Jobless man hurls shoes at Iranian president

TEHRAN. December 13. KAZINFORM An unemployed Iranian man threw his shoes at President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad while the leader was delivering a speech at a ceremony on Monday in the northern city of Sari in Mazandaran Province, the local Mehr news agency reported; Kazinform refers to Xinhua.

The 45-year old, who was fired by a weaving factory, managed to get to the front row to complain about unemployment, and then he threw his shoes at the president, said the report.

The shoes, however, did not hit Ahmadinejad.

According to Mehr, people participating in the ceremony chanted slogans in support of the president and expressed their disapproval of the insulting move.

Unemployment in Iran's industrial centers are mostly blamed on western sanction impacts, old equipment, lack of maintenance and inappropriate technology as well as the government's failure to accomplish its economic programs.

The country's past twelve-month inflation rate, according to the official figures by Iran's Central Bank, hit over 17 percent, although unofficial sources reported higher figures.

Iran's Central Bank CEO Mahmoud Bahmani has said the high inflation rate can be traced to the ongoing Subsidy Reform Plan announced last December to cut government subsidies on key consumer goods.

Some economists have warned that prices could soar as a result of the subsidies cut on essentials such as food and fuel.

In September, senior Iranian cleric Hojjatoleslam Kazem Seddiqi called on the government to make greater efforts to improve people 's welfare and the economy.

Grand Ayatollah Naser Makarem-Shirazi also expressed concerns over the inflation in Iran.

"Every day about 2,000 letters and messages are received by our office, in which many (civilians) complain about inflation and other problems," said the influential religious leader.

However, Ahmadinejad, on several occasions, hailed the implementation of the subsidy reform plan and reiterated that the Western sanctions and the reform have provided opportunities for the country to gain independence in many economic sectors and made its economy even stronger.

In a press conference this summer, the Iranian president announced the government's plan to create 2.5 million jobs by the end of the Iranian calendar year (ending on March 19). However, no new developments on this effort have been reported yet.