Teachers in dilemma whether to travel in summer vacation

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‘Return not guaranteed, depends on govt’s decision’

KUWAIT CITY, June 5: On the advent of the summer vacation for educational and administrative bodies starting from June 17 for the primary stage, June 24 for the intermediate stage, and on July 1 for the secondary stage, the hopes of the expatriate teachers to spend the summer vacation in their countries, especially since they did not travel for two years, are high. At the same time, their eyes are still on the health situation of the country and its consequences, as some among them believe it is not safe to travel, and the possibility of returning to Kuwait is not guaranteed, reports Al-Rai daily.

According to an official educational source, all of the educational zones will grant expatriate teachers exit permits on their last working day if they are not assigned to work during summer, depending on their educational stage and as specified in the modified academic calendar. The source said, “It is up to them to travel, but the possibility of returning is completely dependent on the government’s decisions. No one can assure of the future health conditions”. He indicated that the Ministry of Education asked the Ministry of Interior to issue temporary entry visas for stranded teachers whose residencies have expired, but the date of their return has not yet been determined. The source said, “We hope the airports will be opened early next month so that the picture is much clearer.”

Issue
He reiterated that the issue of the expatriate teachers’ travel is not in the hands of the Ministry of Education, but rather it is part of the measures taken by the government, represented by more than one party led by the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Interior, based on the latest developments in the global and internal health situation. The source indicated that, “There are no guarantees in this aspect … The matter is up to them”. Meanwhile, a number of expatriate teachers appealed to the government agencies, which are responsible for this issue, to give a clearer picture of the system that the expatriate teachers can follow especially since the summer vacation is very long and some of them have not left the country since the outbreak of the pandemic in February 2019.

One of the teachers said, “I received the first and second doses of the Pfizer vaccine; now I do not know what to do. Many of my colleagues and I have important appointments in our country. I have an appointment for court hearings regarding a real-estate ownership dispute … I am really confused. We suffered a lot during the previous period, especially with the summer salaries not being paid in a single batch. We had to borrow money to reserve tickets and allocate part of the amount for the insurances that we have to pay to the Ministry of Education in Egypt. Our salaries mostly go for paying the rent of the house and family expenses.” Another teacher explained, “The situation is complex and thorny. The Ministry of Education is not really in control, but we hope its leaders will coordinate with the Ministries of Interior and Health in this regard, and evaluate the local situation more accurately for those wishing to travel”. He appealed to the Undersecretary of the Ministry of Education Dr. Ali Al-Yaqoub to inquire with the concerned ministries about any future decisions that may be taken suddenly in this matter. Another expatriate teacher told the daily that his return to Kuwait via transit in the past year cost him KD 700. He said, “I spent about 14 days in the UAE, and these days were regarded as excused absence by the Human Resources Department and the relevant amount was deducted from my monthly salary”. He appealed to the Ministry of Education to clarify the travel mechanism during the summer vacation.

This news has been read 36760 times!

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