A private source confirmed, this evening, Wednesday, that there is a serious consensus regarding the "democratization" of the General Union of Palestinian Teachers , an issue that was one of the most prominent provisions of the agreement signed last year, and teachers demand its implementation, and continue their protests for that.

The source, who preferred not to be named, confirmed in his interview with Al-Quds.com that the agreement on "democratizing the union" came after the decision of the Central Council of the Union to approve the amendments that were put forward during last year's agreement, which led to stopping the teachers' strike at the time. While the source indicated that what remains is the issue of the 15%, the nature of the work allowance, and that the Ministry of Finance implement this.

Teacher Faisal Jadallah from the Nablus Education Directorate, and one of the observers of the agreement concluded with teachers last year, said in an interview with Al-Quds.com, “The meeting of the Central Council of the Union yesterday approved the amendments demanded by the teachers, but procedural matters remained that could be agreed upon.” Later, it is the issue of the time limit.

Jadallah confirmed the seriousness of all parties to the initiative that led to the agreement last year, as the Teachers Union emphasized important issues, namely: opening the door for affiliation to all, holding preparatory conferences in the branches up to the General Conference, and the amendments to the union system will be published soon, so that it will be available For all teachers to read it.

As for the financial part related to the teachers' strike, Jadallah confirmed that during the past days, things were positive, and the Minister of Finance dealt with them positively, and it remains for the Ministry of Finance to respond regarding placing the 15% on the salary slip in the nature of work item, and disposing of this percentage according to The usual salary exchange rate, hoping that the Ministry of Finance and the Prime Minister will deal positively with the matter, and he said: "We are close to a solution, which means the end of the crisis."

Yesterday, Tuesday, the Central Council of the Teachers Union convened in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, in which 67 out of 75 members attended, and the amendments that were put forward by institutions and events during the initiative that led to last year’s agreement were discussed, according to what Al-Amin confirmed to Al-Quds. General of the Union of Palestinian Teachers prevailing Irzeigat.

Irzeigat said: "The central council of the federation approved all the amendments presented, and it was decided to start implementation by holding elections for the federation's branches in the middle of next May, provided that the federation begins receiving applications for affiliation with it in the middle of next month, leading to the convening of the conference, which are demands teachers, and the federation has fully implemented its obligations, and a clear position is required from all parties in this regard.

In turn, Omar Assaf, a member of the mediation initiative that led to the signing of the agreement last year, told Al-Quds.com: "We are in the process of communicating with all parties, and we hope to get out of this impasse. Some issues still need to be overcome, and everyone must assume their responsibility to get out." This crisis."

Prime Minister Dr. Muhammad Shtayyeh confirmed, during a press conference about two weeks ago, the government's commitment to the agreements signed with unions, including the Teachers' Union, but the "teachers' movement" rejected that, and stressed the necessity of fully implementing the provisions of the agreement, and announced the continuation of the protest steps, including the strike, which It's been going on since the 5th of last month.

Throughout the days of the strike, teachers carried out sit-ins in front of the headquarters of the education directorates in the West Bank in response to the "teachers' movement", amid the teachers' insistence on demanding their rights until the implementation of an agreement concluded, in May 2022, between the Palestinian government, the General Union of Palestinian Teachers and the "teachers' movement". sponsored by many institutions and personalities, and the strike stopped after that, but protests and strikes have returned since February 5, 2023, to demand the implementation of this initiative.

The agreement included 5 items, namely: returning discounts to teachers, professionalizing education, issuing a teacher protection law, working to “democratize the union”, and depositing a 15% bonus for the nature of work on the salary slip, starting from the first month of the new year 2023.