On May 11, the people of Iran held at least 11 rallies, protests, and strikes in various cities, venting their anger over the government’s plundering and profiteering policies. Teachers continued their consecutive rallies in front of the Parliament (Majlis) demanding officials recruit them.
Furthermore, students once again rallied in at least three cities protesting educational officials’ decision to hold in-person exams amidst the coronavirus outbreak. Also, municipal workers staged rallies and sit-ins in different cities demanding their overdue salaries.
Rally of Teachers
Tehran province—on Tuesday, May 11, for the third day in a row, teachers gathered in front of the Majlis protesting the Education Ministry’s refusal to recruit them.
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Tehran—for the third day in a row, college-graduated teachers rallied in front of the Parliament.
Given the economic crises, retired teachers do not resign. Therefore, the education department cannot recruit new forces leading to an endless chain of dilemmas. pic.twitter.com/SxdUyqU6MD— Iran News Update (@IranNewsUpdate1) May 11, 2021
According to official statistics, around 25,000 college-graduated teachers across Iran have recently passed the employment tests and received their certifications. They are known as green-certificate holders. However, the ministry has broken its prior promises about recruiting these people prompting their anger.
Rally of Municipal Workers
Khuzestan province—on Tuesday, May 11, municipal workers affiliated with the Arvandkenar Municipality held a rally in front of the local City Council. They protested officials’ failure to pay their salaries and arrears.
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Khuzestan—municipal workers rallied in front of the Arvandkenar municipality protesting officials' failure to pay their overdue salaries and arrears. pic.twitter.com/xKyMeFTXj4— Iran News Update (@IranNewsUpdate1) May 11, 2021
Also, municipal workers in Khorramshahr staged a rally in front of the local Governorate. They blamed officials for failing to pay their salaries for several months.
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Khuzestan—municipal workers in Khorramshahr rallied in front of the local Governorate protesting officials' failure to pay their delayed salaries. pic.twitter.com/4innfErxiV— Iran News Update (@IranNewsUpdate1) May 12, 2021
Protesters had listed their arrears and unpaid salaries and bonuses on a placard. They have not received their salaries while they sincerely continued their services amidst the coronavirus outbreak, which severely impacted people’s lives and livelihoods.
Student Protests in Different Cities
Khuzestan province—high-school students once again held a rally in front of Izeh Education Department. They declared their objection toward in-person exams.
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Khuzestan—high-school students once again rallied in front of the education department in Izeh protesting in-person exams.
"Online education, online exam," protesters chanted. pic.twitter.com/qya6t9HXRh— Iran News Update (@IranNewsUpdate1) May 12, 2021
Education officials insist on holding in-person exams while Covid-19 claims more lives each day. “Online education, online exam,” students chanted.
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Khuzestan—high-school students rallied in front of the education department in Khorramshahr protesting in-person exams. "We would stage a greater rally on Saturday," they said. pic.twitter.com/m5L2V7g6Mm— Iran News Update (@IranNewsUpdate1) May 12, 2021
Furthermore, students in Khorramshahr gathered in front of the local education department protesting in-person exams. At the end of their rally, students declared that they would hold a bigger rally on Saturday.
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High-school students continued their rallies protesting officials' insistence on in-person exams amidst #CoronavirusPandemic. pic.twitter.com/1FhXe3MqB2— Iran News Update (@IranNewsUpdate1) May 11, 2021
Fars province—high-school students held a rally in Shiraz protesting officials’ decision to hold in-person exams endangering the lives of students, teachers, and their families.
Rally of Teachers
Fars and Isfahan province—teachers in the Zarrinshahr district, a suburb of Shiraz in Fars province, and Isfahan city held rallies in front of the education departments. They protested officials’ failure to pay their overdue salaries.
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Teachers rallied in front of the local education departments in Shiraz and Isfahan protesting officials' failure to pay overdue salaries.
They also vented their anger over the continuation of imprisonment of teachers, writing "Prison is not the teacher's place." pic.twitter.com/zvTCuxZpoB— Iran News Update (@IranNewsUpdate1) May 11, 2021
They demanded officials implement the plan for ranking teachers based on their services. Protesters also vented their anger over the government’s oppressive policies and performances. “The prison is not a place for teachers,” they said condemning the arrest of teachers.
Sit-in of Contract Municipal Workers
Kurdistan province—municipal workers of Qarveh city staged a sit-in at the local municipality’s site. They protested officials’ failure to balance their salaries.
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Kurdistan—municipal workers of Qarveh city staged a sit-in at the local municipality’s site protesting officials’ failure to balance their salaries. pic.twitter.com/brpCYuktbJ— Iran News Update (@IranNewsUpdate1) May 12, 2021
“After 20-25 years of working experience, our job conditions are still bleak. Since 2019, there are two directives about our job conditions. However, they were not applied due to sabotage of employment section and flaws in financial affairs,” workers said.
During their sit-in, the new Mayor Abbas Sonnati approached the protesters and promised to resolve workers’ dilemmas. However, workers say that the City Council has dealt with their difficulties with indifference, and its members even avoided attending the sit-in.
Rally of Urban Train Staff
Fars province—a group of urban train forces in Shiraz held a rally in front of the Urban Train building. They protested officials’ failure to pay their salaries and pensions.
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Fars—urban train forces in Shiraz rallied in front of the company's office protesting officials’ failure to pay their salaries and pensions. pic.twitter.com/FAJBiQIJbE— Iran News Update (@IranNewsUpdate1) May 12, 2021
Rally of Health Staff
Khuzestan province—health and medical staff of the Nezam Mafi hospital in Shush staged a rally in front of the hospital. They protested officials’ failure to pay their salaries and clarify the fate of previous directives over their job conditions.
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Khuzestan—medical staff of the Nezam Mafi hospital in Shush rallied in front of the hospital protesting officials’ failure to pay their salaries and clarify the fate of previous directives over their job conditions. pic.twitter.com/LgfFNMavtL— Iran News Update (@IranNewsUpdate1) May 12, 2021
They demanded officials follow up their job and living conditions. Despite the invaluable efforts of health and medical staff amidst the coronavirus outbreak, the officials have failed to resolve their fundamental difficulties and even pay their meager salaries.