A Turbulent Night in Rabat... Early Childhood Education Teachers Protest, and Security Forces Intervene Forcefully

A Turbulent Night in Rabat… The Mansouri Government Begins Its Term by “Skinning” Early Childhood Education Teachers!

On the evening of Monday, October 19, 2026, the area surrounding the parliament building in the capital, Rabat, witnessed a security intervention to disperse a sit-in and overnight protest called for by the National Union Coordination of Elementary School Teachers and Administrators. This protest action was taken to express the anger that has been building for years over the precarious conditions of workers in the sector, who are demanding direct integration into the civil service, an immediate increase in wages—which currently do not exceed 3,400 dirhams per month—and an end to the model of management through associations.

The dispersal operation involved chases and scuffles on public streets after protesters were prevented from continuing their overnight sit-in, which then turned into a protest march through the capital’s alleys. This intervention drew widespread criticism from supporters and labor union activists, who viewed the ban on the sit-in as a restriction on the right to peaceful protest, emphasizing that reforming early childhood education requires improving the financial and social conditions of educators and ensuring job stability.