According to the secretary general of Sinpes, Eduardo Peres Alberto, some public higher education teachers, who have been on strike for an indefinite period since January 3, are being "coerced into teaching under penalty of having their salaries suspended".
The trade unionist and university professor, who says he is "concerned" about the situation, says that acts of coercion have been recorded in some academic regions of Angola, "but measures have been taken and situations of this kind are being overcome".
"We confirm this trend (of coercing teachers to return to classes), but this violates the memorandum of understanding as this document states that the strike is legal", said Eduardo Peres Alberto this Wednesday, in statements to Lusa.
"And there can be no discount (from wages) or suspension, that will also have consequences and will actually complicate negotiations," he noted.
Salary increases, better working conditions, payment of public debt and elections of the governing bodies of public higher education institutions are some of the demands of Angolan teachers on strike since January 3, 2022.
The strike, for an indefinite period, arises as a result of the "non-compliance" of the memorandum of understanding, signed in November 2021, recalled this Wednesday the secretary general of Sinpes, admitting the convening of demonstrations next week.
"In principle, yes, if this week the Government does not give concrete signs of negotiations, next week we will start calling for demonstrations", he admitted.
Asked about the existence of negotiations with the authorities, Eduardo Peres Alberto considered that "the government is at fault in the registry".
"We agreed to sign the memorandum of understanding, even with all the gaps it has, and now the government is unable to fulfill its promises. We have declared a strike for an indefinite period and the strike is total", said the trade unionist.
A salary equivalent to 2000 dollars for the assistant professor intern and 5000 dollars for the full professor is Sinpes' salary proposal to counteract the current "mediocre salaries".
Sinpes also "demands" the completion of the payment of public debt for about 3,000 higher education employees, including teaching and administrative staff, which until 2018 was valued at 2.3 billion kwanzas.
The Ministry of Higher Education, Science, Technology and Innovation (MESCTI) recently considered that the salary increase for striking teachers is a "delicate and complex process", guaranteeing that "actions at the government level are already underway, in the context of a more general public administration salary matter".
For the ministerial body, this exercise "requires considering a set of variables that guarantee the sustainability of any counter-proposal presented by the executive".
The continuation of the strike, indefinitely, and the consequent stoppage of teaching activities "harms the implementation of the academic calendar and prevents a large part of the students from continuing their learning", admitted the MESCTI.
The students, "concerned and upset" with the interruption of classes, called for a second demonstration, scheduled for next Saturday, in Luanda, for the return of classes in public higher education, after the first one held on 5 February.
