With the looming economic crisis taking place in Lebanon, many parents are struggling to pay tuition to put their children through school.
This school in Saida denied these students to continue their academic year because their parents were unable to pay what was left from the tuition fees of 2018/2019 and what’s due as the first fees of 2019/2020.
In response to that decision, journalist Joe Maalouf, as an ambassador of the Union for the Protection of Juveniles (UPEL), filed a lawsuit to the Public Prosecutor’s Office against the Iman School for infringing on the children’s right to an education.
In the lawsuit, Maalouf states that “because of the difficult economic situation that the country is going through, many people are unable to fulfill their financial obligations due to the closure of many companies, or reduction of their salaries in half. Many families are unable to pay their children’s tuition as a result.”
He goes on to write that the decision of that school puts many students at risk as it has been 5 months since the beginning of the school year.
“The protection of children and their right to an education should not be infringed because of the current economic situation,” he emphasizes.
According to the lawsuit, the school’s decision infringes law 422 of the Lebanese Penal Code which protects a child’s right to an education. The punishment for the violation of the law will result in a fine that will be paid by the school.
Lebanon is a signatory to many international treaties and among one of the first countries to sign the convention on the rights of children in 1991.
Under this convention, Lebanon is responsible for ensuring the quality of social services such as education.
Because of this, Lebanon has a great responsibility towards ensuring that children, who are among the most vulnerable segments of the population, receive a quality education.
