Primary teachers announce indefinite work abstention after police action
The strike will continue indefinitely in all government primary schools across the country until the demands are met, says Abul Kashem, president of the Bangladesh Primary Teachers’ Association
The protesting primary school teachers have announced an indefinite work abstention in government primary schools nationwide starting tomorrow (9 November), following police action against their protest at Shahbagh.
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The Primary Teachers' Demand Implementation Council, a coalition of four teachers' organisations, made the announcement this evening (8 November).
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Abul Kashem, president of the Bangladesh Primary Teachers' Association, said, "The police have brutally attacked a peaceful programme. The strike will continue indefinitely in all government primary schools across the country until our demands are met."
Police charge batons, use sound grenades to disperse protesting primary school teachers at Shahbagh
He added that a sit-in programme at the Central Shaheed Minar will also continue alongside the strike.
Earlier in the day, police baton-charged and fired sound grenades to disperse the protesting primary school teachers at Dhaka's Shahbagh intersection.
The assistant teachers of government primary schools staged a sit-in at the Central Shaheed Minar, demanding implementation of the 10th-grade pay scale and other key benefits.
As the teachers marched toward Shahbagh to observe a "pen throw" programme, police blocked their advance and used batons and sound grenades to disperse them.
Several protesters and policemen were reportedly injured in the incident.
Shamim Billah, a teacher at Rajarampur Government Primary School in Magura Sadar Upazila who took part in the protest, told The Business Standard, "We held a hunger strike at Shaheed Minar and then moved to Shahbagh around 3pm for a 'pen-throwing' programme. Around 3:15pm, the police obstructed our programme, baton-charged us, and used sound grenades and water cannons."
Muhammad Talebur Rahman, deputy commissioner (media and public relations) of DMP, said a group of protesters attempted to break through a police barricade and cross the Shahbagh intersection toward the State Guest House Jamuna around 4pm.
"When officers tried to stop them, the protesters threw bricks, injuring several police personnel. In response, the police fired multiple rounds of sound grenades and used water cannons to disperse the crowd," he said.
