The commission for studying Dismissals on the Grounds of Political Views presented its report
The commission for studying
dismissals of the staff of public schools and education resource centers on the grounds of political views
presented its bi-annual report. The presentation was attended by the Georgian
Minister of Education and Science – Tamar Sanikidze, parliamentarians,
diplomats, and representatives of different organizations specialising in human
rights protection.
The commission was set up in 2012 and it studied the applications of all the wrongfully dismissed employees that appealed to the Ministry. Most of the citizens asserted that they had been dismissed due to their political views and that this kind of attitude was of regular nature.
The commission was staffed by the Public Defender of Georgia and 7 non-governmental organizations that were distinguished by years of experience and high qualification in the area of education system and human rights protection. The competence of the commission included studying, assessing and, within their competence, giving recommendations to the Minister about the issues concerning the dismissals of the staff of education resource centers and public schools on the grounds of political motives from June 1, 2006 until the date of the formation of the commission - December 14, 2012. For two years the commission periodically provided the society with information about the ongoing activities.
On the basis of the review, study and analysis of applications submitted on a nationwide scale, various systemic violations were detected. In particular:
- Facts of dismissals of certain persons on the grounds of their political views
- Pressure on the directors of public schools from the side of the Ministry, local authorities and representatives of various bodies, with the intention of forcing them to leave the job; Pressure on the directors of public schools due to their different political views and/or with the intention of forcing them to dismiss politically unreliable teachers;
- During the revision of schools, selective approach of the Internal Audit Department of the Ministry, which was aimed at dismissing undesirable directors;
- Incorrect interpretation of the existing legislation by the Ministry, with the intention of dismissing undesirable personnel (considering the results of school-leaving examination, distribution of academic hours, dismissal of non-certified teachers, etc);
- Restriction of the right for public school employees to choose affiliation with labor unions set by the Ministry;
- Violation of the principle of school autonomy by certain bodies.
It can be said that as a result of the operation of the Commission, facts of dismissals of certain persons on the grounds of their political views as well as cases of illegalities underlying the actions of the Minister and other government agencies were identified.
This, on the one hand, led to the violation of human rights, and on the other hand, negative influence exerted on the proper fulfillment of the main trends of the state policy defined in the educational sphere.
