As the economic conditions in Iran worsen day by day, Iranian citizens, young and old, from across the country are standing together in protests of the Iranian regime’s mismanagement of the current crises. As a result, the Iranian state media have been warning of the possibility of a nationwide uprising starting.
The Mostaghel newspaper discussed in their publication on Sunday how critical the state of the living conditions of the Iranian people is. Among those most affected are Iran’s teachers who began the academic year protesting for their most basic needs. The newspaper warned that if the regime does not step in to rectify the problems faced by the teachers, the protests will only get worse.
Since last year, Iran’s teachers have been raising their grievances with government officials, but the regime has refrained from addressing their demands. As the start of the academic year neared, the teachers returned to the streets to resume their protests and remind the government of its duties.
The Mostaghel daily said, “The economic class gap, as well as the gap between salaries, have caused these protests and livelihood demands to become highlighted among teachers.”
Currently, in Iran, the poverty line sits at a monthly income of 120 million rials (around $437), but many teachers are failing to receive even half of this amount and must face many delays in receiving their salaries.
Due to the extreme poverty that these teachers are facing, many have been left unable to afford even the most basic needs like food or shelter, which has driven many teachers to commit suicide.
In the past month, security forces have cracked down on the teachers’ protest rallies on several occasions, beating and arresting demonstrators. But the protests continue, and in addition to their economic demands, the teachers are now also chanting slogans to release imprisoned teachers.
Mostaghel explained how even with the security force crackdowns, the protest rallies will continue regardless of if the problems are not solved.
Another article in their newspaper on Monday discussed the gap that has widened between ordinary Iranian citizens and the ruling elite and stated that the state of the crises in Iran should be a warning for the regime authorities.
The article read, “In circumstances that the country’s production is in its weakest condition, a large part of the liquidity has been channeled into profiteering from currency and coin exchange, and many workers have lost their jobs, should a small group of people live in extreme luxury?”
In speaking of the last large uprising in Iran, that took place in November 2019, of which the regime was brought to the verge of collapse, Mostaghel explained that the events of that time did nothing to change how Iran’s economic system is governed. They explained that the Iranian people can only tolerate so much, and once that threshold has been reached, the powder keg in society will explode.
Mostaghel said, “The news about social problems, and the shrinking of the people’s tablecloth, and the disappearance of items such as meat and poultry from their meals is a countdown and an alarm.”
