Tunisian teachers suspend classes to protest death of 3 students after school wall collapse

TUNIS / ISTANBUL

School teachers suspended classes across Tunisia on Tuesday in protest over the death of three students following the collapse of a school wall in the central Sidi Bouzid province.

"Today is a day of mourning, as declared by our federation in response to the tragic incident that occurred yesterday at Mezzouna Secondary School,” Mohamed Essafi, secretary-general of the General Federation of Secondary Education of the powerful Tunisian General Labour Union (UGTT), told Anadolu.

"I’m currently attending the funeral of two students, while another was buried yesterday," he added.

He said the class suspension also aims to send a message of protest at the deteriorating condition of educational institutions in Tunisia.

"We hold the supervising authority fully responsible for the situation. There has been a grave level of negligence by those in power."

"Our demand is to restore dignity to the public school system, whose core mission is to provide students with a sense of safety. We need to reassess everything related to public school infrastructure."

Hundreds of Tunisian youths demonstrated across the streets of Mezzouna following the students’ funeral on Tuesday, set tires ablaze, and chanted slogans denouncing the authorities.

There was no immediate comment from the Tunisian authorities on the protest.

On Monday, Tunisian President Kais Saied expressed his deep sorrow over the death of students and vowed to bring those responsible to account.