Education Ministry Directs Schools to Hold Memorials and Cultural Programs on July-August Uprising

Following a decision made at an inter-ministerial meeting on November 14, the Ministry of Education has instructed schools to hold memorial events for those affected by the anti-discrimination movement and the July uprising, along with cultural programs related to these incidents. The events are to be organized by November 30, according to the Ministry’s directive.

In response to this decision, the Ministry of Education, on November 20, directed the Directorate of Secondary and Higher Education to ensure that these events take place on any one day before November 30.

Local education boards have communicated the order to school officials to carry out the events by the end of the month.

However, with annual exams underway in most schools, the timing of these events has raised concerns. Schools where the exams have not yet started will begin their final exams on December 1. In this context, students and teachers are preoccupied with last-minute preparations for the exams. Teachers have expressed doubts about how and when they can organize such events amid the final exam schedule.

Several parents have expressed dissatisfaction with the timing of the events. One parent shared, “We participated in the July movement ourselves, but we will not send our children to school for any events during the final exams. Instead, we prefer that they stay at home and focus on preparing for their exams.”

Another parent commented, “The movement and school closures already took away a lot of time from our children. It is unfair to impose these events during such an important time, right in the middle of exam preparations.”

The mandatory nature of the events has sparked frustration among many parents.