April 28, 2006 The women of the Peoples Houses organization have started a campaign called, “Let Tayyip Pay” against the privatization of basic services. called, “Let Tayyip Pay.” The women are organizing under the new campaign to reject all fees, from “injection fees” in the health clinics to “chalk fees” in the schools. They say, […]
April 28, 2006
The women of the Peoples Houses organization have started a campaign called, “Let Tayyip Pay” against the privatization of basic services. called, “Let Tayyip Pay.”
The women are organizing under the new campaign to reject all fees, from “injection fees” in the health clinics to “chalk fees” in the schools. They say, as women at the verge of huger, they are not obligated to pay for the basic services of the society, and they are refusing to do so.
In A bill scheduled to be discussed in the parliament today, it is proposed proposes that if the parents decide to send their children to private schools, the government would pay 1000 YTL ($800.00) of the tuition cost. would be paid by the government. Also, if the parents take out a student loan to have their children attend a private school, the government would pay 50% of the interest of that loan. would be paid by the government. Another item in the bill allows public school teachgers of the public schools to teach in private schools for not more than up to 30 hours a month.
The JDP (Justice and Development Party) government hasd said it has hadd noe resources to fund the public education or schools in the past, and had passed the GSS (General Health Insurance) bill last week,, that which allows privatization in the public health sector.
The women members of the Peoples Houses organization organized a rally in front of the Department of Education today against the proposed measure that will greatly reverse the right to education. The women marched on one of the busiest streets in the capital with colorful banners and hats, kicking off the campaign, demanding the PM pay for education and other basic services. They chanted, “Free Education”, “We don’t want support, we want free education”, and “No to the bill of shame and theft!”
In the rally in front of the Department of Education, a high school student spoke, explaining and explained how the new bill would take her future by eliminating her education. A student parent, speaking after the high school student, said although they lived from hand to mouth, the public schools constantly demanded payments and fees for every expense due to the government’s refusal to fund the public education services. She said, their children were condemned to dirty, and cold schools while funds were being allocated to the private schools. After the parent, an education laborer took the microphone and said that with this bill, the laborers in education would be more enslaved, the schools would be more impoverished, and called to reject the bill that would make the private schools rich.
Serap Tunç, the presdent of the Peoples Houses Batıkent branch, read a press release. She said that with this bill, education was being changed from being a basic human right to a commodity that could be bought and sold and which is subject to the laws of supply and demand. She also emphasized that by subsidizing the tuition fees for private students, the private school expenses were actually being paid by the poor tax payers. The press release added, “When our children can not get the benefit of the taxes we pay, we are against any payments towards private schools and parents who send their children there.”
Tunç ended her talk by saying, “We will not allow this! We are refusing to pay for education, which is our basic right. We don’t need ‘support’, we need free education!”
Source: Halkin Sesi: Peoples Voice – Ankara
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