©NNA
Maronite Patriarch Bechara al-Rai said he was "satisfied" with the results of the meeting he chaired in Bkerke on Wednesday to discuss the laws on teachers' rights passed by Parliament on December 15. The two laws amend certain regulations governing educational authority in private schools and the management of school budgets.
The controversial laws sparked a wave of indignation among school administrations. On December 21, Catholic schools went on an open strike in protest. The Episcopal Committee and the General Secretariat of Catholic Schools denounced the adoption of these laws without prior consultation with the stakeholders. They are contesting several articles, particularly the one concerning the increase to 8% of the monthly contribution paid by schools and teachers to the compensation fund.
A second meeting is scheduled for Thursday among the various stakeholders, including Nehme Mahfoud, President of the Teachers Syndicate of Lebanon, who was present at the Wednesday meeting.
Mahfoud told This Is Beirut that the next meeting is meant “to study measures likely to enable the implementation of law enforcement mechanisms that take into account the positions of the stakeholders."
However, he denounced caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati's refusal to sign the law and publish it in the Official Gazette, arguing that "the law should be enforced, since it was adopted by Parliament and approved by the Council of Ministers.”
On Tuesday evening, the office of the President of the Council of Ministers announced that Mikati had not signed three of the 14 laws that were passed by Parliament on December 14 and 15 and then approved by the Cabinet on December 19. Among these three laws is one concerning teachers' rights.
Commenting on Mikati's decision, MP Mark Daou called it an "infringement" of the law. He expressed his solidarity with the teachers, saying that he was working to ensure that "their just demands" are met.
The meeting was attended by caretaker Minister of Education Abbas al-Halabi, Director-General of the Ministry of Education Imad Achkar, President of the Episcopal Committee of Catholic Schools Bishop Hanna Rahme, Secretary General of Catholic Schools Father Youssef Nasr and the President of the Teachers Syndicate of Lebanon, Nehme Mahfoud.
The controversial laws sparked a wave of indignation among school administrations. On December 21, Catholic schools went on an open strike in protest. The Episcopal Committee and the General Secretariat of Catholic Schools denounced the adoption of these laws without prior consultation with the stakeholders. They are contesting several articles, particularly the one concerning the increase to 8% of the monthly contribution paid by schools and teachers to the compensation fund.
A second meeting is scheduled for Thursday among the various stakeholders, including Nehme Mahfoud, President of the Teachers Syndicate of Lebanon, who was present at the Wednesday meeting.
Mahfoud told This Is Beirut that the next meeting is meant “to study measures likely to enable the implementation of law enforcement mechanisms that take into account the positions of the stakeholders."
However, he denounced caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati's refusal to sign the law and publish it in the Official Gazette, arguing that "the law should be enforced, since it was adopted by Parliament and approved by the Council of Ministers.”
On Tuesday evening, the office of the President of the Council of Ministers announced that Mikati had not signed three of the 14 laws that were passed by Parliament on December 14 and 15 and then approved by the Cabinet on December 19. Among these three laws is one concerning teachers' rights.
Commenting on Mikati's decision, MP Mark Daou called it an "infringement" of the law. He expressed his solidarity with the teachers, saying that he was working to ensure that "their just demands" are met.
The meeting was attended by caretaker Minister of Education Abbas al-Halabi, Director-General of the Ministry of Education Imad Achkar, President of the Episcopal Committee of Catholic Schools Bishop Hanna Rahme, Secretary General of Catholic Schools Father Youssef Nasr and the President of the Teachers Syndicate of Lebanon, Nehme Mahfoud.
Comments