Erfurt (dpa / th) – The education policy spokesman for the SPD parliamentary group, Thomas Hartung, has accused the Thuringian Ministry of Education of a one-sided view of the corona pandemic. Education Minister Helmut Holter (left) is doing everything possible to keep the schools in the country open and is missing any attempt to prevent corona infections in children and adolescents, Hartung told the German Press Agency. Holter and his State Secretary Julia Heesen let themselves be guided by a level of knowledge about the danger of the virus for young people, which is now out of date.
“What they say and write regularly is simply out of date,” said Hartung, referring to tweets from the ministry and the reactions on the Internet.
At the weekend, the Ministry of Education posted on its Twitter account what it sees as ten most important reasons why “we are keeping the schools open with high priority and not postponing the holidays”. After the ministry posted the list of these reasons, there were many critical comments from Twitter users.
The Ministry had given as reason one, for example: “We have promised children and young people that they will not have to go back into lockdown.” In addition, make sure – reason three – that students in the Free State are reliably tested for a possible corona infection until shortly before Christmas. “Whoever closes schools shifts responsibility for testing to families.” The ministry named reason eight: “We do not treat children and adolescents worse than adults.” They would get seriously ill with Covid-19 even less often than vaccinated or convalescent adults. It is therefore “unfair” to send all students home.
In connection with the list, the ministry had relativized the possible long-term effects of a Covid 19 disease on schoolchildren: “It is not clear whether children develop Long-Covid,” wrote the ministry. It was this sentence in particular that caused sharp disagreement with the ministry. For example, one user wrote that this unreflected statement by representatives of the highest education authority in Thuringia must have consequences. “Starting with the house management up to the authors.” In the meantime, the ministry has apologized for this tweet and deleted it “because it contained incorrect statements about Long-Covid,” as a follow-up post from the ministry said.
Hartung said that this tweet about long Covid consequences in children in particular shows that the Ministry of Education is not taking current scientific findings on Covid-19 seriously. There are now very strong indications that children and adults are equally affected by Long-Covid. Hartung is a doctor himself.
It is similar with the first of the ten reasons of the ministry, the promise that there will be no lockdown. This promise has always been irresponsible, said Hartung. Just like the promise that there will be no compulsory vaccination.
© dpa-infocom, dpa: 211215-99-387007 / 2
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