Educators ready to resume classes<\/p>\n
Haidir Anwar Tanjung and Fabiola Desy Unidjaja, The Jakarta Post,
\nPekanbaru\/Jakarta<\/p>\n
Teachers and students in Kampar regency have decided to end
\nalmost a two week massive strike, and will be ready to go back to
\nschool on Tuesday, only three days after the regency council
\ndismissed Kampar regent, Jefri Noer.<\/p>\n
\"We are sticking to our promise that after Jefri is dismissed,
\nwe will resume classes.<\/p>\n
But, we will monitor developments closely, until a final
\ndecision is made by the Ministry of Home Affairs,\" M. Yasir, the
\nchairman of the All-Indonesia Teachers Association (PGRI) Kampar
\nbranch, said on Monday.<\/p>\n
The situation in the regency has been normal since Saturday,
\nwhen the regency council held a plenary meeting to dismiss Jefri
\nand his deputy A. Zakir on the grounds that people in the regency
\nhad lost confidence in them.<\/p>\n
As the wave of protests have subsided, street sweepers began
\nto clean up litter on the streets in Bangkinang, the capital of
\nKampar, where tens of thousands of students and teachers staged
\nprotests against the Kampar regent for the last 12 days.<\/p>\n
Later on Sunday and Monday, several teachers and students went
\nto their schools, to clean up garbage and prepare for classes on
\nTuesday.<\/p>\n
Ibu Iwan, a schoolteacher, said that she was ready to get back
\nto school, because the teachers' demand was already met by the
\nregency council. \"The regent deserved to be dismissed, because he
\nhad insulted the teaching profession,\" she said, as quoted by
\nAntara news agency.<\/p>\n
The brouhaha in Kampar, some 60 kilometers west of the Riau
\ncapital of Pekanbaru, dates back to early February when the
\nregent held a meeting with representatives of teachers in the
\nregency.<\/p>\n
Initially, the meeting went peacefully. But, tension rose when
\nschool principal Abdul Latif Hasyim questioned the regent on the
\nlow budget for education in the regency.<\/p>\n
The regent was incensed by the question, saying that the
\nschool principal was not of the same level as him.<\/p>\n
Furthermore, the regent ordered Abdul to leave the meeting,
\nwhich he refused to do.<\/p>\n
The regent's action caused a backlash, as four days later,
\ndozens of teachers and students, in a show of solidarity for
\nAbdul Latif, took to the streets in Bangkinang. They demanded
\nthat the regency council dismiss Jefri for insulting the teaching
\nprofession.<\/p>\n
Actually, this was not the first time for Jefri to be in the
\nhot seat. In 2002, he was accused of using a fake senior high
\nschool diploma to gain eligibility to take the post of regent.
\nThe regency council voted for his dismissal, but the decision was
\nannulled by the Ministry of Home Affairs.<\/p>\n
Separately, Riau Governor Rusli Zainal said on Monday that the
\nbeleaguered Jefri would remain regent until the Ministry of Home
\nAffairs decided whether the council's decision was lawful.<\/p>\n
\"The decision will take effect after a decision by the
\nMinistry of Home Affairs,\" Rusli told The Jakarta Post.<\/p>\n
In Jakarta, Minister of Home Affairs Hari Sabarno questioned
\nMonday's decision by the regency council.<\/p>\n
Hari said that the council should not dismiss the deputy
\nregent too, because the problem was due to personal discord
\nbetween Jefri and the teachers.<\/p>\n
\"If the regent was dismissed for bad conduct, why was the
\ndeputy regent fired too? This is too much,\" he said, after
\nattending the International Conference of Islamic Scholars here.<\/p>\n
The minister said that his office had formed a team to solve
\nthe case, and the team would go to Kampar on Tuesday for further
\ninvestigation.<\/p>",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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