Bakhshi, a prominent labor activist: People are Desperate saying “Let the U.S. and Israel strike—nothing could be darker than this.”

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The following is an excerpt from an interview with Esmail Bakhshi*: 

People are truly exhausted by the ruling establishment and the Islamic Republic. They say there is no way out, but I say there is. We should organize and take the power of labor away from the government. We haven’t tried this yet. They say we’ve tried every path. But we haven’t tried this one: without bloodshed, without violence. Do you understand?

However, the country’s situation is such that people have become so desperate—first, because of the economic conditions; second, because of the unjust oppression by the Islamic Republic over issues like hijab, ideological matters, and many other unrelated topics that put pressure on people. Unfortunately, there are also groups that have sold illusions to the public. Many people say, “Let the United States and Israel strike—nothing could be darker than this.” I’m not judging whether that is right or wrong. I’m describing society as it is. People have doubts in their hearts; there is anxiety about what would happen if there is war, and what would happen if there isn’t. You know what a war-torn society looks like, and at the same time, if there is no war, it means the continuation of the Islamic Republic. So people are caught in a very strange contradiction: between war and the continuation of the Islamic Republic. I say there is a third path: to organize and take control of this labor power. If that doesn’t work, then whoever wants to attack can attack, and whoever wants to try another path can do so.

In this uprising, everyone was present. We have no internal sponsor or group that can claim it supported or led it. Don’t believe such claims. This uprising was entirely popular. It emerged from within the people and grew until the eighteenth and nineteenth of early January. After that, others inserted themselves and declared themselves leaders, and then they backed away and said they bore no responsibility. They issued their own calls for action and later even refused to take responsibility for those.

People are fed up. Many of the slogans were negative in nature. Let me also say that a crowd may come into the streets and chant a slogan I don’t like; I may know that the slogan is negative, but I’m not concerned with the slogan coming out of their mouths—I’m concerned with the suffering that brought that young person into the street. Do you understand? This uprising was entirely popular, and if anyone says they led it, that’s a lie. People came out spontaneously, and after this spontaneous movement formed, many others attached themselves to it. If they say people were supported or directed from somewhere, that’s not correct. These people are more alone than ever and have no one but themselves. That’s why I say there is a force within the people themselves that, if they take it away from the largest employer—the state—it would easily be paralyzed and forced to yield to the people’s demands.

Source: https://www.peykarandeesh.org/index.php/25-articles/1632-2026-02-17-22-59-20https://www.peykarandeesh.org/index.php/25-articles/1632-2026-02-17-22-59-20


*) Who is Esmail Bakhshi?

Esmail Bakhshi is an Iranian labor activist best known as a prominent representative of workers at the Haft Tappeh Sugarcane Company in Khuzestan province, Iran.

Why he became known

  • He emerged as a leading voice during major labor strikes at the Haft Tappeh sugarcane complex in 2018–2019, when workers protested unpaid wages, privatization, and poor working conditions.

  • Bakhshi publicly criticized government policies and called for independent workers’ councils.

  • After being arrested during the protests, he stated that he had been tortured in detention, which drew significant attention inside and outside Iran.

Arrests and legal cases

  • He has been arrested multiple times in connection with labor activism.

  • Iranian authorities charged him with national security–related offenses, which supporters argue were politically motivated.

  • His case became symbolic of broader repression of independent labor organizing in Iran.

Broader significance

Bakhshi is widely regarded by labor activists as a symbol of:

  • Popularized the demand for council-based governance

  • Opposition to state-backed privatization

  • Workers’ rights and freedom of association

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