Yossi Schwartz ISL (RCIT section in Israel/Palestine) 02.01.2025
The wave of economic protests in Iran expanded overnight beyond the capital Tehran. In addition to the closure of shops and strikes in Tehran’s bazaar, protests were recorded on social media in other cities across Iran, some of which called out against the regime.
At this stage, it is difficult to estimate the scope of the protest. Reports indicate that this is mainly a protest initiated by merchants and business owners, and it is unclear whether it has expanded to broader strata such as the working class and the poor peasants. It appears to be expanding to some extent to students on campuses and even to other business sectors.
The participation of small business owners and merchants gives the protest an economic ploy, and reflects the deep economic crisis caused by the boycott of Iran, mismanagement, concern for the capitalists and the forces of repression, and massive investment in armaments as a defense against Israel and the United States. In the media affiliated with the regime, there is an effort to minimize the significance of the events and present them as limited to the economic aspect only.
The Tasnim news agency, which is affiliated with the Revolutionary Guards, quoted the position of Ghulam Rada Hassanpour, who heads the Basij Asnaf – the Basij framework of the business sector. Hassanpour claimed that these were “limited protests,” of a professional nature, which stemmed mainly from fluctuations in the exchange rate. However, he warned against “exploiting” the protest, adding that in some cases, people “not connected to the market” also participated.
The regime’s policy is an attempt to limit the protest without allowing it to develop into a broad political event. Government spokeswoman Fatemeh Mohajrani said at a press briefing in Tehran that the country “recognizes” the protests against the backdrop of economic distress, stressing that the government “will also listen to harsh voices with patience.” According to her, when the public raises its voice, it indicates heavy pressure being exerted on it.
According to the official IRNA news agency, Mohajrani noted that President Masoud Pazshakian had instructed the Interior Ministry to establish a “mechanism” for dialogue with the protesters, based on the perception that the government sees the protest as a phenomenon that must be dealt with through dialogue and not just through enforcement measures.
Iran’s President Pazshakhian wrote in his X account: “The livelihood of the people is my daily concern. We have substantial steps on the agenda to reform the monetary and banking system and to preserve the purchasing power of the people. I have instructed the interior minister to hear their legitimate demands through dialogue with the demonstrators’ representatives, so that the government can act responsibly and with full force to solve the problems.”
Meanwhile, IRNA reported that Pazshakian met today with representatives of the merchants and declared that the government had reached an agreement with the parliament on four important steps for the benefit of the business sector, including a freeze on a number of types of taxes imposed on them.
If the working class and the poor peasants do not enter the struggle and turn it into a revolutionary political struggle with the demand for a workers’ and peasant government and the nationalization of the economy under the supervision of the workers, this protest will die out.
This happened in 1999–2000 with student protests, again in 2009–2010 with the Green Movement, in 2017–2018 with protests over economic distress, in 2019 following a sudden spike in fuel prices, in 2021 amid shortages of water and bread, and again in 2022–2023 with the “Woman, Life, Freedom” protests sparked by the death in custody of Mahsa Amini.
On the eve of the Islamist revolution, it could end differently in a socialist revolution, but there was not a working -class revolutionary leadership and the Stalinist party of Iran supported Khomeini returned on 1 February 1979
This week’s Mossad statement in Farsi to the protesters – “Let’s come out to the streets together. The time has come. We are with you, not just from afar and verbally. We are with you in the field as well”– may have been intended to strengthen resolve.
But it handed Tehran exactly what it wanted: a pretext to blame Israel and frame the protests as a foreign plot. It was a classic case of the Zionist stupidity.
For a revolutionary Constituent Assembly!
For the government of poor workers and peasants!
Nationalization of large private property under the supervision of employees!
To break the embargo on Iran!