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EI affiliate member, the Yemeni Teachers’ Syndicate (YTS) has denounced the serious escalation in violence against teacher trade unionists in the country as protests grow against the 32-year rule of President Ali Abdullah Saleh.

Fifty trade union organisations and NGOs’ representatives from all over Europe, will come together on 6 June in Brussels, Belgium, deploring that Georgia is rapidly becoming the Europe’s black sheep concerning workers’ rights.

EI has condemned the brutal takeover of the Teachers’ Association in the United Arab Emirates, a prominent civil society organisation calling for greater democracy in the country.

The UK Trades Union Congress (TUC) has supported the lunchtime Vigil organised by Action for Southern Africa (ACTSA) outside the Zimbabwe Embassy in London, UK.

EI’s Mauritanian affiliate Syndicat National de l’Enseignement Secondaire (SNES) has joined forces with Syndicat Indépendant des Professeurs de l'Enseignement Secondaire (SIPES) to call for a three-day strike from 8-10 May in order to bring the Government of Mauritania to the negotiation table.

Students have returned to the school in Brazil where a gunman killed 12 children on 7 April. Those killed were between 10 and 13 years old, and all but two were girls.

The NASUWT, one of the largest teacher unions in the UK, has secured millions of pounds in compensation for its members who suffered accidents, assaults and injuries suffered on school grounds in 2010.

EI has condemned the violent dispersion of peaceful pro-democracy demonstrations in Swaziland by the riot police and army.

EI and eight other human and labour rights organisations have expressed dismay at parliamentary proceedings in Iran intending to pass a law wiping out an independent civil society in the country.

The Yemen Teachers Syndicate asserts that at least three teachers have been killed during the past two weeks of unrest. "We know of three teachers that were shot during the recent protests," says Yehya Alinai, spokesperson for the Syndicate.

On behalf of teachers and education workers around the world, Education International extends sincere condolences to the families and school community of the victims of the tragic shooting that took place on 7 April in Tasso da Silveira primary school in the Realengo district of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Education International (EI) is deeply concerned that workers and their trade union representatives in Bahrain are facing a wave of coercive violence and massive dismissals, in apparent reprisal for their participation in legitimate strikes and protest actions for democratic change.

Teacher unionists in Morocco have staged a two-day nationwide strike after recent demonstrations for better benefits ended in violence.

French teacher unions have issued a joint statement following on the recent district elections in France, which have seen a growth in support for the far right party, the National Front, asserting that “educators oppose the policies of the extreme right.“

EI’s EFAIDS Programme is ending after five successful years of activity in Education for All (EFA) and HIV and AIDS education. Life-saving skills training has been implemented by 80 member organisations in 48countries across Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean.

Teachers from around the world have condemned reports from Harare which confirm that Zimbabwe’s teachers have been experiencing increased political threats and serious violent attacks since November 2010.

On 17 December 2010, a young vegetable seller named Mohamed Bouazizi burned himself alive in protest at police harassment in a small poverty-stricken town in Tunisia. Within a month the regime of President Ben Ali had fallen, sending shock waves across the entire Arab region.