Schools reopening in Guinea after 3-week strike, violence

CONAKRY, Guinea – Schools began to reopen across Guinea on Wednesday, February 22, after a 3-week strike and violent protests that left 7 people dead in the capital this week, an AFP journalist and school staff said.

The violence in Conakry on Monday and Tuesday capped weeks of protests mainly by young people and students that prompted the government to close schools on February 1.

The protests were in support of a strike by temporary teachers demanding full-time government contracts.

On Wednesday, students began trickling back into classrooms in the capital and in other cities, with the country’s biggest secondary school, Lycee Donka, seeing 60% attendance, teacher Bangaly Traore told AFP.

But staff at a nearby school reported only 20% of students and 15% of teachers present, while schools in the cities of Labe and Kankan were reported to be 33% full.

Schools reopened after unions struck a deal with the government late Monday, but some teachers told the Agence France-Presse the deal fell short of their demands. – Rappler.com