Angry Iranian truck-drivers began a nationwide strike on Tuesday, May 22, 2018 in more than 70 cities, protesting the mullah regime. They protested low wages; high taxes; lack of job security; mismanagement of their facilities; worsening living conditions; and deteriorating sources of revenue along with rising costs of maintenance, both the result of Iran’s monetary mismanagement, which has driven down the value of Iran’s currency, including their earnings. Truck-drivers, and especially fuel truck-drivers, refused to continue loading freight, and they parked their trucks in parking lots in cities and even on highways, chanting slogans against the authorities for mismanagement and for plundering their revenues. The strike by the fuel truckers led to fuel shortages in gas stations in the Fars province, triggering a rush to the fuel stations and long lines for fuel rationing.
It’s a significant strike because freight transportation has played an important role in helping economic infrastructure and development in the country since 1940. Truck transport is key for the distribution of goods and commodities from producer to consumer and for transferring industrial materials to provinces where production is located away from consumption areas, so the mullahs have a problem.
As one of the strikers said, mullah rule has caused a collapse in the transport infrastructure because national revenues are spent no longer on the maintenance and upkeep of roads, but on the production of long-range missiles and Iran’s support for its allies, Hamas, Hezb’allah, and the Houthis in Yemen. The result for ordinary Iranians has been inflation, the depreciation of the rial (Iran’s currency), and international isolation.
The National Council for Iran Resistance, which opposes the mullah regime, has been watching the development closely. According to an NCRI report, as soon as the truck-drivers urged their indefinite nationwide protest, the Iranian regime sent its agents to take repressive measures, first by creating disagreements among its drivers. In some cities, including Isfahan, they also increased freight charges, which the drivers refused to accept. In Bandar-Anzali, the regime posted a notice signed by the management of the Motorists’ Association and the Guild of Companies stating that the cost of shipping from Bandar-Anzali to any point has increased 12% and the cost of bulk shipping by 17%. The strikers refused to back down.
Striking drivers declared that they will continue their strike until their demands are met. The strike is now spreading to other cities and provinces.
Mrs. Maryam Rajavi, president-elect of the Iranian resistance, saluted the striking truckers and heavyweight vehicle drivers and called on all Iranians to support the striking drivers.
Source » americanthinker