THE FORCES of the Khomeini-Bazargan government completed their occupation of the in the September. The last major town entered by the army was Sar Dasht on the border with Iraq.
On 3 September, accupied Mahabad, a town of about 100,000 inhabitants and the main political centre of the Kurdish area.
In every case, the Kurdish forces left the towns before the arrival of government troops.
The towns are generally located in valleys, and are defenceless against the air, armoured forces of the army built by the Shah and the US imperialists. The Kurdish guerrillas reportedly made their withdrawai in good order and with their morale intact.
The real battle for the Kurdish areas seems to be just beginning. It is the fight for control of the villages in which the overwhelming majority of the people live, and in economic activity of the area, agriculture, is centred. Disarm The villages are also the focuses of the agrarian revolution, Bazargan government's offensive was designed roll back. In order to accomplish objective, the government forces must disarm the peasants and force them to give up the land they have taken.
The peasants seem determined to fight. For example, in the Saqqez area, the government offered an amnesty to all those who turned in their weapons. But according to the official Iranian news agency, admitted that in five days only six guns had been handed over, while most Kurdish males are armed. even voung bovs.
The government occupation of the towns will have the effect of politically isolating the Kurdish fighters, communication with the outside world, as well as of open political activity.
However, the Iranian regime is extremely THE following interview with LEO YBERTA, a Sandinista trade union organiser in the Nicaraguan city Masaya, was recently obtained Ron Poulsen of the Trotskyist weekly Direct Action.
How did the Sandinistas set about rebuilding the trade union movement in Masaya?
The first step we took was to call an organising meeting for the Sandinista Workers Centre. We invited all the Masaya workers, unions, carpenters, bus-drivers, taxi-drivers, turned up.
We explained the objectives of the centre to them, ine aims or ine Sandinista Front, and the importance the WOrkers peasants.
Then immediately afterwards we opened this office and all the trade unions in Masaya came to register. There were the telephone workers, bank workers, drivers, the workers from the Sandinista electrical station, the factory workers, the teachers, and the hospital workers union.
We meet here once a week with the representatives of the various trade unions to hold discussions and give them the technical know-how so they can act on their own behalf. As well, fortnight hold with each union and falk about social and political matters, or whatever they bring up.
Our aim unions schools in which everything is taught, from the history of Nicaragua to the reasons for the Sandinistas' struggle. Walll unionists politically so that they can Come o understand all the problems we have to integrate them into national reconstruction.
What kind of work is the Sandinista CCILLIC peasants?
The peasants are Kurdish areas of Iran on central góvernment forces artillery, and which the basic which the Khomeinithis a spokesman of the Guards in area since these were centres of of by Australian and all the trade craftworkers, members of the is affiliated to practice it's much the same.
existed the struggle separate the happened.
make the educate preparing to SOCIE themselves.
confront, to the work of education.
among the formally motive force of our revolution.
vulnerable pressure with regard to its repression in the Kurdish areas.
Reports are circulating that in the city of Rasht, one of the largest centres in northern The Sandinista Workers Centre in Masaya.
Sandinista centre.
They belong to the Association of Farm Workers, and this organisation the collie, SO The Association of Farm Workers overthrew the dictatorship and played a big role in against Somoza, and them of everything that Since the fall of the dictatorship the AFW has developed enormously, and has set to work teaching new techniques to the peasants. But aid to the peasantry mustn't be paternalistic. The peasants must obtain it by organising on their own behalf and defend their conquests This shows the imporWOK of conscioushess, of social and political The AFW exists because we want to bring about a great worker-peasant alliance, because we consider that the worker-peasant allance will be the about. Iran, whole units of the army have refused to go to fight in the Kurdish areas, and that there are celebrations in the barracks every time that another unit refuses to go. flow of information and the clear that peopie.
SOLIDARITY taken up Trotskyists in lite imorisonment.
National Union of Students.
committee the 14 Trotskyists Workers Partv) have Among them Graphical Association, three from union SLADE, Association, nine NATSOPA, Journalists, I2 TrOM Tailors & Garment Workers, National and Local ANOMALOU expression opposition to the war in the Persian centres, it is increasingly unpopular.
International publicity and support for the Kurds can aid the development of this anti-war sentiment throughout Iran and help stop, the government's campaign against the Kurdish with the Kurdish struggle is being organised by the Ad Hoc Committee to Defend Democratic Rights in Iran, which has the case 14 auct Iran, twelve of whom face execution (the other two have been sentenced to The committee is organising a teach-in and demonstration in November, and sponsorship for the former has already been won from the In Liverpool a local branch of the committee has been set up after a successful public meeting sponsored b the trades council and port shop stewards Further telegrams demanding the release of o1 the HKS (Socialist Liverpool SOGAT, Liverpool NALGO, and Hackney North Labour Party. A large number of delegates at the TUC also signed a petition calling 'for the immediate withdrawal of the death sentence against these socialists and the dropping of the charges placed against them' were the Boilermakers Society, 10 from the Nationa the print five from the Civil Service Union, 23 from the Civil & Public Services the print unior the Association Broadcasting Staff, one from the Agricultural Workers, eight from the National Union of the National Union fron the Engineering Workers, 12 from the Society of Civil and Public Servants, and 15 from the Government Officers