Teachers return to work after riots

Teachers return to work after riots

DILI, East Java: Thirteen of 77 teachers who fled from Maliana subdistrict in the Bobonaro regency during the September riots there have returned, Antara reported yesterday.

M. Soekarman, head of the East Timor office of the Ministry of Education, said the teachers were persuaded to return during a recent meeting with ministry officials in Surabaya.

Soekarman said the teachers who agreed to return to East Timor had asked for their safety to be guaranteed. "Many of the teachers remain traumatized as a result of the rioting," he said.

Several riots took place in Dili and Maliana in September. A marketplace, a number of schools and other public facilities were destroyed. Several people were injured in the rioting. (swe)