Teachers union sides with education ministry amid blame game over Dead Sea tragedy

AMMAN — The Jordan Teachers Association (JTA) on Monday defended the Ministry of Education amid accusation of failure to protect schoolchildren, following the Dead Sea tragic incident. 

The syndicate’s stance was made after flashfloods led to 21 fatalities and dozens of injuries on Thursday, mostly among schoolchildren from an Amman-based private school.

“It is unfair to pin the full responsibility on the Education Ministry for any school trip, especially that some violations are registered during school trips by organisers”, the JTA said in a statement cited by the Jordan News Agency, Petra.

JTA Deputy President Ibrahim Shabaneh was quoted as saying that the ministry’s regulations regarding school trips aim, above all, to maintain the safety of students and teachers, adding that permissions allowing school trips and field visits do not include adventure trips, hazardous places and swimming areas.

He said that the ministry always issues instructions for schools to abide by these regulations, and “violators are always held accountable”. 

Nevertheless, the JTA member did not deny the overlap of authority and responsibility in school trips among several institutions, including the ministry. 

He described the incident as a “fateful event” that requires a thorough probe into “the shortcomings that led to this tragedy and holding all those responsible accountable”. 

During a Lower House meeting on Sunday to discuss the issue, some angry deputies requested that the education and tourism ministers submit their resignations amid a heated public debate that prompted government agencies to take the defence to clear their names and brush off a stream of rumours on social media.