The workers had organized a protest when they were dismissed from their jobs in 2014.
In 2014, 17 mine workers who were dismissed from Tikantapa's Aghdara mine, the second-largest gold mine in Iran, and sentenced to imprisonment, fines, and whipping by the Western Azerbaijan court due to a complaint by the employer, had their whipping sentences carried out in recent days, drawing widespread condemnation from human rights groups.
The news of 17 workers being whipped between 30 and 100 lashes, published on May 25 by the Iranian Labour News Agency (ILNA), has become a major topic in the press and among human rights groups.
The ILNA report cites Vahid Yari, the lawyer who defended the workers in court.
According to ILNA's report, the workers were charged in court with "disrupting the public's work and activities with noise and shouting," "insulting the company guard," "assaulting and injuring the company guard," and "intentionally damaging the company's sign."
The 17 mine workers who were whipped had participated in a protest on December 27, 2014, against the dismissal of 350 workers from the Aghdara Mine. During this protest, some of the demonstrators attempted suicide.
The Zershoran and Aghdara mines of Tikantapa are not only two of Iran's largest gold mines but also some of the largest gold mines in the Middle East.
In the West Azerbaijan province, the city officially known as Tekab, but mostly referred to as "Afshar Tikantapa" due to its predominantly Afshar Turkish population, is recognized by this name.
Link to the original text in Turkish on the Azerbaijani section of Voice of America:
İran Azərbaycanında 17 mədən işçisinə şallaq vurulması medianın gündəmində