Protest rally by 4 universities organized before coalition headquarters in Aden

ADEN, May 05 (YPA) – Faculty members at four public universities (Aden, Lahj, Abyan, and Shabwa) gathered, on Monday, for the second protest in front of the coalition headquarters in Aden, demanding the rescue of deteriorating education and the improvement of academics’ living conditions.

Participants in the protest emphasized that education is not marginal and that professors and teachers are not just an extra number.

The protesters raised slogans demanding that the coalition, which they described as “the one pulling the strings of the game and the decision,” immediately intervene to rescue education, which is facing the risk of collapse.

The statement of the protest expressed the professors’ deep dissatisfaction with the continued disregard for their demands, noting that university professors have become marginalized after their salaries declined catastrophically, from $350 to $1,400 before the war to no more than $100 currently.

He stated that the collapse in purchasing power has left university professors unable to meet their basic needs, or continue scientific research, and perform their teaching duties with dignity.

They called on the coalition to provide urgent relief measures for academics, including granting each employee an amount of no less than 1,000 Saudi riyals.

The protesters also made an urgent appeal to the coalition countries, the United Nations, and international organizations to fulfill their responsibilities in saving public and higher education, calling for pressure on the coalition government to pay the salaries of faculty members at their pre-2015 purchasing power on a regular basis.