General Secretary of KTÖS Şener Elcil, announced that there will be a warning strike in schools with pre-school, 1st and 2nd classes starting from tomorrow between 08.00-09.20.
The Cyprus Turkish Teachers’ Union (KTÖS) says that the issue of opening schools is under the authority of the Communicable Diseases Supreme Council and is beyond the authority of the Council of Ministers. The decision to continue the education of the primary, 1st and 2nd grades pupils during this time when there has been a spike in Covid-19 cases was both wrong and illegal, it said.
Elcil said, in a written statement, that the teachers would not take on the additional duties allotted to them. He noted that teachers will continue to make all kinds of contributions to education through the communication network they have created with parents.
Elcil criticised the government, saying that it had not considered public health with the decision to restart face to face tuition of the youngest children in schools. The government was using young children and teachers as “guinea pigs“, he asserted. The union leader said that they would bring the “illegal” decision made by the Council of Ministers before the judiciary.
Stating that this action was inevitable in order to protect public health, to provide uninterrupted education in environments where health and safety measures have been taken, and to prevent permanent closure of schools, Elcil went on to say:
“However, while we support and thank all our people for their resistance by not sending their children to school, we ask them to protect themselves and their families as they have done so far due to the extent of the epidemic, and to keep their children in a safe environment at home.“
Reports say that less than half infant and junior school pupils attended school on the day after they opened.
BRT
