Education in Kurdistan at risk: 700,000 students distant from classrooms amid salary strike
Shafaq News / The Kurdistan Teachers' Union revealed today, Wednesday, statistics related to the educational process in al-Sulaymaniyah and its outskirts due to the general strike over salary issues, warning that the educational process is heading towards a "dark tunnel."
Atta Ahmed, Deputy Head of the Union, stated that the educational process is heading towards a dark abyss, indicating risks to the educational process, especially the fate of the current academic year.
He added that nearly 60,000 teachers are on strike, with approximately 3,000 to 4,000 schools affected, and around 700,000 students are distant from classrooms due to the strike, which resulted from delayed salary payments.
He blamed the government and the Ministry of Education for this strike, stating that they should find solutions. He anticipated that teachers would be satisfied with the most basic working conditions if provided by the government.
Moreover, he mentioned that if the strike continues into the second semester, it would imply that the academic year has ended. If teachers return to classrooms in the second semester, there might be a reduction in some subjects, elimination or reduction of some breaks, and deferral of certain subjects, similar to what occurred during the COVID-19 outbreak in the Region.
Teachers and educators, along with lecturers, have been on a general strike for about 80 days in al-Sulaymaniyah, Halabja, Garmian, and Ranya administrations due to delayed salary payments. They continue their ongoing demonstrations (every Sunday) in the governorate since announcing their strike in September.
