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 theirfinancial and professional rights.
These actions come amid the ongoingfinancial crisis in all provinces of the Kurdistan Region, with delayed salarypayments causing widespread discontent among education sector workers.
Speaking with Shafaq News, Najmal-Din Muhammad, a member of the Teachers' Rights Defense Committee inAl-Sulaymaniyah, said, "We began our ongoing protests today with strongparticipation from teachers and employees in the province." He added,"These protests are driven by the delay in October's salary for over 50days, though it is not the only reason for our actions."
"We demand the payment of ouroverdue and forcibly withheld salaries, implementation of the Federal Court’sdecisions on salary localization and disbursement, and the payment ofallowances and professional promotions, which have been halted for years forillogical reasons, severely affecting teachers' professional and livingconditions,” he continued.
The protesters affirmed that thedelay in salary payments and allowances has harmed their ability to meet dailyneeds, stressing that this financial crisis is “unacceptable,” especially giventhe Region's tough economic conditions.
Notably, teachers' protests in the Regionare not new, with similar movements in recent years. However, the authorities'limited response, according to analysts, has deepened the trust crisis betweeneducational staff and the government.
Al-Sulaymaniyah has faced recurringfinancial crises impacting government employee salaries, including teachers.The crisis stems from delays in financial agreements between the federal and Regionalgovernments, along with weak local revenues.
In recent years, decisions by theIraqi Federal Court have called for salary localization and more transparentpayment processes, but their implementation faces many obstacles.
Teachers in Al-Sulaymaniyah, a keypart of the protest movement in the Kurdistan Region, are demanding the swiftimplementation of these decisions and an end to the unjustified delays insalaries and allowances.
