Where trade unionists start their day on the net.
In this week's mailing:
* Update on jailed Iranian union leader
* Huge day of protest tomorrow in Australia
* General strike today in Israel
* Our mailing lists in other languages
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UPDATE ON JAILED IRANIAN UNION LEADER
We told you last week about the arrest of Mansour Osanloo, the leader of the bus drivers union in Tehran. Your response has been excellent -- over 2,500 of you have already sent messages to the Iranian President demanding his release.
We've now gotten some more details, and they make for grim reading.
We know that Oslanloo has been taken to Evin prison where authorities claim that they are "negotiating" with him. (How you can negotiate with someone who you've arrested is an interesting question.)
The authorities also claim that he will be allowed one visitor, his mother -- but no one has told the guards outside the prison. His mother waited in vain for a chance to see her son.
His family has not even been allowed to phone him.
Clearly the authorities are hoping to break his will -- and thereby weaken the emerging trade union movement in Iran. Remember that this is a movement which managed to completely shut down the capital with a transport strike earlier in the year, despite massive repression.
It is essential that we turn up the pressure and flood the Iranian government with more messages this week. Please make sure to send on your message today -- and to pass this letter on!
English:
http://www.labourstart.org/cgi-bin/solidarityforever/show_campaign.cgi?c=167
French:
http://www.labourstart.org/cgi-bin/solidarityforever/show_campaign.cgi?c=169
Norwegian:
http://www.labourstart.org/cgi-bin/solidarityforever/show_campaign.cgi?c=168
Polish:
http://www.labourstart.org/cgi-bin/solidarityforever/show_campaign.cgi?c=170
(Other languages are coming soon.)
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HUGE DAY OF PROTEST TOMORROW IN AUSTRALIA
November 30th promises to be one of the biggest days of protest ever organized by the Australian unions as they come out into the streets to challenge the viciously anti-union laws enacted by the Howard government.
There will be full coverage from across Australia on LabourStart:
http://www.labourstart.org/cgi-bin/show_news.pl?country=Australia
You can learn more about the day of protest and what it's all about here:
http://www.rightsatwork.com.au/
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GENERAL STRIKE TODAY IN ISRAEL
A general strike has broken out in Israel's public sector today following a dispute over pensions. The country's airports, ports, government offices, and post office have been shut down.
The strike has made the front pages of neither the BBC nor the CNN websites. (The BBC's failure to give the story prominent is extraordinary, considering that Israeli unions grounded a British Airways flight which attempted to board passengers and take off.)
For some in the mass media, this is obviously not an important news story.
LabourStart is featuring full coverage of the strike, here:
http://www.labourstart.org/cgi-bin/show_news.pl?country=Israel
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OUR MAILING LISTS IN OTHER LANGUAGES
If you're receiving these messages in English, but would prefer to receive them in other languages, please note that this weekly mailing now goes out in two additional languages -- please feel free to sign up:
Norwegian: http://www.labourstart.org/docs/en/000361.html
Spanish: http://www.labourstart.org/docs/en/000347.html
We expect to begin sending out the mailing every week in French and Polish shortly as well.
Thanks for your continuing support.
Eric Lee
Texts appearing here are often press releases sent to us by unions and other organizations which do not appear elsewhere on the web. LabourStart takes no responsibility for their content.