BEIRUT: Teachers’ Day was marked Wednesday with nationwide celebrations, as teachers urged officials to answer their salary and other demands.
The Teachers Union held a reception at its headquarters in Beirut that was attended by Sidon MP Bahia Hariri, the chair of the Parliament’s Education Committee on behalf of caretaker Prime Minister Saad Hariri. Caretaker Education Minister Hassan Mneimneh, caretaker Interior Minister Ziyad Baroud, Nabatieh MP Abdel-Latif Zein and a host of educational figures were also on hand.
Union president Nehme Mahfouz outlined teachers’ demands, citing the diminishing purchasing power of their salaries as a result of soaring prices.
“We won’t remain silent if the situation remains as such; we will not remain silent over the diminishing purchasing power of our salaries,” Mahfouz said. “Arab popular uprisings that are taking place around us are a motivation.”
He vowed to revive a coordinating committee for teachers unions to address the issue. “We warn of negative consequences if top state officials don’t work on stopping this rapid deterioration in living standards.”
In a statement, caretaker Prime Minister Saad Hariri saluted the teachers of Lebanon. “This occasion constitutes an opportunity to salute the unknown soldiers that are still contributing to the revival and development of Lebanon,” Hariri said.
In Tripoli, the Safadi Foundation organized a ceremony in the Safadi Cultural Center in cooperation with the Nour School in the city’s Mina suburb.
Ahmad Safadi, speaking on behalf of caretaker Economy and Trade Minster Mohammad Safadi, saluted teachers and called upon the government to meet their pressing demands.
“It is unfair that teachers are forced to protest, demonstrate and strike to gain their rights. The economy cannot recover, and development cannot be achieved … without an academic system based on qualified teachers who are confident of securing their living,” Safadi said. He called for the allocation of funds to boost education.
“Developing education and boosting the capabilities of teachers and raising their standard of living along with building modern schools require allocating enough funds,” Safadi said.
“Smart funding for the sake of education is an investment in people, which is Lebanon’s most important form of capital. [Such spending should take place] instead of [politicians] spending money on supporters,” he added.
Safadi stressed the Safadi Foundation’s continuous support for public education in Tripoli and north Lebanon in its educational sessions and the formation of parental committees.
Elsewhere in the north, Teachers’ Day was marked with celebrations in private and public schools.
Under the patronage of caretaker Labor Minister Butros Harb, represented by his brother Antoine, a public academy for vocational education in Batroun organized a ceremony in honor of teachers at a restaurant in Kfifan, Batroun, attended by a number of teachers and local figures.
Meanwhile, the Secondary Teachers Associations celebrated Teachers’ Day and called for an end to political intervention in educational institutions and professional associations and for uniting to “have a say in education-related decisions.”
Separately, a committee representing contract teachers in public schools demanded full-time employment.
Hamza Mansour, the committee’s head, questioned why their demand had gone unmet for decades.
He urged the next Cabinet to make the matter a priority, and said a draft law on the matter was being neglected by Parliament. –The Daily Star
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