Paralysis affects schools in Jordan after teachers strike

Mahmoud al-Sharaan-Amman

Jordan's schools were paralyzed on Sunday, the first day of a strike announced by teachers after negotiations between the Jordanian government and their union failed in the second week of the new school year.

Jordan's teachers abided by their union's strike decision, with the strike in schools reaching 100%, according to the teachers' union.

The strike, called by the union, came after the escalation of the dispute between the government and teachers, following what the union called the security deal "rough" with the teachers' sit-in last Thursday, and the arrest of more than fifty teachers, who were later released.

The dispute began after the union demanded the government to increase the profession by 50%, which was agreed by the two parties five years ago, but the bonus has not been granted so far, which called the Council of the union to take decisions upward.

Violations and responses
During a press conference held yesterday, one of the teachers revealed abuses he and his fellow teachers the moment of their arrest last Thursday by the security services.

He explained that he and the rest of the arrested teachers were transported in a vehicle that was not suitable for transporting cattle to the security center, and took their phones and watches before being stripped naked and stripped there for more than 20 minutes, he said.

The union showed several videos and photos showing what it called security forces' assault on teachers during the vigil Thursday.

In response to the syndicate conference, the Jordanian General Security held a press conference in which the Director of Preventive Security Brigadier General Mahmoud Al-Quraan spoke about the reservation of 50 teachers during the sit-in Thursday. "13 of them were sent to Al-Bayader security center, and one of the teachers was suffering from a medical condition. He was dealt with accordingly, where he was kept in one of the offices of the center, and was allowed to call at his request. "

He said the rest had been arrested, but one of them was nervous, took off his clothes and threw them to the ground, and then began screaming on the salaries of the center, but he was treated wisely, he said.

For his part, Assistant Director of Public Security for Operations Brigadier General Obeidallah Maaytah at the conference that teachers directed abuses directly to the security services, and the security cadres remained consistent in dealing with them, pointing out that these abuses mock the educational level, which negatively affects the cadres of the security services.

Dignity before the premium
"What is more important is the dignity of the teacher," said Nasser al-Nawasra, deputy head of the teachers' union on Al-Jazeera Net, adding that teachers will not "enter the classroom before the abusers and abusers are held accountable last Thursday. We want to hold all those who attacked the teachers accountable. The dignity of teachers, and the demand for 50% bonus is achieved. "

He added that "the union did not and will not close its doors to any party interested in dialogue, but knocked on the doors of dialogue with the government through correspondence and direct and indirect talks, but was met with procrastination and procrastination, and overturned what was agreed upon several years ago."

Eye insight
On the government side, Minister of State for Information Affairs Jumana Ghanimat stressed that "the government has the duty to improve the status of teachers in addition to improving the education of students, and it is the right of the teacher and public and private employees to demand improvement of their economic situation."

Ghanimat, a government spokesman, told Al Jazeera Net that the government had dealt with the teachers' file for several months and held several meetings with the union, which requires responding to the request of the premium before discussing any other topic.

She explained that the government "made an offer to the Teachers Union to increase conditional on job performance, but the union rejected it," noting that the Jordanian economy "suffers from a modest slowdown and growth rates, and any new spending on salaries and bonuses will worsen the deficit, and thus aggravate the debt."

Teachers' strike
Jordanians reacted heavily to the teachers' strike and strikes, especially after the capital Amman and several major roads in the kingdom were almost paralyzed by security closures to prevent teachers from reaching the prime minister's area for a protest sit-in last Thursday.

The #Teacher_Teacher tag has topped Jordan's most interactive Twitter list in the past two days.Most Twitter and Facebook respondents expressed sympathy for and support for teachers, while others criticized what they saw as a crisis between the government and teachers paid only by students and their families.

Teachers posted pictures of teachers maintaining their school buildings on the first day of their strike. .

While teachers insist on continuing their strike until their demands are met, observers wonder when the crisis will end, or will it escalate between the country's biggest unions and the Jordanian government?