Minister officially fires school head<\/p>\n
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta\/Bandung<\/p>\n
The Ministry of Home Affairs has officially fired the head of the
\ngovernment-run Public Administration Institute (STPDN) in
\nSumedang, West Java following the controversial death of one of
\nits students recently.<\/p>\n
The ministry has also confirmed reports that it would take
\nover management of the institute.<\/p>\n
Home minister Hari Sabarno had decided to replace STPDN head
\nSutrisno with the ministry's secretary-general, Siti Nurbaya,
\nministry spokesman I Nyoman Sumaryadi said on Tuesday.<\/p>\n
Siti will officially take over leadership of the institute
\nfrom Sutrisno on Thursday, Sumaryadi added.<\/p>\n
However, the fate of Sutrisno remains unclear.<\/p>\n
"The secretary-general will be in charge as an interim head of
\nthe institute beginning Thursday, while the position of Sutrisno
\nwill be discussed further," Sumaryadi told reporters on Tuesday.<\/p>\n
He asserted that Sutrisno would not be fired from the civil
\nservice.<\/p>\n
As part of efforts to reform the institute's curriculum,
\nSumaryadi said the ministry had also decided to merge the
\nmanagement of STPDN with that of the Jakarta-based Institute of
\nPublic Administration (IIP), under a new name, the School of Home
\nAffairs Administration.<\/p>\n
The merger is expected to be completed by early in the 2004
\nacademic year.<\/p>\n
Sumaryadi admitted that the decision to revamp the institute's
\nmanagement was due to the controversial death of Wahyu Hidayat, a
\nsecond-year student.<\/p>\n
The 20-year-old died on Sept. 2 after he was allegedly beaten
\nby seniors at the institute, which has a reputation for military-
\nstyle discipline.<\/p>\n
"While going through the revision, we will also invite several
\nformer ministers who were once in charge at the ministry,
\nincluding Rudini, as well as experts from Gadjah Mada University
\n(UGM).<\/p>\n
"We will also seek input from STPDN alumni and the ministry's
\ndepartments, such as the training and education department, the
\ninspectorate general and human resources department," Sumaryadi
\nsaid, without elaborating.<\/p>\n
Hari had earlier sent a team from the ministry's inspectorate
\ngeneral to investigate the incident that had led to Wahyu's death
\nand question all institute officials, including Sutrisno.<\/p>\n
Separately, Vice President Hamzah Haz called for a revision of
\nthe curriculum at STPDN, saying that any act of violence in
\nschools was not tolerable.<\/p>\n
He welcomed the home affairs ministry's plan to merge the
\nmanagement of STPDN with that of the IIP.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, a private-owned television SCTV, aired a video
\nrecording of violent acts at the institute, which likely hastened
\nSutrisno's demise.<\/p>\n
A coalition of prodemocracy groups, the Foundation of the
\nIndonesian Legal Aid Institute (YLBHI), Commission on Missing
\nPersons and Victims of Violence (Kontras), Professional Civil
\nSociety, and Indonesia Independent Committee for General
\nElections Watch (KIPP Indonesia), called for the closure of
\nSTPDN.<\/p>\n
Ismed Putranto, coordinator of the Society, said that full
\nlegal action should be taken against those who tried to obstruct
\njustice by keeping silent and allowed the violent, military-like
\neducation to go on at the school.<\/p>\n
"There should also be interviews with STPDN alumni who now
\nhold positions at regional administrations because they are
\npotential threats to civilians who are opposed to violence in
\nsociety," he said.<\/p>\n
In Banda Aceh, Hari said that the ministry would not close
\nSTPDN despite mounting criticism.<\/p>\n
"We will only close it if regional administrations stop
\nsending their students to study there," he said.<\/p>\n
The government set up the STPDN in 1992 to train government
\nofficials. The institute adopted a military-like education
\nconcept in a bid to create officials with authority, as former
\nhome affairs minister Rudini put it.<\/p>\n
The institute does not charge tuition, as the students are
\nsent by regional administrations from across the country. They
\nautomatically become government officials upon graduation.<\/p>\n
The institute burst into the public spotlight following the
\ndeath of Wahyu. On Tuesday, police declared nine more seniors as
\nsuspects in his death, bringing the number of suspects to 18.<\/p>\n
Sumedang Police Chief Adj. Sr. Comr. Yoyok Subagyono said on
\nTuesday that police were also investigating other cases of
\nextreme violence at the institute.<\/p>\n
Three STPDN seniors have been declared suspects in the torture
\nof Jurinata, who suffered severe injuries after being beaten
\nearlier this year.<\/p>\n
Jurinata had said earlier that he was beaten after he caught a
\ngroup of seniors smuggling alcoholic drinks into the dormitory.
\nDrinking on campus is forbidden.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, West Java Police Chief Insp. Gen. Dadang Garnida
\nsaid his officers would protect witnesses who testify about
\nviolence at the institute.<\/p>\n
"It is our duty. I expect the witnesses to report to the
\npolice to get protection if they feel threatened. Intimidation is
\npunishable by a jail sentence," he told reporters in Bandung.<\/p>\n
An STPDN lecturer, Inu Kencana Syafi'i, on Tuesday asked for
\nprotection from the House of Representatives after unidentified
\npeople threatened to kill him for reporting several cases of
\nviolence in STPDN to police.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/minister-officially-fires-school-head-1447893297",
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