Disciplinary Regulation Discussed for the Second Time: No Consensus Yet!

The Disciplinary Regulation was discussed for the second time following an invitation from Prime Minister Ünal Üstel, with government partners, teacher unions, the Bar Association, and the main opposition Republican Turkish Party (CTP).

The meeting, held at the Cyprus Turkish Parliament, included Prime Minister Üstel, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Tourism, Culture, Youth and Environment, DP General President Fikri Ataoğlu, Minister of Education Nazım Çavuşoğlu, CTP General President Tufan Erhürman, YDP Nicosia MP Talip Atalay, members of the Executive Board of the Cyprus Turkish Teachers' Union (KTÖS) and Cyprus Turkish Secondary School Teachers' Union (KTOEÖS), lawyer Öncel Polili on behalf of KTOEÖS, and Bar Association President Lawyer Hasan Esendağlı. CTP MP Ürün Solyalı and the Undersecretary of the Ministry of Education Aytunç Şirket were also present at the meeting.

The meeting began at 12:30 PM, and an hour later, the unions left the meeting and made a public statement. They emphasized that they would continue the struggle for secular, scientific, and liberal education in line with the Constitution, the National Education Law, and the principles of Atatürk, and called for the resignation of the Minister of Education.

Union representatives stated that they had presented a petition signed by nearly 50 civil society organizations to the Prime Minister during the meeting. The government partners, the opposition, and the Bar Association continued the discussion for a while longer.

Bar Association President Hasan Esendağlı clarified that they had submitted their suggestions to the Prime Minister in writing and emphasized that the proposals were for an impartial and scientific committee.

After the unions left, the representatives of the Bar Association and the main opposition CTP also departed the meeting. The discussions between the government partners are still ongoing.