Teachers are protesting government policies that have made their lives difficult. They are demanding that the government service law, the “Teachers Ranking” bill, be fully implemented and that salaries be adjusted in accordance with rising inflation rates and the depreciation of the national currency.

On Thursday, June 16, teachers and educators took to the streets to protest the regime’s education policies and the suppression of teachers’ rights activists. Marivan, Bandar Abbas, Khorram Abad, Sharekord, Kashmar, Sari, Hamedan, Sanandaj, Karaj, Bukan, Saqqez, Andimeshk, and a number of other cities reported protests. Teachers’ rights organizations had organized and declared the protests a week prior. Despite the regime’s use of harsh security measures to prevent them, they continue to take place today. To intimidate protesters, security forces summoned and arrested dozens of teachers, activists, and demonstration organizers on Wednesday. However, large rallies were reported in several cities on Thursday.

Teachers are fighting for their most basic rights, such as an increase in their monthly wages above the poverty line, which is currently around 120-140 million rials. The majority of teachers are paid half of that amount. According to the regime’s own statistics, the income of teachers is 40% lower than the cost of living.

The Iranian Teachers Coordination Council stated in a statement that the regime’s policies have only exacerbated poverty by pushing teachers from the middle to lower classes. The regime’s policies have resulted in unprecedented levels of inflation and skyrocketing basic goods prices. Meanwhile, salaries for teachers and other workers have remained unchanged.

“Government employees, workers, teachers, and retirees can’t fight the effects of unbridled inflation, and their purchasing power is eroding every day, their food tables are shrinking, and they have no choice but to assert their rights by raising their voices in the streets,” according to the statement. “It’s disappointing that authorities are retaliating with violence rather than listening to the frustrated people’s voices. They don’t think the people are tired of poverty and discrimination.”

So far, the regime has either ignored or responded to the teachers’ protests with force and repression. On Thursday, videos and reports from various cities indicated that security forces were present in large numbers to prevent the protests.

Hundreds of teachers and labor activists have been arrested by the regime’s security forces in recent months. Some have been sentenced to prison or fined, while others have been summoned to appear in court. The regime is using all means at its disposal to intimidate the public and prevent protests. Nonetheless, the teachers have returned to the streets to reiterate their demands.

Hundreds of teachers and labor activists have been arrested by the regime’s security forces in recent months. Some have been sentenced to prison or fined, while others have been summoned to appear in court.

The teachers said on Thursday that they will keep protesting until their arrested colleagues are released. These demonstrations take place against the backdrop of several rounds of nationwide teacher protests over the last year.On Wednesday, 11 UN rapporteurs expressed concern about the regime’s crackdown on protests, including Javaid Rehman, the UN Rapporteur on Human Rights Conditions in Iran.

“The recent escalation of allegedly arbitrary arrests of teachers, labor rights defenders, and union leaders, lawyers, human rights defenders, and other civil society actors has alarmed us,” the experts said.

The reports express concern about the regime’s continued suppression of peaceful protests in Iran by people from all walks of life.”In the absence of meaningful channels of participation in Iran,” the experts said, “peaceful protests are now the only remaining means for individuals and groups to express themselves and share their grievances with the authorities.” “We are deeply concerned that the authorities’ first response is one of security, involving the use of excessive force against protestors and what appears to be an active policy of shielding perpetrators and preventing accountability.

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