President of Vancouver District Labour Council Demands Release of Shahrokh Zamani

A Letter from Joey Hartman, President of Vancouver & District Labour Council in Canada, Demanding Release of Mr. Shahrokh Zamani and Other Jailed  Labor Unionists

[Farsi]

In response to efforts made by Mr. Masoud Arjang, the contact person of ”Campaign to Free Jailed Workers in Iran” and a member of Vancouver & District Labour Council, Ms. Joey Hartman, the president of this workers union has on behalf of 60000 members of VDLC written  a protest letter to president Ahmadinejad. Ms. Hartman in this letter writes:” we are once again compelled to insist that human rights be respected in Iran. Your government cannot continue to ignore international calls to stop the arrest, imprisonment and torture of labour activists.”

Ms. Hartman concludes her letter by stating:” On behalf of the 60,000 unionized workers represented by the Vancouver & District Labour Council in Canada, I call upon you to release these individuals from prison immediately, and to take the steps to ensure that the rights of workers to form and join effective trade unions are protected.” The original letter is enclosed.

Joey Hartman, President VDLC

November 1, 2012

President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad
The Presidency, Palestine Avenue, Azerbaijan Intersection
Tehran, Islamic Republic of Iran
By Email: dr-ahmadinejad@president.ir

Dear President Ahmadinejad:

Re: Call for Release of Mr. Shahrokh Zamani and Other Jailed Trade Unionists

Further to my letter of June 27, 2012, we are once again compelled to insist that human rights be respected in Iran. Your government cannot continue to ignore international calls to stop the arrest, imprisonment and torture labour activists.

Mr. Shahrokh Zamani, a member of the Painters’ Union of Tehran, is a popular and well-known labour activist.  He was arrested on June 5, 2011 without charges, and was then subjected to physical and psychological torture for the next forty days.

He was then taken to the Central Prison of Tabriz and charged by the First Branch of Revolutionary Court with “spreading propaganda against the regime and forming socialist groups.” His true activities were defending the rights of workers and creating a union.  Regardless, Mr. Zamani was convicted on these trumped up charges, which carry a mandatory 11 year prison sentence.

He is now being held in the notorious Rajaei-Shahr prison. During his imprisonment, Mr. Zamani has continued to be subjected to severe torture and cruelty. These circumstances are far from unique.  To the contrary, his abuse is consistent with what we hear about how all political prisoners and labour activists are treated in Iran.

Other political prisoners include:

• Mr. Reza Shahabi – Executive Board of the Union of Workers of Tehran and Suburbs United Bus Company
• Mohammad Jarahi and Behnam Ebrahimzadeh – Follow-Up Committee to Set Up Free Labour Organizations in Iran
• Rasoul Bodaghi – Teachers’ Trade Association
• Abdolreza Ghanbari – a teacher who was arrested in 2009 and threatened with a death sentence

On behalf of the 60,000 unionized workers represented by the Vancouver & District Labour Council in Canada, I call upon you to release these individuals from prison immediately, and to take the steps to ensure that the rights of workers to form and join effective trade unions are protected.

Yours truly,

Ms. Joey Hartman

President

Vancouver and District Labour Council

Translated to Farsi by: Free Them Now ”Campaign to Free Jailed Workers in Iran”