From comrade Joy: "
The economic crisis has impacted the population profoundly. Basic education for working class children in elementary and secondary school is made more difficult as inflation drives up the cost of paper and schoolbooks, which have doubled in cost. Government employees take menial jobs on the side to supplement their salaries, which can meet only a fraction of their needs. Middle class families can no longer afford the tuition for their children studying abroad. But the damage and disruption to peoples' lives is much broader than that, and much more basic. In both direct and indirect ways, the sanctions affect the population's access to food and medicine.
It is not that there is famine. But as the International Campaign for Human Rights has reported, meat, milk, and fruit are now luxuries. "Food has become like gold," said one parent. "Now I can afford to buy meat only for my daughter." "I go out with my child," said another, "but if I buy her fruit, I won't be able to cover my necessary expenses." In July 2012, there was a riot in the town of Nishapur because the price of chicken had become unaffordable for many. One family said, "We've slowly scratched off milk, yogurt, cheese, and butter from our table. Prices are going up almost daily, and we can't afford them." One restaurant owner commented wryly, "It was as though people had turned vegetarian overnight." The sanctions don't prohibit food sales. But Iran imports about a quarter of its food, and the financial sanctions are so extreme, and enforced so aggressively, that food exporters cannot find any banks that are willing to handle Iran's payments for its food purchases, or shipping companies to transport them.
As sanctions became more extreme in 2010, Iranians also saw a profound impact on their access to medications. An estimated 6 million Iranians have life-threatening diseases, such as cancer and AIDS, and are dependent on imported drugs for treatment. A human rights organization reported on the "exorbitant prices, the dearth or disappearance of a large number of medications, and the long and useless lines in pharmacies and the black market.""
The economic crisis has impacted the population profoundly. Basic education for working class children in elementary and secondary school is made more difficult as inflation drives up the cost of paper and schoolbooks, which have doubled in cost. Government employees take menial jobs on the side to supplement their salaries, which can meet only a fraction of their needs. Middle class families can no longer afford the tuition for their children studying abroad. But the damage and disruption to peoples' lives is much broader than that, and much more basic. In both direct and indirect ways, the sanctions affect the population's access to food and medicine.
It is not that there is famine. But as the International Campaign for Human Rights has reported, meat, milk, and fruit are now luxuries. "Food has become like gold," said one parent. "Now I can afford to buy meat only for my daughter." "I go out with my child," said another, "but if I buy her fruit, I won't be able to cover my necessary expenses." In July 2012, there was a riot in the town of Nishapur because the price of chicken had become unaffordable for many. One family said, "We've slowly scratched off milk, yogurt, cheese, and butter from our table. Prices are going up almost daily, and we can't afford them." One restaurant owner commented wryly, "It was as though people had turned vegetarian overnight." The sanctions don't prohibit food sales. But Iran imports about a quarter of its food, and the financial sanctions are so extreme, and enforced so aggressively, that food exporters cannot find any banks that are willing to handle Iran's payments for its food purchases, or shipping companies to transport them.
As sanctions became more extreme in 2010, Iranians also saw a profound impact on their access to medications. An estimated 6 million Iranians have life-threatening diseases, such as cancer and AIDS, and are dependent on imported drugs for treatment. A human rights organization reported on the "exorbitant prices, the dearth or disappearance of a large number of medications, and the long and useless lines in pharmacies and the black market.""
