Activists: Iran sentences trade unionist to death
A court in Iran, according to human rights activists, has sentenced a labor union activist, Scharifeh Mohammadi, to death based on allegations of connections to a banned Kurdish organization. Human Rights Activists News Agency and Hengaw reported that Mohammadi was charged with the crime of rebellion. According to Mohammadi's family, she was only a member of a local workers' organization.
Mohammadi was arrested in Rascht, the largest city in the Gilan Province on the Caspian Sea, in December. She is accused of being a member of the banned Kurdish independence party Komala. According to Hengaw, she was physically and psychologically tortured by intelligence agents during her detention.
The Abdorrahman Boroumand Center declared that the death sentence is related to Mohammadi's work "in an independent labor union." The "extreme sentence" illustrates "the harsh approach against dissidents in Iran, especially labor activists."
A campaign was launched online in support of Mohammadi, stating that the "absurd and unjustified" sentence aims to "spread fear and intimidation" among activists in the province. Gilan Province was a center of the protest movement in 2022 following the death of the 22-year-old Mahsa Amini after her arrest by the police. Human rights activists accuse the Iranian authorities of using the death penalty as a tool to intimidate the entire population following the protests.
According to the non-governmental organization Iran Human Rights, at least 249 people were executed in Iran during the first six months of the year, including ten women. The group warns of the risk of a "sharp increase" in executions following the presidential election in Iran on Friday, where the ultraconservative candidate Saeed Jalili is running against the reformer Massoud Peseschkian.
- The intimidation tactic, as seen in Mohammadi's case, has become a common tool for the Iranian authorities to suppress trade union activities and deter future activists.
- Despite facing the threat of death, Mohammadi's supporters continue to use their voices as tools, organizing campaigns to expose the injustice and demand her release.
- The international trade union community has denounced the death sentence, calling on the Iranian government to revoke the sentence and uphold the fundamental rights of labor activists, such as Scharifeh Mohammadi.
