University and institute students in Sulaimani protest for second day on Nov. 22, 2021. (NRT Digital Media)
AM:10:51:22/11/2021
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SULAIMANI — Students from universities and institutes in
Sulaimani, Halabja, Kalar and Ranya protested for the second day in a row on
Monday (October 22), demanding the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) resume
the payment of their monthly stipends.
Footage from the protests showed security forces spraying
tear gas into crowds in front of the new campus of the University of Sulaimani.
Police also used batons to try and disperse the
demonstrators.
The stipends are financial benefits that help students pay
for things like transportation and other living expenses.
The KRG suspended the payments in response to the financial
crisis that began in 2014.
A protester in Sulaimani told NRT the students were
threatened with suspension and counted as absent if they attended the protests.
Another protester said students will continue to hold
demonstrations until the KRG decides to resume payments.
"Why can the government pay employees and lawmakers’
salaries every month, which are several million, but it cannot provide student
stipends?” a student asked rhetorically.
(NRT Digital Media)