THE HINDU
As the three-month-old agitation by teachers, which has crippled
universities in Sri Lanka, including Jaffna, shows no sign of ending in
an amicable manner; prominent academics from India have joined a large
group of intellectuals from different parts of the globe, to express
solidarity with the protesting teachers.
They said that they were “deeply concerned” with the crisis in Sri Lanka’s higher education sector.
In a joint statement, 22 scholars noted that only 1.86 per cent of the GDP was being spent on education in the island nation.
They pointed that the drastic decline in state investment was related to mounting issues in the education sector.
“Such a predicament has led to the university teachers’ protests,
agitations by teachers’ unions and demonstrations by students. These
interventions have brought our attention to the crisis of education in
Sri Lanka. We stand in solidarity with the teachers, academics and
students in Sri Lanka, who have taken it upon themselves to shed some
light on this crisis,” said the statement, signed by noted economists
such as Venkatesh Athreya, C. P. Chandrasekhar, Jayati Ghosh, Prabhat
Patnaik, Utsa Patnaik, and C. Rammanohar Reddy.
“The post-war period holds much promise for the people in Sri Lanka, and
in that hope, we appeal to the Government of Sri Lanka, university and
teachers’ unions, students’ movements, parents’ organisations, and
foreign aid donors to engage the crisis in education, and arrive at a
solution that can rebuild the foundation for a democratic and prosperous
society. The international community is watching Sri Lanka to see if
past achievements in education will once again be revitalised,” it said.
“Our appeal to address the crisis in education has as much to do with
education, as it has to do with building the foundation of democracy.
Prioritising and democratising education is imperative to the process of
rebuilding a just and prosperous society. As people who have invested
in accessible, fair and just education for all persons, globally, we
strongly urge the Government of Sri Lanka to take immediate note of the
education crisis, negotiate with teachers and university teachers’
unions in good faith, and put in place a vibrant process to address this
serious concern,” it added.
