Iran, Gasoline on the Flames of People's Anger!
More than a week has passed since the regime of the Islamic
Republic announced an increase, by as much as 300%, in fuel price. The Iranian
masses responded immediately to the announcement by taking to the streets.
Since November 15, 2019, wide protests and demonstrations have spread across
the country in more than 100 cities. The masses expressed their anger at the
gas price hike first, then quickly moved to occupying streets and highways,
attacking the regime’s repressive forces, and financial looting centers: banks.
The power and the extent of the response of the people to the gas price
increase took the regime of the Islamic Republic by surprise. In a
radio-television speech, the tyrannical "Supreme Leader", Khamenei,
declared a crack down on the demonstrations and emphasized the implementation
of the decision made by the three branches of the
government about the gas price increase and called on the security forces
and officials to carry out their duties. Khamenei, in the face of
heightened protests and serious danger from the people, called on the factions
of the regime to unite and rejected any withdrawal from the gas price hike.
However, the protest movement continued, the slogans on the streets were radicalized,
and people chanted "not only poverty, but the whole system has to
go!"
The protest movement threatened the whole apparatus of the
ruling regime. The authorities of the capitalist regime of the Islamic Republic
ordered a shutdown of the internet, closed down
schools, universities, and football matches, shut down the subways, and
even disconnected the domestic and international telephone communications. With
the decree issued by the Supreme Leader, a bloody crackdown on "hooligans"
started, and live bullets were aimed at the protesters. More than 100 people
were killed, 1000 were arrested, and countless were injured. The regime
declared control of the space and proclaimed "Victory over the internal
enemy"!
The Party of Labour of Iran (Toufan) strongly condemns the
repression of the just and legitimate demands of the Iranian people. We condemn
the "Supreme Leader" for ordering the security and repressive
state apparatus to fire on protesters. We take all factions and all three
branches of the Islamic Republic to be responsible for intolerable economic and
political conditions created for the working people of Iran.
The regime of the Islamic Republic of Iran continues to
implement neo-liberal policies that cause high inflation and, consequently,
poverty for the labourers. The regime’s economic policies have deepened the
class gap between the 90% poor and the 10% rich of the country. The corruption
and huge embezzlements by the authorities have put salt on the wounds of
society. In addition, the financial and economic sanctions imposed by the U.S.
imperialsts have sharply reduced the purchasing power of the working people.
The reduction in oil sales has resulted in a budget deficit that has worsened
the economic conditions for the majority of the people of Iran.
Obviously, the bloody suppression of the people of Iran will not
have a happy ending for the corrupt regime of the Islamic Republic. Even if the
regime succeeds in putting down the movement, the deprived and downtrodden
people of Iran will rise up once again and, if they are led by
an organization with the correct political line, will knock the regime
down.
The recent protests of people in Tehran and other cities of Iran
against the rising fuel price, the continuation of the Islamic regime’s corruption
and faulty economic policies, the lack of attention to people's livelihoods,
and the suppression of the just demands of the people, show the need for
political leadership that gives a clear direction and perspective and puts the
people on a correct path of struggle. The lack of attention to this important
need causes heavy damage to the protest movement of the people and gives the
regime the chance and ability to suppress the demands of the masses. The
Party of Labour of Iran (Toufan) has repeatedly voiced concerns in this arena,
and has challenged the divisive views of various organizations whose work only
results in sabotaging the movement:
First, it is
unfortunate that there are organizations, parties, and forces that, instead of
articulating the issue of organization and political leadership of spontaneous
movements, trail behind them, or even vainly hope that either the spontaneous
movements succeed by themselves or result in forming a revolutionary
alternative. Within the labour movement, this view has been promoted by old and
new Economists. If the spontaneous movements do not rely on the leadership of
the communists who are equipped with the ideology of socialism, they will be
distorted, compromised, or defeated by the ruling bourgeois ideology. The
theory of Economists and false working class supporter is that the working
class liberates itself and does not need a guardian or a party!
All the recent
movements, from the struggles of university students in July of 1999, to the
so-called "Green Movement" in June of 2009 ,
to the 2017 uprising, to the various
labour-teacher-retirees demonstrations, to strikes of Haft Tapeh sugar cane
workers, they were only able to bring the discontent and displeasure of the
various strata of the society to the scene, and the changes were mainly in the
benefit of this or that regime’s faction and less so for the benefit of the
masses. None of these movements had a communist leadership. The presence of the
element of
communist-consciousness and its leadership role, will bring socialist awareness
and techniques of struggle among the people and especially the workers, and
will advance the struggle of the people for equality and freedom.
Secondly, in
politics, also in revolution, we need political and revolutionary knowledge, Marxism-Leninism.
The working class and the people learn this knowledge outside their spontaneous
movements. The theory of Marxism and scientific socialism, an unfamiliar to the
vast masses of the working people, had to be taken to the working class by the
vanguads of proletariat organized in the working class party. Some characterize
the unity of "theory and practice", the unity of revolutionary theory
of Marxism with spontaneous movements as an insult on the people and as
interference in their work and their activities.
Those who adhere to and propagate the sacredness of the
spontaneous movements and the non-interference of the theory of socialism in
them, deny the historical experiences and numerous failures. They deny that the
theory of independence and sacredness of spontaneous movements has been
injected into working class movement from outside and by theoreticians like
them.
We cannot have much hope for
defeating the enemy and seizing political power unless we are able to learn and
apply the techniques and rules of class and political struggle.
Based on historical experiences,
we must promote that the working class needs unity and organization in order to
lead the people's protest movements to their intended purposes. The Party of
Labour of Iran (Toufan) has put this communist task on its agenda. We do not
regard trailing behind the spontaneous protest movements which lack perspective
as a way out of the current crisis. We evaluate it as trailing behind
bourgeoisie and as a dead-end and political failure which damage the interest
of workers and toilers. In the current critical situation in which the Iranian
people are faced with a lack of political leadership and two internal and
external enemies, our Party has a heavy duty on its shoulders .While promoting
the Party as the organization of the working class, it invites all political
forces and organizations, groups and national and revolutionary figures who
call for the overthrow of the capitalist regime of the Islamic Republic by the
revolutionary movement of the Iranian masses and who have a clear stance
against the imperialist and Zionist interventions, for political cooperation
and unity. The formation of such political and democratic cooperation is
promising in the present situation and will have a lasting impact on the
movement.
The Party of Labour of Iran
(Toufan)
November 23, 2019