Protests in Sweida demanding payment of teachers' salaries

On Thursday, Sweida city witnessed a protest, attended by a large number of teachers, both male and female, and employees in the education sector, demanding the payment of their salaries, which have been suspended for more than three months.

The protesters held up banners in front of the Education Directorate and Governorate building which included, "Salaries are a right, not a favor," calling on all parties to keep the educational process separate from political tensions and guarantee the continuity of their livelihoods, ensuring the smooth running of the educational process.

The pay cut crisis stems from the military escalation witnessed in Sweida and its countryside, resulting from clashes between the forces of the transitional government in Syria on the one hand, and the local Druze military forces, now known as the "National Guard," on the other hand, as the government then besieged the area.

The teachers called on the Supreme Legal Committee and the Sweida Education Directorate, as well as the Ministry of Education in the transitional government, to find urgent solutions that guarantee their rights and the rights of students.

According to educational sources, more than 12,000 employees in Sweida and its countryside have not received their salaries since last July, after the transitional government restricted disbursements through a bank it established in al-Mazr'a town, west of Sweida, which is under its control. This was considered by employees a political blackmail that exacerbates the suffering of a large segment of society.

J.J