Syria’s AANES imposes new measures on striking bakers
QAMISHLI, Syria (North Press) – On Wednesday, the Autonomous Administration obliged the owners of the supply bakeries in the Jazira region, northeast Syria, to register their bakeries with the relevant directorates and to present a written pledge that they will work in accordance with the relevant decisions.
This came in a circular issued by the General Management of Bakeries in the Jazira region, days after the owners of private bakeries (stone and semi-automatic) went on strike.
Some of the owners of bakeries, who spoke to North Press on condition of anonymity, linked the strike to a shortage of flour and high production costs.
“The reason for the strike is the price of yeast, which the bakeries’ owners see it high compared to the decrease in the dollar exchange rate,” said Salman Barudo, co-chair of the Economy and Agriculture Board.
“There are some who want to buy yeast in the black market, and we told them that we have no problem with that, as long as there is no change in the price and weight of the bag of bread.”
The General Management of Bakeries in the Jazira region provided public and private bakeries with all materials and requirements for bread production, such as flour, yeast, bags, salt, and others.
At the beginning of April, the Economy and Agriculture Board of the Autonomous Administration set the price of a bag of bread at 250 Syrian pounds (SYP), provided that it weighs 1,250 grams.
The new circular obliges the owners of the bakeries to register their bakeries at the Directorates of the Bakeries in Qamishli and Hasakah and to present a written pledge that they will abide by all the laws and regulations of the Autonomous Administration.
The written pledge stipulates that the owner, renter or investor of the bakery is obligated to bake the entire amount of flour received and refrain from selling it or storing it under liability.
In a previous statement to North Press, Barudo said that there are a lot of cheating regarding the flour “in the past and now”, as quantities of flour are sold without being used by the bakeries.
The bakers must also pledge to place the bread within the bags, weighing 1,250 grams per bag. The bag has to have 9 loaves of bread and must be sold to the consumer at 250 SYP.
Major cities in the Jazira region, such as Qamishli and Hasakah, occasionally witness a shortage of bread amid crowding of the population in front of public bakeries and the strike of private ones.