committed under the pretext of "defending the chastity" by father, brother, husband or anyone else against women. Any discrimination and inequalities between men and women in affairs like heritage, dividing the properties, and legal privileges of men and paternal heritage hierarchy in such affairs like guardianship and trusteeship must be abolished, men and women must have equal rights in divorce affair; Law must recognize their separation when there is intention of either sides. Maternal rights must be recognized independently from marriage. Those women who bear children without previously being married must enjoy all of social and individual rights of a mother. Their children, too, must enjoy all of the social rights. Personal relationship between husband and wife is respectful and must be protected from any kind of interference. Interference of state officials in the personal life of husband and wife is strongly prohibited.
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"THE ABORTION"
The capitalist society puts only two choices on the way for women who unwillingly get pregnant: abortion or, otherwise, sustaining severe mental, economic and social conditions. Poverty and incapability in affording economical facilities for children, real and practical obstacles which are inevitable on the way of women’s participation in social and economic affairs in the case of having children and undertaking them, and social outcomes for a single woman in the case of having children, all are the causes that make most women to put an end to their pregnancies, and when this is illegal, pregnant women have to do the abortion by non-specialist persons, under the non-hygienic conditions and by paying large amounts of money. Considering these facts, the abortion right must be recognized for women if there is no fatal life danger for them and if the embryo’s age is not above 16 weeks; abortion is not conditioned to anyone or any official’s permission except for the woman’s one.
The abortion must be done, free from paying any expenses, in hospitals or clinics, and under the supervision of a specialist doctor; otherwise, law should prosecute those who do the abortion without having the necessary specialty.
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"PROSTITUTION"
Prostitution is a kind of oppression that is compelled on the women in the capitalist society, and, therefore, struggle against prostitution is vital to restore the humane respect of women in the society. In the present societies, poverty, lack of social assistance, legal and practical limitations on the way of women employment and, thus, in the way of their independence, male- chauvinistic attitude and the manner and behavior of men as privileged sex in the society are the causes of prostitution to be established, maintained and spread. As the experience of Iran under the ruling of the Islamic Republic has well shown, religious trainings and prejudices have resulted in spreading the male-chauvinistic attitude and the privileged position of men and, on the other hand, the minor position of women in the society; this, in turn, is a good dissemination of prostitution among people.
Uprooting the prostitution demands struggle against all of the above causes. Moreover, in order to fight against prostitution, the following undertakings are urgent. The government must support the victims of prostitution economically, and provide educational facilities and employment possibilities for them. Procurers must be prosecuted by law and be punished by severe sentences.
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"ENDING THE NATIONAL OPPRESSION AND NATIONALITY-BASED DESCRIMANATION"
National oppression is one of the dominant discriminations and sightlessness states in Iran, which must be decisively annihilated:
We struggle for equality of the rights of nations, abolition of all of the legal and practical discriminations based on the nationality, ending the bureaucratic interference of the ruling government in the personal affairs of people, providing a situation in which democratic organs of the people’s local ruling can be formed, and the abolition of compulsory official language; we combat against causing and provoking national hostility among different nations.
We believe that the expediencies of the proletariat struggle towards socialism necessitates their political and action unity, and, therefore, the Communist Party of Iran tries to unite the working class of Iran in all of the fields of their struggle. Hence, we recognize the right of self-determination, that is their freedom choice even to separate from the central State, for all of the nations dwelling in Iran. However, we demand the unity of all nations, democratically and voluntarily, and believe that such a unity is in the favor of workers and toiler masses.
Also in order to promote the level of general culture and welfare which will, in turn, facilitates the joining of other toilers of the society in the struggle of the working class for ultimate emancipation, we demand the realization of the following:
1-Adequate unemployment benefit, on the basis of the minimum wage, for every unemployed individual over the age of 18;
2- The provision and guarantee of suitable housing (from the viewpoint of space, hygiene and urban services) for all citizens and immediate measures in this field through: confiscation of all lands of land grabbers and the luxurious and superfluous residential places of the rich, unnecessary State offices and departments, and the carrying out of short-term housing projects in the confiscated lands at the State’s expense, with the discretion of and by the people’s democratic organs;
3- Free and suitable national health and medical treatment for all citizens, and medical and clinical facilities available everywhere in the country; dissolution of private medical practice;
4- Free education at all levels and for all citizens; education to be compulsory until the age of 16, and an eminent program for uprooting the illiteracy;
5- The creation of cultural and welfare facilities in all deprived regions, whether urban or rural, such as electricity, telephone, plumbing system of drinking water, roads, schools, clinics, sports-halls, assembly halls, etc. at the State’s expense;
6- The creation of special welfare institutions for the purpose of reducing the burden of housework, such as laundry, kindergarten, etc. in the residential areas
7- The provision of the life facilities, security, recreation and education of children by the State, and independent from their familial conditions. The responsibility for looking after all children and youngsters of under 18 who lack living and welfare security through the family, to be placed under the guardianship of the State;
8- The securing by the State of the living and welfare of all the disabled, and providing the facilities necessary for them to express themselves socially;
9- Provision of the living facilities and welfare of all the elderly people, deserving their high position and considering their respect, by the State;
10- Elimination of all the indirect taxes;
11 The prohibition of marriage for girls and boys under 18 and the freedom of all individuals above 18 to form a family at their own will.
"PROTECTION OF THE ENVIRONMENT"
The Communist Party of Iran recognizes all of the mineral resources, rivers, forests, and grasslands as the public properties. We support the protection of natural resources and the environment, and also prevention from misusing them. The contamination of natural resources and causing air pollution in residential areas must be considered as unlawful acts and should face severe penalties.
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"LABOR LAW AND WORKER’S RIGHTS"
In the circumstances under which the capitalist system still continue to its ruling, the provision of the minimum of subsistence and welfare obliges the workers to submit to continuous, hard and unbearable labor which depletes their strength and health, and deprives them of the possibility and opportunity of moral development and the promotion of the level of their political and class consciousness. We, in order to secure the comfort and the material welfare of the workers and in order to safeguard the working class from intellectual and physical deterioration and increase its abilities in the struggle for complete emancipation from the yoke of capitalist oppression and exploitation, demand the realization of the following for all workers:
1- The reduction of the weekly work to a maximum of 35 hours and the allocation of at least two successive days of rest period in each week; the increasing of the workers annual vacation to 30 days, in addition to the official holidays, with the full payment of salary and allowances;
2- The determination of a minimum official wage by the approval of the elected national representatives of workers, on the basis of the cost of the means of subsistence and welfare of a five-member family, and the increase of the level of wages proportional to the rise in the cost of the means of subsistence and with a view to improving the standard of living;
3- The determination of wages, allowances and the period of rest during the intervals of the daily work, according to the hardness, the hazards, the state of hygiene and other physical conditions of work, by the approval of the elected representatives of workers;
4- The prohibition of the dismissal of workers by the employer and the referring of the final decision, in all cases of dismissal to the vote of the general assembly of the workers of the unit concerned; the supervision of the workers elected representatives over employment affairs;
5- The prohibition of any kind of overtime work;
6- The prohibition of night-work (from 10 p.m. to 6 am) in all branches except those where night-work is unavoidable for technical or social welfare reasons; the double payment of wages and allowances for night work; the payment of shift remuneration for shift-work;
7- The prohibition of any kind of piece-wage (whether piece-work or contract work) and the prohibition of wage payments in the form of goods and in non-monetary forms;
8- The prohibition of any fines and deduction of wages under various excuses, payment of salary for valid absences, illness and convalescence periods, strike time and any kind of stoppage of production for various reasons or due to excuses made by the employer;
9- The inclusion of the time spent by workers on eating, bathing after work, the convening of the general assembly and participation in literacy classes, as part of the working hours of workers; the commuting expenses to be met by the employer;
10- The assurance for safety and hygiene in the work-place, and reduction of hazards at the work-place to an absolute minimum level, regardless of economic considerations; regular medical supervision and examination against hazards and illnesses due to the type of the work, at the employers and the State’s expense;
11- Full insurance of workers against injuries and losses arising from work, whether they occur at the work-place or outside it and without the worker needing to prove the shortcoming on the part of the employer or the management of the production unit, at the employers and the State’s expense with the discretion and supervision of the elected representatives of workers; payment of compensation workers who suffer from illness and loss of limbs or lose the ability to work, as a result of accidents and damages arising from work; full payment of retirement pension and allowances to the workers in the latter case; the abolition of payment of insurance premium by workers;
12- The reduction of the maximum retirement age to 55 years or retirement after a maximum of 25 years work-record and the full payment of salary and allowances to retired workers by the State; full payment of the retirement pension and allowances of deceased workers to the persons under their support, improvement of the retirement pension and allowances along with the increase in the level of wages; the taking into account of the total number of working years of workers in factories or in different periods in calculating the basis of salary and allowances for the workers;
13- Equal wage for women and men for equal work;
14- The prohibition of committing pregnant women to heavy work, 16-week vacation for female workers for the period of pregnancy and childbirth without ant deduction from the salary and allowances; the allocation of two extra days off every month, for women, with the full payment of salary and allowances;
15- The prohibition of professional work for children and youngsters of under 18;
16- The provision of welfare and cultural necessities at the work-place and firm-provided residential areas, such as: assembly hall, resting hall, refectory, nursery and kindergarten, clinic, library and adult educational classes at the employer and the State’s expense;
17- The drawing-up and implementation of internal regulations in workshops and production and economic units by the approval and supervision of the elected representatives of the workers;
18- The formation of tribunals, for settling disputes, with a jury composed of the elected representatives of workers, for arbitration in cases of dispute between the worker and the employer; the costs of calling the tribunals must all be borne by the employers;
19- The formation of workers boards of inspection elected by the workers; these boards shall inspect on and call to account how the above points are implemented in all the production units and generally in all the places at which the workers are engaged in employment (including domestic services).
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The Communist Party of Iran struggles persistently in order to achieve the above reforms for the workers and deprived masses in their social life. We support any struggle for liberation and freedom against the Islamic Republic, and support any movement that persistently struggles for abolition and eradication of any kind of sexual, religious, national, political, economical, social and cultural discrimination.
The Communist Party of Iran will participate in any struggle, social movement and political organization if it recognizes that they are in favor of the working and socialist forces and can help them to take the political power in their control.
Communist Party of Iran, Worthy of Support?
