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School strikes cause chaos across Norway

School pupils and staff face chaos on Monday as around 8,000 teachers take strike action all over Norway.

School strikes cause chaos across Norway
Korsvoll school: One of many hit by teachers' strike action. Photo: Terje Pedersen / NTB scanpix

In some parts of the country, schools are fully closed, while in other parts, schools are forced to operate with minimal staff.  5,500 teachers were on strike from early last week and a further 2,200 joined the strike force on Thursday.

The strike will affect primary and secondary schools and colleges from Monday.

The Norwegian Ministry of Education and Research, the Union of Education Norway and the municipal organization KS all lack full control of the situation and are unsure of the impact of the action on students.
 
Instead it is up to each school in each municipality to manage its own situation and to decide whether the students should meet up for first day at school or not. Students and parents must therefore check relevant websites or find out through word of mouth what to do.
 
College students are forced to attend or face loosing their study right. According to “VG”, the student registration office in Hordaland has sent out 6,000 text messages to college students, where they inform students of the importance of attendance. It is still not confirmed, however, whether college students need to meet up every day of the strike to register.
 
The leader of the Union of Education Norway, Ragnhild Lied, says she is sorry students and parents have been affected, but pinpoints that strike action is a legal measure.
 
Lied says: “We have tried to ‏spare the youngest.”
 
The School Student Union of Norway will have a meeting with the Union of Education Norway on Monday afternoon to discuss what can be done for the students at secondary schools and colleges affected by the dispute over pay and working hours.
 
Benjamin Skiaker Myrstad, leader of the Student Union of Norway, said to NTB: “It is a problem that working hours, lost during a strike, are not to be caught up later. Students however have right to a certain amount of hours of teaching.”
 
The organization is in touch with those involved in the conflict to find possible solutions if the strike lasts for a prolonged period.
 
Myrstad said: “It is good to be prepared for everything. We believe all parties agree that it is important to clear up on this problem.”
 
Teachers working in primary schools from first to fourth grade, were not involved in strike action. But the dispute stepped up its action from Thursday when the first primary schools were affected.
 
Per Kristian Sundnes, leader of negotiation in KS, regretted students and teachers are affected by the conflict that has lasted since before summer this year.
 
No meetings are planned between the disputing parties on Monday, confirmed NTB. On Tuesday the main board of KS will discuss the matter.

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How Extinction Rebellion is training up budding climate activists in Berlin

Climate activist group Extinction Rebellion is staging protests around the world to demand drastic environmental protection. Here's how they're training people to take part in civil disobedience in Berlin.

How Extinction Rebellion is training up budding climate activists in Berlin
Extinction Rebellion protesters near Berlin's Potsdamer Platz. Photo: DPA

Seated on the floor, Extinction Rebellion (XR) activists are rehearsing blocking a street at the base of a disused building
in central Berlin, one of their planned actions to pressure governments to “tell the truth” about “climate and ecological emergency”.

After the police issue three warnings, “now they're going to clear you out. It's time to close ranks on the ground!” shouts Tori, an energetic 20-year-old organizer.

A young Berliner, she and other activists prefer not to be named.

READ ALSO: Climate activists block traffic in Berlin as protests heat up

On this cold autumn morning, the XR group is training non-violent civil disobedience, a core technique of the movement since it was founded in Britain last year.

Around 150 people, from dyed-in-the-wool supporters to total climate protest beginners, have gathered at the “House of Statistics”, a former East German government building close to the unmistakeable TV tower at Alexanderplatz.

In a crash course lasting just three hours, they are being integrated into a global environmentalist movement that has made itself felt across the world since Monday.

The roughly gender-balanced attendees are mostly young, between 20 and 30, and white.

Sitting on the ground wearing woollen hats and scarves against the long hours exposed to the chill, the would-be demonstrators fold their arms beneath their thighs.

'Little package'

“Turn yourself into a little package,” one of the organizers advises.

His dreadlocks tied into a bun, he encourages participants to come together in “buddy groups” of ten or so strong to provide mutual support during the sit-ins.

Police with demonstrators in Berlin. Photo: DPA

Then fellow activists playing the role of police begin lifting them from the ground to clear them away.

“If I'm arrested, should I let them take my photo and my fingerprints?” asks one man.

“Can I wear an animal face mask?” asks another.

A third wonders “Can I ask them for vegan food while I'm in custody?”

Now the assembly have gathered around a disused dodgem car stand and are passing around a flask of hot tea.

“Hide your face as little as possible during an action… keep ID on you…leave your mobile phone at home,” Tori advises.

READ ALSO: What are the key points of Merkel's new climate strategy?

Everyone should “ask themselves what their limits are” before blocking a bridge or stopping car traffic, she adds, saying none of the 150 people present should feel bad about leaving a barricade before the police arrive or failing to expose themselves to arrest.

A 28-year-old student calling himself “the lion” tells AFP he's happy to go all the way.

“Civil disobedience is the only way to make my voice heard,” he believes.

'Pacifism'

Even so, “I'm a pacifist, and I've never been in a fight,” the young man adds.

Nearby, two women are following XR's guidelines by marking a phone number for a legal advice service on their arms, giving them a contact in case they are arrested.

“Extinction Rebellion does not commit crimes,” Tori tells her audience.

XR Protesters wear red at the Brandenburg Gate. Photo: DPA

“It's very important that you don't attack anyone either. Our top priority is non-violence,” she insists, repeating the message several times.

Around 2pm, the training is over, and there is no time for a break before another hundred-odd people arrive for the day's second session.

“Back when we started in February, we were doing one or two training sessions a month. Now it's three per week, and five per day these last few days,” she tells AFP.

Another activist shows up asking “if I'm cleared out by the police, am I allowed to come back and rejoin the sit-in?”, dragging the young trainer back into her work.

By Yannick Pasquet

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