Iranian teachers went on a nationwide-strike and boycotted classrooms on Sunday, March 3, 2019 for third time in the last two months over financial crisis, government’s lack of efficiency, imprisonment of teachers and failing education system.
The strikes went on in 37 cities through Iran with protesters chanting slogans such as “Freedom for jailed teachers,” “Prison is not a place for teachers” and “wages over poverty line is the right of teachers.”
“As a teacher, we are dealing with a job condition, which we cannot raise our voice very easily,” Mohammad Hussein Sepehri said in a video received by Avatoday.
“Unfortunately, the rulers have been misusing our tolerance and ignore our demands or humiliate us with the kind of response they have,” he explained.
“Rouhani told teachers that ‘this is the situation of the country, if you can work continue, if not, resign,’” Sepehri quoted Iranian President Hassan Rouhani.
“They (Iranian officials) are elected by people and their duty is to fulfill people’s demands,” Sepehri added.
Sepehri has also urged the Iranian authority to resign if they are not qualified enough to solve the problems that Iran in facing.
“If they cannot do it, they must quit not us... It is impossible to live in this condition,” he explained.
Iranian Kurdish teachers also boycotted the classrooms, adding an extra demand to the list of requests by Iranian teachers.
The Iranian Kurds’ right to Mother-Tongue education study is also among the main request of Kurdish teachers.
Thousands teacher boycotted teaching classes previously in October and November to show their anger over low budget of Iran’s Ministry of Education, the arrest of teachers who were protesting against the country’s failing education system, unfair and low salaries, and lack of facilities in the Iranian schools.
