Affected teachers say they were dismissed without prior notice or financial compensation after serving Afghan refugee camps for up to four decades.
PESHAWAR: As many as 291 Pakistani teachers who served in Afghan refugee camps administered by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) have been dismissed from their jobs, prompting affected teachers to stage a protest sit-in outside the UNHCR office in Spin Jamaat, Peshawar, on Tuesday.
The dismissed employees include 100 male and 191 female teachers who had been teaching Afghan children for several decades. The affected teachers belong to various parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, including Peshawar, Nowshera, Swabi, Haripur, Mardan, Timergara, Kohat, Chakdara, Dera Ismail Khan, Bannu, Lakki Marwat, Hangu, Tall, Jalala and Shergarh.
The protesting teachers said they had served for 35 to 40 years but were terminated on October 31 without prior notice or any financial compensation. They demanded that the provincial governor intervene and help secure financial relief for the affected families.
The sit-in was led by Tufail Ahmed and Farhana Durrani, a representative of the female teachers. Addressing the protesters, Ahmed said the teachers had dedicated several valuable years of their lives to educating and training Afghan children, completing nearly four decades of service in some cases.
He said the teachers had previously been deprived of basic employment benefits, including medical allowances, other financial incentives and gratuity. Their sudden dismissal had now pushed 291 families into serious financial difficulties.
Durrani said female teachers had worked tirelessly for 35 years to educate Afghan children but were informed of their termination through a telephone call. She said they were sent home despite their decades of service, without receiving any financial assistance or other relief.
The protesters said losing their jobs had significantly worsened their household finances, making it difficult for several families to meet even their routine expenses.
They also alleged that they had visited the UNHCR office several times to present their demands but had not received an effective response or meaningful engagement from the relevant officials.
According to the protesting teachers, the office doors were closed and police personnel were deployed in front of them. They further alleged that they had faced pressure to end their protest and warnings of a possible baton charge.
Despite these alleged restrictions, the teachers said they would continue their peaceful sit-in until their demands were addressed and appropriate financial relief was provided.
The affected employees appealed to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Governor Faisal Karim Kundi to take immediate notice of the matter, contact UNHCR officials and play a role in securing financial assistance for the 291 affected families.
They stressed that the issue extended beyond Peshawar, as teachers from several cities and remote areas across the province had lost their livelihoods. Elderly male and female teachers, along with younger women, also participated in the demonstration, calling for urgent measures to protect their financial future in recognition of their long years of service.
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