1st May in Iran: The vigilance of the working class and privatization for „Inflation Controll, Production Growth

1st May in Iran: The vigilance of the working class and privatization for „Inflation Controll, Production Growth

The International Workers‘ Day, May 1st, now also in Iran, with praise for the workers as the backbone of production and the hoped-for production growth, the second important component of the economic policy line „inflation control, production growth“. . Are there parades like they used to be under communism? Apparently, a meeting of a small circle of selected workers, jubilant proletarians or state trade unionists with Khameini is quite sufficient, whereby the mullahs‘ regime presents itself as a fair and just mediator of capital and wage-worker interests, a kind of Iranian corporatist social partnership:

“Workers are production backbone, society value: Leader

By Mahnaz Abdi

April 29, 2023 – 15:7

TEHRAN- The current Iranian calendar year 1402 (began on March 21) is named “Inflation Control, Production Growth” by the Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei.

“Production Growth” to achieve self-reliance is in fact the main approach of Iran to nullify the sanctions, so all those who can play role in martializing this objective are of great significance in the country.

The Leader’s special view about the necessity of people’s participation in the process of economic growth and development and the necessity of popularizing Iran’s economy in order to achieve the goals of economic transformation in recent years is not hidden from anyone.

His emphasis on important people-oriented economic topics and concepts such as economic jihad, national production and support for Iranian work and capital, economic epic, economy and culture, with national determination and jihadi management, resistance economy, support for Iranian products, production boom, production jump, knowledge-based economy, economic transformation, etc., in naming the years of the last decade and his statements and orders in meeting with the people and those involved in the government, show the depth of his economic view based on jihadi and comprehensive presence of the people to advance the economic goals of the country.

In the second month of the „Inflation Control, Production Growth“ year and on the occasion of the National Labor’s Week, a group of workers from all over the country met with the Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Khamenei on Saturday morning.

Addressing the workers, the Leader said:

“Labor” is the life of society, it is the backbone of people’s lives, without it, there is nothing.

Work is done by the worker, so the value of the worker is the value of the society’s life, the value of the people’s life.

Unemployment is the source of corruption. Many social harms are caused by unemployment. Addiction is related to unemployment, corruption is related to unemployment, theft is related to unemployment. Divorce, destruction of families is related to unemployment.

Therefore, those organizations that are responsible for the job creation should know how important it is for society to create employment in the real sense, and invest in this field.

The backbone of the country’s economy is production. The backbone of production is the worker. We must not let the worker, this backbone weaken.

We said “Production Growth” this year. So how does production growth occur? An important part of production growth is related to workers.

For the growth of production, to improve the situation, they should consider the improvement of the worker’s life as an important principle.

“Fair share of labor income“ was another point that the Leader emphasized and said the worker’s contribution in creating value for the product is more than other elements and factors, therefore, in order to create a high value for the products, it is necessary to seriously plan in the field of education, skill training and experience building of the workers.

He did not consider paying attention to the worker’s share to mean ignoring the investor and creating a front against it and pointed out:

Both the entrepreneur and the worker need each other and what ensures a fair share in work relationships is fairness, companionship, empathy and seeing God as a watcher.

Of course, in some cases, capital instruments violate the rights of workers, which must be prevented, while the possible limitations of investors and entrepreneurs must also be considered.

He finally called raising the abilities of the workers as a duty, and referred to the saying that „Oppression of the worker is the cause of the destruction of all good deeds and makes the smell of heaven haram (forbidden)“.

https://www.tehrantimes.com/news/484109/Workers-are-production-backbone-society-value-Leader

Today the main topic in the Tehran Times is clear enemy identification, differentiation, demarcation and drawing clear lines to the enemy. Very reminiscent of Carl Schmidt’s „friend/enemy“ distinction or Himmler’s speech to the SS, since some of his murder troop probably wanted to make exceptions to the extermination of the Jews. Otherwise, from Khameini’s point of view, the lines here seem to be blurred and not made clear enough. Also interesting that he holds his meeting with workers. Does he fear their disloyalty or even a general strike, which contributed significantly to the fall of the Shah in 1979? So preferably no wage demands, sabotage, laziness at work or strikes, let alone a general strike. That only benefits the enemy.

„Fateful „line“

By Mohammad Sarfi

April 30, 2023 – 11:30

TEHRAN- A review of Ayatollah Khamenei’s speeches over the past few decades shows that he has repeatedly emphasized the necessity of drawing a line with the enemy.

For example, in the “Second Phase of the Revolution”, he emphasized:

“The Islamic Republic is not reactionary and it does not lack perception and understanding in face of new phenomena and situations; however, it strongly adheres to its principles and it is highly sensitive to its frontiers in relation to its rivals and enemies. It never imprecisely regards its principal lines and considers it important as why and how it would persist.”

Drawing a line between oneself and the enemy is a key and sensitive issue for individuals and various groups. The enemy uses various and sometimes very complex methods to achieve its goals. The complexity of these methods sometimes causes some individuals, despite having good intentions, to favor the enemy without even wanting to or knowing it. This is where at every stage of any move or action in various fields, one must think about its relationship with the enemy’s plans and goals.

On Saturday, Leader of the Islamic Revolution again addressed the issue of drawing a line with the enemy in a meeting with workers and praised their intelligence in this regard. Despite protests for their rights, workers have not allowed these protests to become an excuse for Iran’s enemies to exploit.

Paying attention to the enemy’s plan in this regard shows the value of intelligence in the workers‘ community. The most important tool of the West, especially the United States, against Iran in recent years has been sanctions. Their goal was to put pressure on the people and thereby put them against the government. They wanted to increase the pressure on the people, especially the working class, to the point where they would take to the streets in rebellion and the country would become chaotic and insecure. This is while America always claims that the goal of sanctions is to put pressure on the Iranian government to change its behavior. But in reality, the people are the target.

For example, Richard Nephew, a Treasury Department official in the Obama administration who is also known as the „architect of Iran sanctions“, said in an interview about whether the main target of U.S. sanctions is the people or governments of countries, he said, „It depends on the country being sanctioned and what interests are at stake. If you sanction the Qaddafi regime in Libya, you shouldn’t even think about the population because Qaddafi didn’t care about his population or their suffering. It’s the same with Kim Jong-un and North Korea. Here, ‚pain‘ should specifically target the ruling elites to change their behavior. The same goes for Russia. In my opinion, when it comes to using ‚pain‘ for populations, it should be a government that has a popular base, and Iran falls into this category… In the case of sanctions, we should have focused on where the decision-makers would be convinced, and in the case of Iran, this was through making people dissatisfied with the situation.“

Attention to the way America intervenes and infiltrates in different countries shows that workers have been one of the main targets. The working class in any country faces its own issues and problems. The Americans try to exploit these problems and resulting protests to advance their political and hegemonic goals in countries they consider as enemies. Of course, they also cover up this exploitation with beautiful slogans and human rights claims.

The noble working community in Iran has so far thwarted America’s sinister plans. Continuing to resist against these conspiracies, in addition to the intelligence of the workers, requires more attention from officials to the demands of this noble and hardworking class and improving their welfare, as emphasized by Ayatollah Khamenei on Saturday.”
 

Mohammad Sarfi is Editor-in-Chief Tehran Times

https://www.tehrantimes.com/news/484147/Fateful-line

The sanctions are also discussed, that in the case of Ghaddafi and North Korea these were directed against the leaders and the elite, since these despots had no support from the population and would not take care of the suffering of the population. On the other hand, Iran’s revolution has a mass basis among the population, including among the workers, and the sanctions of the USA are also aimed at the population to ensure dissatisfaction and a counter-revolution and regime change and are aimed primarily at the workers, especially in the Oil industry, which generates most of the state revenue and a general strike would probably have a destabilizing effect. Khameini praised and commended the workers at the meeting for their vigilance and for drawing a clear line on the enemy.

“While hailing vigilance of workers, Leader says:  Workers drew a line with enemy

April 29, 2023 – 21:46

TEHRAN – Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei, Leader of the Islamic Revolution, met with workers on Saturday and praised them for keeping their distance from the enemy.

At the start of the meeting, Ayatollah Khamenei highlighted the value of workers in society, underlining that work equates to the life of a society since it provides all the needs and requirements of the people and the country.

„Work is what keeps a society alive. Work is the backbone of people’s lives. Without work there is nothing. The food we eat, the clothes we wear, and the facilities we use that our lives depend on, all of these are the products of work. Who does this work? Workers. So, what is the value of a worker? The value of a worker is equal to the value of a society’s existence. They are equal to the value of people’s lives,“ he said, according to a readout by khamenei.ir. 

Ayatollah Khamenei considered it important to understand labor work and workers in order to make an effort to produce real and useful work. „The country’s and society’s vital need for work, a worker’s need for work in order to manage his/her life, the spiritual need of a person for work and the completely tangible effect of work in eliminating and preventing the occurrence of all kinds of corruption, demonstrate the great importance of planning, investing and taking action to produce work and genuine employment,“ he noted. 

The Leader also highlighted the loyalty of workers to the system, saying, „The most important sign of the worker community’s loyalty to the system is their intelligent manner of conduct in the past few decades. [For example], they thwarted the efforts of certain groups to cripple the establishment in the beginning of the Revolution by closing down their workshops, and they also wisely stood up to the widespread propaganda of foreign ill-wishers which aimed to put the working community against the government.“

Ayatollah Khamenei also pointed to the imperviousness of workers to enemy propaganda. He described the vigilance and invulnerability of the workers to the provocations of foreigners as “the great jihad of the workers community.” He emphasized that, “Up until today, they have not been able to put the workers community against the government, and by the power of God, they will not be able to do the same from here on.“

Ayatollah Khamenei acknowledged that there were some rightful protests in the workers community, saying, „Fortunately, in all cases of protests, the workers community did not allow the ill-wishers to abuse the protests and gatherings by drawing the line against the enemy and emphasizing companionship and friendship with the government.“
Citing verses from the Holy Quran, he said there should be a direct relationship between work and income, and highlighted the necessity of creating a culture in this regard.

“From the point of view of Islam, income should come from hard work and effort. Therefore, unearned, easy money and wealth, middlemanship, bribery, profiteering due to connection with a certain person, and usury are against the Quranic logic and God’s order,“ he explained.

According to the Leader of the Islamic Revolution, not having the courage to fight against the corruption inside the country will also take away the courage to fight the bullying of the enemy outside the country.

„For example, if an official does not have the courage to confront the abusers of business or bank credits and does not confront the major bank debtors, he/she will likewise not have the courage to confront the demands of a tyrannical government like the US,“ he said.

Ayatollah Khamenei also argued that improving the workers’ livelihood and job security will in turn increase the quality of work and products, and therefore, any effort in this line is indeed an investment for more profits.”

https://www.tehrantimes.com/news/484141/Workers-drew-a-line-with-enemy

Now so-called corrupt and inefficient managers in the well-known troubled province of Khuzestan are being dismissed, who are held responsible for poor company results, the economic crisis and youth unemployment, as if the last mass protests were only about economic demands. After all, they are not yet accused of being saboteurs and foreign agents

Raisi sacks 15 managers in KhuzestaRaisi sacks 15 managers in Khuzesta

April 29, 2023 – 21:53

TEHRAN –President Ebrahim Raisi announced the dismissal of more than a dozen managers in the oil-rich province of Khuzestan after they failed to do their job.

The announcement was made at a press conference Raisi held at the end of his two-day visit to the province. 

Referring to the dismissal of 15 managers of Khuzestan province due to poor performance, he said, “If a manager is not capable of doing the job, we ourselves are the most sensitive and replace ineffective managers, and we consider this not a weakness but a strength of the government.”

Ayatollah Raisi stated that today attention to the efficiency of the institutions and the fight against corruption is the concern of all the government bodies, according to a readout by the official website of the Iranian presidency.

In response to a reporter’s question about the replacement of managers, he emphasized, “The government is constantly evaluating the performance of the managers of the institutions, and if it is confirmed in a detailed evaluation that a manager has not been successful, we will not hesitate to replace him.”

Raisi also underlined the need to pay heed to the local talent in selecting managers, “In recruiting human resources, experts and managers, preference is given to local workforces, unless it is necessary to select a more capable manager from outside the region.”

Raisi called on the media to help monitor the implementation of the government’s provincial ratifications and said, “In addition to monitoring the government’s resolutions and decisions, the results of which are reflected in people’s lives, the media should provide compassionate criticism of the performance of a manager or an organization.”

Raisi visited Khuzestan Province on Thursday morning as part of his second round of provincial trips.

Upon his arrival in the border province, President Raisi told reporters that the young people of Khuzestan should not suffer from unemployment. “The government is looking to solve the problems of the province by considering the many facilities and capacities of Khuzestan,” he said, according to the official website of the Iranian presidency. 

In Khuzestan, the president visited several cities such as Dezful, Andimeshk, Ahwaz, Karun, and Shadegan. He also visited several projects in the oil-rich province. 

Raisi delivered a speech before a group of Ahwazi people on Thursday afternoon. “Iran is indebted to Khuzestan, and today the whole country, especially we the officials, must pay our respects to this province and its loyal and resistant people,” he said.

During the press conference, Ayatollah Raisi referred to employment and reducing unemployment as one of the most important demands of the people of Khuzestan and said, “The government is trying to take advantage of the province’s capacities and pay attention to the agricultural and tourism economy, as well as strengthening trade relations with Arab countries, which have increased to 5 times in this government.”

Referring to the projects inaugurated during the two-day visit of the Popular Administration to Khuzestan, Ayatollah Raisi said, “Great work has been done in the field of electricity, and with the projects inaugurated, more than 300 megawatts of electricity entered the national grid, which will be increased to 500 megawatts in the next step.”

https://www.tehrantimes.com/news/484143/Raisi-sacks-15-managers-in-Khuzestan

At the same time, the importance of the private sector and entrepreneurs is emphasized and a wave of privatization is announced. That goes well with Khameini praising the workers for not going on strikes, neither against the private sector nor against the regime. To what extent this is through union bans, repression of workers and labor leaders, privileged wages and conditions in strategic industrial sectors is not so clear. At least since the existence of the Islamic Republic of Iran there have been no significant strikes or workers‘ protests that would have endangered the regime.

“Privatization a necessity to realize slogan of year

By Mahnaz Abdi

April 19, 2023 – 17:40

TEHRAN- The current Iranian calendar year 1402 (began on March 21) is named “Inflation Control, Production Growth” by the Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei.

“Production Growth” to achieve self-reliance is in fact the main approach of Iran to nullify the sanctions, and to materialize this slogan a number of factors should be seriously paid attention to, among them it could be referred to privatization.

While “Controlling Inflation” is a macro issue and the private sector can be less effective in this field, the government’s full support to the private sector, in a way that this sector feels the support as well as security and predictability, is a vital necessity to achieve “Production Growth”.

The implementation of the privatization plan aimed at more productivity, investment making, job creation, promotion of trade balance, more competition in the domestic economy, and reducing financial and management burden on the government has been under the spotlight over the past decade.

The law on the implementation of the general policies of Article 44 of Iran’s Constitution on privatizing state-owned companies was declared in 2006 in a bid to downsize the government and promote the private sector’s role in the national economy.

Experts and officials believe that the government should be downsized, while more attention should be paid to the private sector because it must be accepted that problems cannot be solved without the presence of the private sector.

What the Leader is referring to in his speech is that the government should be downsized and trust the private sector.

During his speech on Tuesday evening, Ayatollah Khamenei referred to the issue of privatization, and said: “The principle of privatization and the implementation policies of Article 44 are thought out, logical and correct; because the government cannot manage all affairs. Of course, our expectations have not been met, but good measures have been taken in the field of privatization”.

‚Realizing slogan of year not possible without trusting private sector‘

Last week, the Tehran Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines, and Agriculture (TCCIMA)’s committee for “improving the business environment and removing production barriers” held its 32nd meeting to discuss and investigate the requirements to fulfill the motto of the year.

At the beginning of that meeting, Mohammad-Reza Najafimanesh, the chairman of the mentioned committee pointed out that a smart slogan was chosen for this year and said: “We must try to make this slogan come true by solving existing problems and preventing new problems for economic enterprises.”

Mohammad Esabati, the expert of this commission, for his part, while pointing out the importance of following up on the Leader’s statements, referred to a selection of his words regarding economic issues such as using the people’s ability in the economy.

Representatives of the private sector in the meeting mentioned that the reduction of government interventions in the economy as one of the most important requirements for realizing the slogan of the year.

Meanwhile, as stated by the chairman of the Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines, and Agriculture of Fars province, realizing the slogan of year is not possible without trusting the private sector.

According to Jamal Razeqi, in the current situation, any strategy for the economic development of the country will be based solely on trusting the private sector.

Referring to the naming of the year as “Inflation Control and Production Growth” by the Leader, the private sector representative said, “To fulfill the motto of the year, each sector, including the private sector, has a duty that if fulfilled, we will achieve curbing inflation and production growth.”

So, to realize the slogan of the year, the real position of the private sector and the opportunity to compete should be taken into consideration by decision makers.

In this due, challenges to starting production in the private sector, such as difficulties in receiving facilities, must be resolved. The problems of each industry must be investigated and solved separately. Investment in research and development units should be increased, and the import of machinery and new technologies that are necessary for the growth of production should be facilitated.”

https://www.tehrantimes.com/news/483861/Privatization-a-necessity-to-realize-slogan-of-year

Because the mullahs‘ regime no longer wants to hear such disturbing reports as in October 2020:

“Protests spread to oil and gas industry

According to other unconfirmed reports, oil workers at the Abadan and Kangan refineries and the Bushehr Petrochemical Project are now taking part in the protests. Video recordings showed dozens of men, some of whom were masked, shouting protest slogans such as „Death to the dictator“ in Assaluje on the Persian Gulf. No problems in the plant were reported by the Iranian side. The semi-official news agency Tasnim reported that the background to the protests was a dispute over wages. There was no comment from the Ministry of Oil. In long-sanctioned Iran, the oil and gas industry is an enormously important source of income. Should the protest movement gain more and more support among the workers in the industry, that would pose a serious threat to the leadership in Tehran. So far, students and schoolchildren have played a central role in protests. The takeover of power by the clergy in Iran four decades ago was fueled in part by mass protests and strikes by oil workers and traders.”

https://www.zeit.de/politik/ausland/2022-10/iran-j-na-mahsa-amini-demonstranten-kurdengebiete

The following reading recommendations on the labor movement and trade unions in Iran and in exile:

Mass protests in Iran: Is the working class awakening?

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