HYDERABAD, March 28: The Sindh Employees Alliance has announced to observe a black day in the province on April 6 in protest against what they called anti-education, anti-teachers and anti-employees policies of the Sindh government. Speaking at a news conference at the press club here on Tuesday, alliance chairman Prof Liaquat Aziz said the decision had been taken at a meeting of the alliance, a conglomerate of around one dozen organizations and associations of government employees, on March 18.

Office-bearers of the All-Sindh Primary Teachers Association, Government Secondary Teachers Association, Sindh Professors and Lecturers Association, Subject Specialists, Sindh, Mehran, Agriculture and Quaid-i-Awam universities, All-Pakistan Clerks Association and Masjid school teachers, principals and lower staff associations were present at the press conference.

Prof Aziz said that after the black day, the executive council of the alliance would meet on April 7 to chalk out further protest programme which would include protest rallies and lockout of different organizations. He, however, said teachers would not boycott classes or examinations.

He said the alliance at its meeting on March 18 had also approved a charter of demands rejecting any ban on teachers’ organizations and other associations of government employees because any ban would be violation of article 17 of the constitution and human rights conventions.

He alleged that the Sindh government was trying to ban different government organizations to hide its administrative inefficiency, corruption and malpractice.

He demanded that employment quota of teachers should be implemented, orders should be issued without delay about quota for children of deceased employees and recruitment rules should be amended.

He said uniform policies should be introduced in all universities and teachers and officials should be given same facilities. He said teachers and government employees should be given same salaries and allowances and their alleged victimization should be stopped.

He said contract of retired officers in universities, educational boards and other educational institutions should be cancelled and in-service officials should be appointed in their place.