The Colombian Federation of Education Workers (Fecode)announced that this June 12 he will go on strike to reject the Statutory Education Law being studied in Congress, an initiative of the Government of president Gustavo Petrowhom they supported since his electoral campaign.
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The teachers union stated: “National Strike Permanent for the defense of public education starting Wednesday, June 12. “We demand the withdrawal of the distorted statutory education bill.”
This decision was adopted after on June 5 The Senate approved in the third debate the Statutory Education Lawwith which the Government intends to regulate education as a fundamental right and which is now one debate away from becoming law.
In response, Fecode asked Congress and society in general “close ranks to defend Colombian public education as a common good and fundamental right (…) which must be free, universal, attended to, guaranteed and administered directly by the State.”
Concentration point in Bogotá
The marches in Bogotá will begin at 9:00 in the morning with a single concentration point, which will be from the CAD of Carrera 30 with Calle 26.
The protesters will move towards the Plaza de Bolívar.
Fecode calls for a national strike against the Statutory Education Law
On June 10, Fecode announced a national strike for Wednesday, June 12, in protest against the draft Statutory Education Law that was approved in the third debate in the First Permanent Constitutional Commission of the Senate of the Republic on June 5.
One of Fecode’s biggest criticisms of the bill is that it establishes that in teacher evaluations for promotion In the teaching ladder, student performance will be taken into account as a variable.
In this regard, the Minister of Education, Aurora Vergarahas said that the evaluation of teachers based on the performance of their students “It is one of the issues that must be reviewed.”
Declaring education a fundamental right would prevent teachers’ strikes, a medium frequently used by Fecode to put pressure on the different governments.
The Secretary of Gender, Inclusion and Equality of Fecode, Victoria Avendaño, stated on social networks that “statutory education law approved in the third debate by agreement of Petrism and Uribism violates agreements signed with Fecode and “It constitutes a serious setback in the financing and administration of education, school autonomy, academic freedom, and teacher evaluation.”
The Fecode strike marks a rift with the Petro Government, andbecause that union has been supportive of the president.
Even during the 2022 elections that brought Petro to power, Fecode contributed 500 million pesos (about $127,000 today) to the Colombia Humana party, which is part of the government coalition and which apparently were not registered in the campaign accountswhich is why the Supreme Court opened an investigation for alleged irregular financing.
