Armed Forces to take part in fight against illiteracy<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): The government has enlisted the Armed Forces
\n(ABRI) in its campaign to wipe out illiteracy in the country.<\/p>\n
But make no mistake. The military will not use force to compel
\npeople to study. Rather, the anti-illiteracy campaign will be
\nincorporated with ABRI's highly successful civic programs known
\nas ABRI Masuk Desa (ABRI enters villages), or AMD for short.<\/p>\n
ABRI Chief Gen. Feisal Tanjung pledged the commitment of his
\ntroopers when he signed the agreement with Minister of Education
\nand Culture Wardiman Djojonegoro at his office.<\/p>\n
Also putting their signatures to the agreement were
\nrepresentatives of Minister of Religious Affairs Tarmizi Taher,
\nwho pledged the involvement of religious leaders, and Minister of
\nHome Affairs Moch. Yogie S.M., who is contributing the local
\ngovernment officials to the program.<\/p>\n
The government hopes to completely wipe out illiteracy among
\npeople in the 10-44 years age bracket by the end of the current
\nSixth Five-Year Development Plan in 1999. According to a 1990
\ncensus, some 21.5 million, or 12 percent, of Indonesian
\npopulation are illiterate.<\/p>\n
Gen. Feisal said at the signing ceremony that the agreement
\nformalized what his troopers have been doing all this time
\nthrough the AMD program. He said the troopers have already been
\nteaching villagers the alphabet, numbers and some basics.<\/p>\n
The AMD, first launched in 1980, is now carried out three
\ntimes a year.<\/p>\n
Feisal acknowledged that the program's effectiveness has been
\nlimited, largely because of the limited time allowed to carry out
\nthe various ambitious projects and also a lack of follow up.<\/p>\n
He welcomed the offer of ABRI to join in the anti-illiteracy
\ncampaign but pointed out the need for sound preparation and good
\ncoordination, including preparing the teaching material and
\norganizing crash courses for field instructors.<\/p>\n
Secretary General of the Ministry of Home Affairs Suryatna
\nSoebrata said the involvement of local government officials in
\nvillages and elsewhere is crucial.<\/p>\n
\"This is a breakthrough for solving problems which often arise
\ndue to lack of physical facilities... This project reflects
\nflexibility and effectivity without disrupting the already
\nexisting mechanisms,\" he said.<\/p>\n
ABRI members are expected to join hands with local officials
\nand community leaders in carrying out the program, he added.<\/p>\n
Secretary General of the Ministry of Religious Affairs Zarkowi
\nSujuti said his office would encourage religious leaders to
\nparticipate in motivating people to learn the basic skills of
\nreading, writing and arithmetic.<\/p>\n
The government is tackling the illiteracy problem on two
\nlevels: One through the compulsory education plan for children
\nbetween the ages of six and 15 years, and another through the
\nspecial projects that are destined for adults and high school
\ndrop outs.<\/p>\n
Director General for Informal Education at the Ministry of
\nEducation and Culture, Soedijarto, said that for the special
\nproject,the government has allocated a budget of Rp 1.5 billion
\n($688,000) for the current 1994\/95 fiscal year.<\/p>\n
This amount is sufficient to free some 1.1 million people from
\nilliteracy, he said, adding that over the next five years, the
\nprogram should cover some 5.7 million illiterate people.<\/p>\n
Although the largest number of illiterate people is found in
\nJava, the largest percentage is found in Irian Jaya and East
\nTimor, he said. (pwn)<\/p>",
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