The University Employees Union has reacted after yesterday's student protest in front of the Ministry of Education that lasted over 8 hours. In their statement, the union expresses full solidarity with the students, condemning yesterday's violence against them, while adding that their voice must be heard by the responsible bodies.
Full statement:
The University Union expresses its full solidarity with the students in their protests, as a legitimate expression of the constitutional right to organize and protest. We consider the voice of the students a call for reflection and institutional responsibility, which deserves to be heard and treated seriously. The Union expresses its indignation at the use of violence by the security forces against the protesters and calls on the responsible authorities to exercise restraint, respect for fundamental human rights and freedoms, and guarantee the peaceful exercise of the right to protest. We assess that the escalation of the situation is a consequence of the lack of reaction and neglect of citizens' demands by the Government and politics as a whole. Even after a marathon protest of 135 days, citizens' and students' demands have not received the appropriate response and attention. The lack of dialogue and will for a solution risks further deepening distrust in institutions. It is no coincidence that the students chose to protest precisely in front of the Ministry of Education. They did not go there as opponents of the state. They went to the institution that, according to its mission, belongs to them. This Ministry is the institutional home of every student, every teacher and every family that sacrifices for the education of its children. The University Union has also knocked on the same door, with an official letter since March of this year, and we have not received a response either. The silence that the students encountered today on the street is the same silence that academic staff have been encountering for months in institutional correspondence. What happened today in front of the Ministry of Education is, above all, the symbol of a broken relationship between the institution and the community that it is supposed to serve. The Union believes that the University cannot be a silent spectator when its students demand dignity. Academic freedom and university autonomy are not privileges, but responsibilities: the responsibility to protect critical thinking, the truth and the right of every young person to an education that they value. Therefore, the University Union calls on all lecturers, researchers, university employees and the entire academic community to raise their voices and stand by the students. The demands for quality education, for dignified study and working conditions, as well as for a fair treatment of the problems of higher education, are not isolated issues. They are our common cause. The Union calls on the Government and all political actors to assume their responsibilities and immediately engage in a real dialogue process, with the aim of examining and resolving the demands of students and academic staff. Formal responses, silence or further postponement of solutions cannot replace institutional and political responsibility.If the current political configuration fails to take on the task of resolving the problems raised by students, teachers and citizens, then the path must be opened for political solutions that enable overcoming the crisis, in accordance with democratic principles and civic will. The University Union reiterates that dialogue, institutional responsibility and concrete solutions to demands are the only way to overcome the created situation. We stand by the students and demand that their voice be heard, respected and receive the response it deserves. Solidarity with students! Respect for the right to protest! Institutional responsibility and concrete solutions for education and society!
