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On 26 February, EI’s national affiliate, E?itim Sen, organised a national strike action to protest against the new draft of the ‘Amendments to the National Education System Law’ discussed at the Turkish Parliament during the previous few days. Thousands of education and science workers from all provinces of Turkey, as well as thousands of people from other labour and vocational organisations, joined in the strike.

With this new legislation, the Turkish Government aims to transform all providers of private classes into private schools, denounces E?itim Sen. The Government will provide public areas to build new private schools for private tuitions. However, there is no obligation for payment. Private course providers could also use free public areas in order to build new private schools.

Increasing privatisation of education

According to the education union, this move is part of the privatisation process in education happening in Turkey. Following this process, public resources will be allocated to help privatisation by the government.

“We are against privatisation of education since it is a violation of human rights: education is a right for all children,” underlined Egitim Sen General Secretary Mehmet Bozgeyik.

Schools managers under threat

The union is also concerned about another important regulation about school managers that is about to be implemented. The Government is planning for the dismissal of all school managers who have already been working for four years and for future school managers to be appointed by the governors of provinces.

“The future of almost 40,000 managers of schools is unknown,” said Bozgeyik. “If this draft law is adopted by the Parliament, political decision makers will start appointing school managers. This is so anti-democratic! Our union demands that all school managers be elected by school communities.”

The Turkish Parliament is still discussing the draft law for adoption, and the Turkish Government and Ministry of Education disregard the union’s demands, he outlined. “We will continue to fight for our basic democratic rights. We call for all education and science workers in the world to resist privatisation of education and political intervention on school managers in Turkey.”

Click here to send out a solidarity message with E?itim Sen.

This latest government action is just the latest confrontation with the education sector. In January 2014, the first hearing was held in the latest judicial case targeting E?itim Sen and the Public Sector Confederation KESK: 502 trade union leaders, members and other demonstrators were prosecuted for participating in March 2012 in peaceful protests against the draft Public Services Trade Union Law and proposed changes in the education system. The European Trade Union Committee for Education (ETUCE), EI’s regional office for Europe, helped to organise the attendance of the delegation of international observers in Ankara for the hearing.

EI: Government must stop teachers’ harassment

“Like our Turkish affiliate, we strongly oppose the Turkish Government’s plans to further privatise the school system and damage democracy in education,” said ETUCE Director Martin Rømer. “This Government is planning to gift public spaces to private operators to open schools, in a move very similar to the so-called UK free schools, or charter schools in the US, he stressed.

Rømer also called on Turkey’s public authorities to engage in social dialogue with organisations representing education personnel and remind them of their responsibilities to ensure free quality public education for all in this country.

You can find pictures of the E?itim Sen members’ demonstration here