Members of Jordanian Teachers’ Syndicate given 1-year jail sentence
Have been charged for corruption, incitement and other criminal activities
Dubai: The Amman Criminal Court on Thursday issued a ruling dissolving the Jordanian Teacher’s Syndicate and sentencing all its members to one year in prison on charges of corruption, incitement and other criminal activities, Jordanian media reported.
The syndicate’s members have been charged with embracing an Islamist agenda following their one-month long strike and sit-ins in September 2019 that led to the closure of public schools for more than a month.
Shortly after the court’s decision, lawyer Bassam Fraihat who represents the syndicate announced that the council members have been granted bail. He said the court has agreed to grant bail to the members following the initial judicial decision.
On July 25, 2020, Amman’s Attorney General Hassan Al Abdallat decided to suspend the works of the syndicate members and to close the headquarters for two years. He also issued a subpoena for the members in order to present them to the public prosecutor.
The ruling was an overturn to the government’s decision after the one-month strike when it agreed to a 50 per cent salary increase for teachers.
Legal framework
The dissolved syndicate formed a temporary committee to manage its affairs and said that issuing any judicial orders or charges against any member of the council is illegal and has no legal framework.
In a statement commenting on the decision, Amjad Al Adaileh, Minister of State for Media Affairs, said. “The teachers’ syndicate was threatening again to stage protests, sit-ins and strikes that harm the state’s essential services and their functioning.”
The syndicate dismissed claims by some officials that it embraces the Islamist opposition’s political agenda as an attempt to damage its reputation.
Rights activists accused the Jordanian government of using the fight against the coronavirus crisis as an excuse to limit citizen’s rights.