Al-Sulaymaniyah teachers protest over “forcibly withheld” salaries, call for action
Shafaq News/ On Saturday, educational staff and employees in Al-Sulaymaniyah province, Kurdistan Region, staged large protests outside the Directorate of Education, demanding their financial and professional rights.
These actions come amid the ongoing financial crisis in all provinces of the Kurdistan Region, with delayed salary payments causing widespread discontent among education sector workers.
Speaking with Shafaq News, Najm al-Din Muhammad, a member of the Teachers' Rights Defense Committee in Al-Sulaymaniyah, said, "We began our ongoing protests today with strong participation from teachers and employees in the province." He added, "These protests are driven by the delay in October's salary for over 50 days, though it is not the only reason for our actions."
"We demand the payment of our overdue and forcibly withheld salaries, implementation of the Federal Court’s decisions on salary localization and disbursement, and the payment of allowances and professional promotions, which have been halted for years for illogical reasons, severely affecting teachers' professional and living conditions,” he continued.
The protesters affirmed that the delay in salary payments and allowances has harmed their ability to meet daily needs, stressing that this financial crisis is “unacceptable,” especially given the Region's tough economic conditions.
Notably, teachers' protests in the Region are not new, with similar movements in recent years. However, the authorities' limited response, according to analysts, has deepened the trust crisis between educational staff and the government.
Al-Sulaymaniyah has faced recurring financial crises impacting government employee salaries, including teachers. The crisis stems from delays in financial agreements between the federal and Regional governments, along with weak local revenues.
In recent years, decisions by the Iraqi Federal Court have called for salary localization and more transparent payment processes, but their implementation faces many obstacles.
Teachers in Al-Sulaymaniyah, a key part of the protest movement in the Kurdistan Region, are demanding the swift implementation of these decisions and an end to the unjustified delays in salaries and allowances.
