We Support the Protests of the People of Khuzestan!

Continuation and Expansion of the Uprising of the People of Khuzestan can Shake the Will of the Oppressors and Wear out the Repressive Apparatus!

We Support the Protests of the People of Khuzestan!

The protests of the people of Khuzestan, despite widespread killings and arrests, continue and gradually spread to neighboring provinces and other provinces, paving the way for a nationwide protest. The protests first started in 11 cities over the shortage of water and quickly spread to other cities in this province and to the cities of Shahinshahr and Yazdanshahr of Isfahan, Karaj, Bushehr, Ganaveh, Junqan, Aligudarz, Bejtord and Saqez. Now the people of Tehran and Tabriz have also risen in support of the protest of the people of Khuzestan. The rallies began with the protest of the Arab people of Khuzestan against the problem of water shortage and its destructive effects on their livelihood and spread to other areas.

The regime’s officials are deeply concerned about the spread of the protests to other provinces and becoming nationwide. They have sent police and military forces from other areas to Khuzestan to suppress the protests. But despite shootings, the killing of eight young demonstrators, widespread arrests, and a severe security situation in several cities, house arrests and internet outages, repressive organs have not been able to quell the Khuzestan uprising. This shows intrepidity of the people, intensification of their resistance and the weakening of the regime’s repressive power. Continued protests can gradually erode the regime’s repressive organs and deprive them of the power of repression. The weakening of the rulers’ will to suppress and the exhaustion of the repressive organs will increase the power and aggression of the people's protests and can pave the way for political changes.

The protests of the people of Khuzestan began with the slogan against water shortage. But in the continuation of the protests, it rose to slogans against the Islamic Republic, dictatorship, and Khamenei. Anti-regime slogans were repeated in Tehran, Tabriz, and other cities. Widespread public discontent, blocking the way to change through the ballot box, regime’s incompetency in governing the country, structural corruption, and the sharpening of social divisions pave the way for politicization of the people's protests.

The uprising of the people of Khuzestan has been met with unprecedented support and solidarity from various social groups, parties and organizations, and political and civil activists. Oil industry striking workers, Haft Tappeh striking workers, steel workers, workers union of Tehran and suburbs bus company, groups of workers in Kermanshah and Kurdistan provinces, The Iranian Writers’ Association, filmmakers and documentarians, 1200 artists, 230 lawyers, Coordinating Council of Farhangian Guilds, Retirees, Gilan Farhangian Guild, Hamedan Teachers Guild, some student organizations, 80 cartoonists, a group of Iranian civil and political activists, a number of political prisoners, Nasrin Sotoudeh, Narges Mohammadi And labor activists, including Ismail Bakhshi and Sepideh Gholian, as well as a number of civil society activists and former political prisoners have supported and expressed solidarity with the protests of the people of Khuzestan. A number of film artists also gathered in front of the of House Artists in support of the people of Khuzestan. Organizations and political activists have also held protests in support of the people of Khuzestan in a number of European, Canadian and the United States cities in recent days.

This solidarity and widespread support and the joining of a number of cities to the protests in Khuzestan and the shouting of slogans of unity, indicate the formation of national solidarity and the failure of the regime in dividing social and ethnic groups. It also shows the Iranian people's support for the balance in the distribution of resources that some Iranian ethnic groups, such as the Arab and the Baloch people, have been relatively more affected.

Our country is in an inflamed situation. In the last two months, we have seen three significant outcomes. The first and most important was the boycott of the mandated presidential election and the refusal of at least 58% of the people to cast their ballots in favor of the regime’s list. In the election, for the first time, there was an unprecedented alignment between opposition and critic political forces at home and abroad, who said "NO" to the regime’s appointments. This was the significant defeat of the regime and the victory of the people and the opposition. The second outcome is the widespread strike of the oil industry contract workers, which has been attended by more than 100,000 people and has been going on for more than a month. The third outcome is the uprising of the people of Khuzestan, which has affected the country's political climate and has forced the regime to face a serious challenge. These outcomes accumulate over time, increase the potential for protest, lead to the collapse of the people's fears, gradually shake the will of the oppressors, wear down the repressive apparatus, and create forces for the movement's leadership and pave the way for groups to leave the regime’s body.

The Islamic Republic has so far demonstrated its inefficiency and inability to run the country with large oil revenues. But now, with declining oil revenues and the continuation of economic sanctions, the regime's inability to run the country and resolve numerous crises has become increasingly apparent. Today, Khuzestan has become the epicenter of crises. But the wounded face of Khuzestan today is the mirror of Iran tomorrow. Khuzestan is a rich land that produces more than 85% of the country's oil, more than 30% of the country's water flows through it and supplies 15% of the country's agricultural products. But now, on hot summer nights, due to water shortage and power outage, its people have taken to the streets and instead of enjoying the wealth of the province, they are inevitably looking for shield in the dark of night against the bullets that are fired at them.

The crisis in Khuzestan is comprehensive and cannot be solved in the short term with the current political structure and unsustainable, unbalanced, and non-participatory development plans. The solution lies in changing political structures, cutting off hand of the water mafia and the will of stakeholders, using experts and a sustainable, balanced, and participatory development plan.

As the status quo continues, the risks to territorial integrity, national interests, and social stability increase. To get out of the current situation, the growth of protest movements and uprisings, solidarity, and connection between them are essential. The strengthening of protest movements and uprisings and the unification of elites and political groups that believe in the transition from the Islamic Republic of Iran to a secular democratic republic can pave the way for political developments for transitioning from the system. We, the three secular-democrat republican organizations and parties, support the uprising of the people of Khuzestan, condemn killing of the protesters, and strive in continuation and spreading of the protests. The expansion and continuation of the uprising of the people of Khuzestan is a promising event that, while revealing the capacity of the "power of the people" to overcome the current perils, can change the political situation of the country in alignment with the struggles of the people in other areas.

Political-Executive Boards of:

United Republicans of Iran

The Left Party of Iran (People’s Fadaian)

Union for Secular Republic and Human Rights in Iran (USRHR)

July 26, 2021