A very loud message to the President from the teachers

Protesters flooded the streets yesterday in an unprecedented turnout, with more than 10.000 people of all ages marching and protesting against the public school, shouting slogans and holding banners and placards. After yesterday's massive demonstration, the eyes are turned to the next day, since the loud message of the teachers can no longer be ignored by the competent bodies and the Government.

The hopes for the solution of the crisis in Education are now focused on today's joint meeting of the Labor and Education committees, with the political parties (except DISY) and the teachers, supporting the freezing of the decisions of the Council of Ministers. In fact, OELMEK, POED and OLTEK declare that they are ready for a dialogue, but in the coming days they will decide on new measures.   

"Hands off Education", the main slogan of the teachers, while many others were heard that strengthened the endurance struggle. "We are defending the public school", prevailed in banners, while there were others more imaginative such as: "Give the surcharge to the bankers", "Neither door 9, nor 19. Only 9 years in schools and now unemployed" etc. The attendance of the people started earlier than the appointment of the educational organizations. People arrived wearing white T-shirts, with the slogan "No to the dissolution of the public school". 

When the first line of teachers arrived outside the Wargaming building, the latter seemed to be about a mile away, passing through the lights of a Honda. When the teacher coordinating the slogans announced to the protesters the distance covered by the crowd that followed them, they burst into loud applause, cheered and rallied more after that. Their voices were amplified even more by the mass mobilization. The march now resounded with its slogans. "Hands off Education", while at that point was heard for the first time "Resign - Resign", to the Minister of Education, Costas Hambiaouris. The pulse remained at these levels until they reached outside the Presidential Palace. Several hundred more teachers were waiting for them there, among them their retired colleagues. The people who welcomed the procession in turn began to applaud and congratulate them. The emotion prevailed and many, including the president of POED, now had tears in their eyes.

Support from Europe and Cyprus
Organizations from Europe and Cyprus were placed next to the educational organizations. As announced after the completion of the march, a message of support was sent by the director of the European Teachers' Organization (ETUCE), which represents 11 million teachers. In addition, their support was expressed by the teachers' federations from Serbia, Poland, Slovenia, Portugal, Spain and of course Greece, which in fact gave its presence.

Also, a message was sent by the T / Cypriot teachers' organizations. The political parties AKEL, DIKO, EDEK, Ecologists, the Solidarity Movement, the Citizens' Alliance and the former Speaker of Parliament Giannakis Omirou expressed support for the claims of teachers and professors.

On the side of the teachers, students stated, as there was a banner from ESEM and POFEN. The Confederation of Parents of Pre-Primary Education also stood with them, at the hearing of which the people shouted well done, applauding louder. Among many others, the unions PEO, SEK, DEOK, POAS, PASYKY, PASYNO, the Trade Union Coordinating Committee of Independent Trade Unions. 

Teachers are ready to find a solution
After the end of the march, the presidents of OELMEK, POED and OLTEK spoke about the demands and deadlocks that the teachers faced and are facing, noting their readiness to find a solution and dialogue. "The fight does not stop here. After the unique event, everyone's eyes should turn to the next day. The next day must find us united, to continue the effort to overcome the impasses, for which others are responsible. "Once again, I express our readiness to find a solution", said among others the president of OELMEK, Giannos Socratous. As he noted, they send in all directions a resounding message for the defense of the Public School, the preservation of the institutional dialogue and the procedures, as well as the "defense of the trampled dignity of the 13.000 teachers". He went on to say that the representatives of the three educational organizations surpassed themselves. "We tried with compromise, with counter-proposals, with equivalent compensatory measures to those unilaterally decided by the Council of Ministers, as well as to open a channel of communication with the Ministry of Education." Unfortunately, as he said, the other side rejected their suggestions and remained anchored in its decisions. 

For his part, the president of OLTEK, Panagiotis Lysandrou, welcomed both the massiveness and the peaceful nature of the mobilizations. "We declare in the strongest way that we will defend the quality in Public Education. Our teachers, but also our students. We ask for calm to return to the schools, so that this year can start with the least problems under the circumstances. "The door to a dignified and democratic dialogue is always open."

Finally, the president of POED, Filios Fylaktou, stated that "the educational things in the country have been turned into a time bomb, which was activated by the Minister of Education, Costas Hambiaouris". After this phrase, the speech was interrupted by the voices of the protesters, who again demanded the resignation of the minister. "On July 4, the Council of Ministers also removed the pin. For the past two months, time has been counting down and today we have reached a great impasse ". In addition, he said that orchestratedly affected the dignity, professionalism and hard work of teachers. "Today we are roaring and demanding institutional dialogue," he concluded. 

Source