Teachers strike blocks off official buildings

[TamilNet, Monday, 26 July 1999, 07:50 GMT]
Hundreds of Tamil, Muslim and Sinhala teachers and principals started picketing the offices of the Provincial Ministry of Education, the Department of Education and the Treasury Department in Trincomalee this morning.

Normal work was completely paralysed as employees were not allowed to enter their offices.

Today's picket was organised as a protest against the Minister of Education's decision to use a treasury allocation of Rs. 150 million to first pay in full salary and risk allowance arrears to Sinhala teachers in Amparai and then share the rest between the Tamil and Muslim teachers in the rest of the province.

The seven teaching trade unions are demanding that the Rs. 150 million should be shared out equally amongst teachers in the North-east province