Schools may reopen on Sunday: NPABSON

Kathmandu, May 24:

A week after the announcement of the school strike, authorities and the agitating teachers’ and students’ unions today made moves to hold talks.

The Nepal Educational Republican Forum (ERF) held an ‘informal meeting’ with the Minister of State for Education and Sports, Mohan Singh Rathore, at the latter’s residence in the evening. The NERF had stayed away from talks between the government and Nepal Teachers’ Association (NTA) on May 22.

“We have first demanded the Education Minister Pradip Nepal apologise in public for his comments on our agitation,” Gunaraj Lohani, the NERF president, said. In an interview on Radio Nepal yesterday, Nepal had said NERF activities were terrorist activities.

“The minister of state has assured us that he would talk to the minister in this regard,” Lohani said. Lohani also said the NERF would sit for talks with a team headed by Rathore. “We have no objection in sitting down for talks with a team headed by the minister of state. However, we will not hold talks with the joint secretary-level team,” he said. Also today, representatives of the NERF and the All Nepal National Independent Students Union (ANNISU) held discussions with representatives of Private and Boarding School Organisation of Nepal (PABSON) and National-PABSON.

“We have not taken any decision as yet. We will meet again on Saturday,” Lohani said. General secretary of the NERF Bhim Chhetri said the representatives of the agitating unions also met leaders of political parties and put forth their demands. He said they met Madhav Kumar Nepal, Shushil Koirala and Amik Sherchan.

“If the government does not take the issue seriously, we will launch stronger protest programmes,” Chhetri said. Gita Rana, the advisor of NPABSON, said today’s meeting ended with an understanding on the issues of school fees and teachers’ salary. According to her, the schools have agreed to form a review team on the fee and salary issues.

She said the agitators were positive on opening schools as early as possible. “However, an agreement to this effect has not been reached yet,” she said, adding that the schools might reopen on Sunday.

Meanwhile, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO), today appealed to the parties concerned to reopen schools. “We cannot afford to have more than 6 million children denied their educational rights,” a statement said. It also urged the authorities concerned and the unions to immediately enter into “constructive talks to peacefully resolve the differences.”