Teachers Protest Hiring Bias by PA
A group of Palestinian teachers are protesting the Palestinian Authority's policy of imposing a political litmus test when hiring public school teachers, Linah Alsaafin reports from the West Bank.
When 26-year-old Ayman Qawariq found a job as a substitute mathematics teacher in 2009 shortly after graduating, he never thought he would be dismissed barely a week later by the Palestinian Authority's Ministry of Education. The reason, they said, was due to Qawariq failing a security background check.
Ayman, a Hamas supporter, studied mathematics at the An-Najah University in Nablus and was not impervious to arrests. Along with his brothers Amjad, Majdi and Mahmoud, he was arrested several times by PA security forces on the back of his political affiliation. Two years ago, his brother Muhammad was killed by the Israeli army.
For the next three years after his suspension, Ayman tried in vain to find a job as a teacher, but was unsuccessful.
"Once you get suspended for security reasons," he said, "the Ministry of Education by policy does not rehire you."
