False accusations being brought against members of bus-drivers' union

Iran Press News: Translation by Banafsheh Zand-Bonazzzi

On Wednesday, Sept. 7th, the drivers of the Tehran Bus Drivers Association turned on the headlights of their vehicles [while on their regular route] in protest to non-receipt of their wages and benefits. The regressive regime, which cannot even tolerate such peaceful and non-confrontational protests, reacted harshly against this action and arrested several members, including the director of the board of the bus drivers' union. READ MORE

Mansour Hayat-Qaybi, member of the board of directors of said union spoke to Radio Farda, the Persian broadcast of Radio Free Europe: "Ibrahim Madadi, the deputy director of the board of the union, has himself been unlawfully arrested while inquiring about a few of our colleagues who had been detained and held at one of the detention centers of the security forces. The disciplinary forces treated the members of our union obscenely."

Hayat-Qaybi explained that the court charged the protestors with "disturbing social order" though what they were doing was completely pacifistic. He also said: "Our colleagues have been treated miserably. The commander of the first garrison, General (Revolutionary Guard) Babaii, has also behaved improperly; he did not react too decently with myself either. When I simply inquired [from him] as to where my colleagues were being detained, he threatened to arrest me as well and said that I should get lost, because none of this is any of my business. Our fellow drivers are innocent and haven't committed any offense."