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Public school teachers protest in south against lifting strike

Public school teachers protest in south against lifting strike

Public school teachers demonstrate against the lifting of their strike in Saida, South Lebanon, on March 7, 2023. (Courtesy of: Muntasser Abdallah)

BEIRUT — Dozens of public sector teachers demonstrated on Tuesday in southern Lebanon's Nabatieh and Saida, asking unions to maintain the strike they began in January "until their demands are met," L'Orient Today's correspondent in the south reported.

Still paid in the massively depreciated Lebanese lira, the teachers are demanding improved salaries and benefits

On Sunday, however, teachers' unions announced they were ending the strike, sparking ire from others still vying for better pay. 

Public school and vocational teachers gathered Tuesday morning in Saida, chanting the slogan: "We refuse the humiliating return [to school] without having won our demands."

A high school teacher, Imane Hanineh, told L'Orient Today that "the movement will continue until our demands are met," rejecting her union's decision to return to class.

These unions "do not respect the decisions of the general assemblies union," Hanineh added.

"We are independent trade unionists," Hanineh said. She said she rejects the proposals of caretaker Education Minister Abbas Halabi on compensation payments and transportation allowances to teachers.

"We want the revaluation of salaries according to inflation and dollarization," she added.

Public high school teachers also held a demonstration in Nabatieh, our correspondent reported. They gathered in the morning in front of the local Education Ministry office and marched to the city's central bank headquarters. Students also participated in the march. 

On Sunday, several public school teachers' unions indicated that they would return to class starting Monday, although many teachers announced their intention to ignore this decision, arguing that the authorities have not met their demands.

Teachers on Monday also demonstrated in Beirut and North Lebanon against ending the teachers' strike.

Reporting contributed by Muntasser Abdallah

BEIRUT — Dozens of public sector teachers demonstrated on Tuesday in southern Lebanon's Nabatieh and Saida, asking unions to maintain the strike they began in January "until their demands are met," L'Orient Today's correspondent in the south reported.Still paid in the massively depreciated Lebanese lira, the teachers are demanding improved salaries and benefits. On Sunday, however,...