City military chief advises students to shun protests<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): City Military chief Maj. Gen. Wiranto advised
\nJakarta students on Saturday to stay away from politics so that
\nthey can better serve public interest with innovative, concrete
\nwork.<\/p>\n
The public wants to get to know students through their
\nfindings and innovations, not through their political yelling,
\ntheir street demonstrations or their destructive moves, he said.<\/p>\n
\"The academic freedom should be understood as the freedom to
\nmuster science and technology which is useful for the public at
\nlarge,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Wiranto made the remarks when addressing a congress of Kosgoro
\nStudents. His paper was presented by Col. Tyasno Sudarto, his
\nassistant in charge of socio-political affairs.<\/p>\n
Various student groups in Jakarta have been actively involved
\nin numerous non-governmental organizations, which are often
\ncritical of the government.<\/p>\n
Kosgoro is one of the four military-backed organizations which
\nfounded the ruling Golkar party in 1964.<\/p>\n
The \"academic freedom\" concept has so far been interpreted
\ndifferently by students, intellectuals and the government.<\/p>\n
Freedom<\/p>\n
Many students believe that the freedom should include that to
\nexpress their opinions about social problems, including
\ncriticizing the government.<\/p>\n
Minister of Education and Culture Wardiman Djojonegoro has
\nalways argued that academic freedom should be used only in
\nacademic context and should not be used for practical purposes.<\/p>\n
Academic freedom became polemic again this year after
\nCoordinating Minister for Political Affairs and Security Soesilo
\nSoedarman announced that the government had set up a special team
\nto look into the regulation on gathering permits.<\/p>\n
A senior official at the education and culture ministry
\nrecently said that people do not need to obtain permits when they
\nhold academic gatherings on campus.<\/p>\n
Law<\/p>\n
Under Indonesian law, a public gathering involving more than
\nfive people needs a permit from the authorities. The policy has
\nincreasingly come under fire.<\/p>\n
Wiranto appealed to students to help the government safeguard
\nthe stability of Jakarta and support the development of the
\nnation.<\/p>\n
According to Wiranto, students should become partners in
\ndevelopment efforts.<\/p>\n
He argued that if students position themselves as partners in
\ndevelopment, they will not form an \"opposition group\" to the
\ngovernment.<\/p>\n
\"If that is the case, there won't be opposition. There won't
\nbe any attack against the government and brutality will have no
\nroom,\" he said. (29)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/city-military-chief-advises-students-to-shun-protests-1447893297",
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