The unlimited strike whose wick was lit on February 14, is suspended by the Collective of Northern Teachers, pending the start of negotiations with the government, scheduled for May 22. But in the ranks of the Collective, optimism is not in order.
« The strike is not over, it’s just a truce », explains Issa Diallo, spokesman of the Collective of Northern Teachers in Gao. A truce which, according to him, was demanded by the mediation led by Timbuktu’s elected deputy, Aziza Mint Mohamed, and the women leaders of Gao and Timbuktu. These women also approached the Prime Minister and the department of National Education, which was refusing to recognize the Collective. « They put the pressure on us », adds Issa Diallo. In a statement issued on May 14, the Collective suspended the unlimited strike after it received, on May 12, a letter from the government inviting it to negotiate. « This is an advancement, before the government was refusing to recognize us. It said we were not legal », says the Collective.
Today, Monday May 15, the resumption of classes was effective in Timbuktu and Gao where education had been paralyzed since February 14 (88 days). So it’s a truce pending the start of negotiations with the government on May 22. « It should be recalled that the suspension of the strike order is proof of the good faith of the Collective and a confidence measure, prior to the discussions which will allow the final settlement of the problems mentioned in its platform of demands », the statement said. The Collective calls for the updating of teachers’ progress, the integration of municipal civil servants into the civil service (which has been granted since 2010 but there are still teachers in the north who have not been integrated), the return of financial services of the State to the north, installation of regional pedagogy inspectorates in the northern regions, payment of advancement arrears, area premium, relocation premium.
« We do not want a blank year! »
Among these demands, the government decided on two points, namely the area premium and the relocation premium. « It is the point concerning the relocation of teachers that has touched me a lot », says Honorable Maïga Aziza Mint Mohamed, joined by Sahelien.com. « It’s inexplicable! I could not understand that teachers who stayed in the north, clashed with bullets and jihadists to mentor children did not receive the same bonus as other workers. So we had to do something. With all the problem we already have, unemployment, insecurity, we must not go into a blank school year in the north. We do not want a blank year! », she adds.
She is optimistic about the continuation of the negotiations. But for this teacher, the problem is not the claiming points: « It is rather the refusal of decentralization when it comes to school administration. Bamako continues to expedite everything in the north ». She believes that the government is not deciding on such things as the return of financial services in the north (budget, treasury), « otherwise we continue to suffer a lot of harassment here. While their premises were rebuilt. There are also no regional pedagogy inspectorates: « this is what is at the root of the advancement problems. The nearest ones are in Mopti. They must come every two years, but in ten years of practice I have only passed the test once », she says.
Pending the start of negotiations, the Collective prefers to remain cautious, because « with this government, one never knows. »
Boubacar SangaréTranslated by Mahaitou Ibrahim Maiga