Students protest in Raja over teacher shortage
Secondary school students in Raja County of Western Bahr al Ghazal State today protested the closure of their school after teachers went unpaid by the government.
The protest was dispersed by security forces.
An eyewitness in Raja who was not involved in the protest told Radio Tamazuj that a crowd of students gathered in the market today and were protesting and making a lot of noise.
He said that traders closed down shops and vegetable sellers left the area.
Security forces moved in and dispersed the crowd by firing in the area. According to the source, several students were arrested and later released. However, the security services told traders to keep shops closed even after the crowd was dispersed.
A student who was arrested during the protest but later released confirmed to Radio Tamazuj that the students were demanding to know why their school was closed.
“The school is closed; the Raja Secondary School has been closed since Monday last week,” said the student, explaining that the closure was related to a shortage of teachers.
“This morning all the students protested, on their own initiative, without the involvement of the administration or teachers, just something decided among the students,” he added.
According to the student, the protesters gathered at the school and marched from there to the County Education Office where they broke the windows and doors.
The protesters were also trying to move to the county headquarters but they were stopped by security forces.
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