The "significant reduction in investment in Education in the draft Budget of the Government of the Canary Islands" has led the entire Canary Islands educational community to prepare a document that will be sent to parliamentarians, in which they express their "total rejection of this draft Budget Law and urge to amend said budgets in the amounts necessary to increase them and be able to cover the current and real needs of our educational system", as expressed in the document read this Wednesday by Emma Cabrera, president of Fapa Lanzarote.
The document has the support of the federations of fathers and mothers of the seven islands (Fapa Lanzarote, Fapa Benahoare, Fapa el Hierro, Fapa Galdós, Fapa Garajonay, Fimapa, Fitapa), by the students (Udeca) and by the teaching unions (Anpe, CCOO, Csif, Ea-Canarias, Fete-Ugt, Insucan, Ocesp, Sepca, Stec-Ic, Ucpl)
"Blatantly favors the privatization of Education"
Of the 1,488 million that the Ministry for non-university Education had in 2009, it goes to 1,447 million, which is 41 million less. A reduction that, according to the educational community, "blatantly favors the privatization of Education".
One of the sections that would be most affected is that of replacements, since it would drop from the 34 million euros that were available in 2009, to the 7 million euros planned for 2010. According to the group, "it would be impossible to even cover possible maternity leaves". "The position maintained by the Government of the Canary Islands, reducing the investment in an essential public sector such as public education, is incomprehensible and inadmissible," the document denounces.
They affirm from this union of all those affected by education coordinated throughout the Canary Islands, that "already this year teachers who are on leave are not being replaced and we can see children in the playgrounds or entertained with anything in the centers, waiting for the hours to pass", so they foresee that with the new budgets, "it would be chaos".
Negotiate the budgets
"We are facing the threat of the possible deterioration of public education in our Islands, which will only worsen with the budget restrictions announced by the Government of the Canary Islands", it is pointed out from this union of parents, mothers, students, teachers and unions, and they remember that "a good education is the most profitable investment, the greatest wealth and the main resource of a country".
Regarding the possible measures that could be taken, they assure that "it is still too early to think about that, since our intention is to sit down to negotiate those budgets and avoid the serious social consequences that the cut could cause". They refer to the chapters focused on personnel and real investments, that is, "less personnel, the practical elimination of replacements, inadequacies in maintenance and the absence of a public network of Infant Schools", among others.
The organization has already met with Coalición Canaria and with the Minister of Education of the Government of the Canary Islands, Milagros Luis Brito, "who told us that in times of crisis budgets cannot be increased". They will also meet with the Partido Popular and the PSOE, trying to gather support to negotiate this "so radical" budget cut.
