UNIVERSITY TEACHERS STRKE CONTINUES, PROMPTS

UNCLAS ABIDJAN 000539 SIPDIS SENSITIVE SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV ELAB IV SUBJECT: UNIVERSITY TEACHERS STRKE CONTINUES, PROMPTS FESCI VIOLENCE ¶1. (SBU)The public university teachers, strike, which has continued on and off for more than a year, has garered renewed attention by the recent actions aganst it by the thuggish, pro-Gbagbo students, unin, FESCI (septel). The strike, led by the Natioal Coordination of Higher-Level Teachers and Resarchers, CNEC, is primarily over higher pay. Teahers want to receive higher compensation if they hve advanced degrees; currently PhDs get the sam salary as those with BAs. ¶2. (U) The strike,which began last year, has been suspended severa times before resuming again after failed negotiaions. Most recently, teachers renewed their strik on April 13. President Gbagbo has lately take a tough stance against the strikers, rejecting heir salary demands in a Labor Day speech on May1, warning them against taking "ill-timed, repeatd, and unreasonable strikes8 during a time of crsis for the country. Although insisting that &Iam not going to jeopardize the economic balance ofthe entire country,8 Gbagbo offered to continue egotiations with the CNEC. ¶3. (U) On May 16, Gagbo relented somewhat by issuing two decrees grnting a higher civil service status to the univesity-level teachers and to medical doctors, pharmacists, and dentists at university teaching hospitals. However, the decrees did not include a new salary scale and were rejected by CNEC members as wholly insufficient. As a result, CNEC reaffirmed its determination to remain on strike until the President at least issues a formal pledge of continued negotiations on pay. ¶4. (U) The leadership of FESCI, which ostensibly represents secondary and university students, has demanded that the teachers to return to work while negotiations with the government continue. FESCI leadership has capitalized on legitimate student concerns that, if the strike continues, the university year will be cancelled. (According to two professors at the University of Cocody, the English Department there has not even started its 2006-07 school year while the Economics Department operated for only a month before closing down.) ¶5. (SBU) Since many of the striking public university professors have been working at private universities that remain open, FESCI has adopted the motto, &If they don,t teach us, they won,t teach you.8 Thus FESCI has promised to close down all private universities. According to a university student leader who is not a FESCI member, FESCI has caused disruptions at Universite de l,Atlantique, the Universite Canadienne, and the Universite Catholique. Another private school, AGITEL, closed of its own accord before it was attacked. The National Arts Institute, INSAC, has also been attacked. On the morning of May 22, a private vocational school in front of the Embassy was attacked by a handful of FESCI students, but these were chased away by the students. On May 21, FESCI also looted two human rights NGOs (LIDHO and APDH)),and prevented New Forces minister Sidiki Konate from addressing students at the "Sorbonne" (an open-air talk shop frequented by pro-FPI youth) in downtown Abidjan. ¶6. (SBU) Comment: The long-running strike may have presented FESCI with a convenient excuse to act after seeing its influence and clout diminish following the Ouagadougou peace accord. The disruption prompted by the strike will likely force the new coalition government to act, either against FESCI or to settle the dispute with the university teachers. So far, the Gbagbo-Soro tandem has remained silent on the recent disturbances and FESCI looters have been unmolested by security forces. HOOKS