Violence, Curfews Restrain Right to Education

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Chairperson of the Trade Union of Employees in Education and Science (Eğitim Sen), Kamuran Karaca, has pointed out that curfews and an environment of violence put a great psychological pressure on children.

“Months-long armed conflicts, pressure and deaths have caused a severe psychological trauma on people of that region, especially on students and teachers.”

Karaca has added, that these were exactly times when students and teachers should be together yet “sending the teachers to a seminar” according to a message of the Ministry for National Education (MEB) from yesterday (December 13) would stretch this traumatizing period which the children are going through.

“By separating teachers and students, MEB gives more ground for a psychological destruction.”

Teachers concerned about their security of life.

Karaca has expressed that also teachers as well as the students have been concerned especially about their life safety.

“Besides the concerns have increased following the notice of pulling back the health-care providers and teachers.

“A part of the students are also residents of these districts. In such times they are under great pressure due to concerns about leaving the district and their families there.

“Even in the 90s we have not experienced such a situation and such curfew extensions and maintaining the environment of violence for so long cause great problems.”

The attitude of MEB

Kamuran Karaca has also emphasized that the above mentioned message of in-service training for the teachers would mean nothing else than evacuating a region right before an operation.

“There is no in-service training seminar organized in districts around the armed-conflict areas, neither in Şırnak nor in Siirt.

Expressing that MEB has an attitude supporting the conflict policies, Karaca has reminded that MEB should be against such practices restraining education and training.

“MEB should demand ending this process and meeting political responsibilities. They should ask the government to take action for ending the violence and in order to do this, the schools should be maintained in service and and the teachers should be there.”

Ten-thousands of students

According to data from Eğitim Sen, in Cizre district where curfew was declared today (December 14), there are 107 schools, 43,000 students, 1,300 teachers and in Silopi district 68 schools, 40,000 students and 1710 teachers. (YY/ DG)