"We the workers of Parsilon [a factory] are hungry" read a banner at a gathering during President Mahmud Ahmadinejad's March 1 speech in Khoramabad.
The banner was a direct challenge to Ahmadinejad and his recent claim that "Iran is among the few countries in the world where no one goes to bed hungry."
He made similar comments during a 2009 press conference. Ahmadinejad said that when the revolution ousted the shah's regime, 95 percent of Iranians lived in absolute poverty. He added that today there were no poor in Iran that are in need of food.
According to the head of Iran's Statistics Center, Adel Azar, about 40 million Iranians live in poverty including 10 million who live in absolute poverty line and some 30 million under relative poverty line.
The banner was a direct challenge to Ahmadinejad and his recent claim that "Iran is among the few countries in the world where no one goes to bed hungry."
He made similar comments during a 2009 press conference. Ahmadinejad said that when the revolution ousted the shah's regime, 95 percent of Iranians lived in absolute poverty. He added that today there were no poor in Iran that are in need of food.
According to the head of Iran's Statistics Center, Adel Azar, about 40 million Iranians live in poverty including 10 million who live in absolute poverty line and some 30 million under relative poverty line.
