'Pesantren' struggles to survive financial crux<\/p>\n
Damar Harsanto and Sri Wahyuni, The Jakarta Post, Gresik, East Java<\/p>\n
Pesantren (Islamic boarding schools) have from the very
\nbeginning primarily performed a religious mission, which is to
\ndisseminate Islam through education, with little thought of
\nfinancial gain.<\/p>\n
Most schools rely on local residents for their daily needs. In
\nsome cases, people also donate land and buildings to the schools.<\/p>\n
Nowadays, however, pesantren must be more realistic as they
\nhave to manage financial matters to ensure their survival or
\nbolster their development amid the country's protracted economic
\ncrisis.<\/p>\n
Every pesantren leader seems to have his own policy in coping
\nwith money matters, mostly noting that money is a sensitive issue
\nwhich must be handled carefully.<\/p>\n
Some remain conservative by relying mostly on tuition fees
\nfrom students or donations from benevolent parents. Others have
\nadopted relatively modern measures like submitting proposals to
\nget assistance from foreign donors or the government.<\/p>\n
\"We have never requested help from others, including the
\ngovernment ... it spells more trouble than good,\" said Kyai
\n(cleric) Masbuhin Faqih, the leader of Mamba'us Solihin in
\nManyar, Gresik, East Java.<\/p>\n
Faqih said his pesantren relied on students' fees which are
\naround Rp 100,000 a month. The amount covers the monthly tuition
\nfee, development of the pesantren's facilities, and two meals a
\nday.<\/p>\n
\"We are planning to increase the fee to Rp 120,000 due to the
\nrising cost of basic commodities,\" Faqih said.<\/p>\n
Faqih added that the fee was sufficient to cover operational
\ncosts, thanks to additional money from generous parents.<\/p>\n
\"We continue to receive financial support,\" he said proudly,
\nshowing The Jakarta Post two envelopes containing money from
\nvisiting parents who interrupted the interview.<\/p>\n
Faqih said he was also planning to secure a larger income from
\nseveral small cooperatives run by his family as commercial
\nventures to support the pesantren.<\/p>\n
He owns two cooperatives, one supplying basic commodities to
\nsmall kiosks in the neighborhood, and another selling
\nconstruction supplies. The monthly net income is Rp 2 million and
\nRp 500,000 respectively. In addition, he has a farm with 14 cows.<\/p>\n
The presence of a pesantren, as in the case of Faqih's, also
\nhelps make business in the pesantren's neighborhood thrive. Food
\nstalls and stationery shops owned by locals are seen mushrooming
\naround the pesantren to cater to student needs.<\/p>\n
Unlike Faqih's conservative approach to finance, the Al Amien
\nPrenduan Islamic boarding School in Madura and Darul Ulum Islamic
\nboarding School in Jombang, East Java, have a more liberal
\napproach towards donations.<\/p>\n
\"We have been receiving money from foreign donors, mostly
\nindividual donors from the United Arab Emirates and Middle
\nEastern countries, to build facilities and infrastructure here.
\nBut, none of the donations are binding nor are there conditions
\nattached which may affect the pesantren's policies and
\nactivities,\" said Kyai Maktum Jauhari, one of the leaders of Al
\nAmien Prenduan.<\/p>\n
Maktum said pesantren leaders were not allowed to handle money
\ndirectly but \"we always hire professionals to handle our
\nfinancial reports. Those reports are subject to annual audit.\"<\/p>\n
Kyai As'ad Umar, the leader of the Darul Ulum Islamic boarding
\nschool in Jombang, East Java, was even more liberal and took
\nadvantage of his affiliation to Golkar Party, notorious for its
\ncorruption and collusion during the tenure of President Soeharto,
\nalthough taking the risk of tainting the school's image.<\/p>\n
\"My affiliation with Golkar is a personal tactic to help
\nfinance my school, and I take responsibility for any blame,\"
\nAs'ad argued.<\/p>\n
Thanks to Golkar's support, As'ad now has a huge fund, the
\ninterest on which is \"sufficient to cover the hefty operational
\ncosts of Rp 265 million a month,\" in addition to 14 school
\nbuildings -- from elementary school to university level -- on
\nover 32 hectares of land.<\/p>\n
As'ad is even planning to construct a hospital in cooperation
\nwith a university in Perth, Australia. The planned hospital is
\nexpected to compete with an upscale Christian hospital in
\nJombang. The hospital, which is now under construction, is
\nexpected to start operation in 2006.<\/p>\n
As'ad argued that he never dragged his students into politics
\nalthough he disclosed that the school voted for Golkar in the
\n1998 ballot.<\/p>\n
Some pesantren, like the Islamic Institute for Fiqh and Dakwah
\nstudies in Bangil, Pasuruan, East Java are facing financial
\ndifficulties.<\/p>\n
The small school, which was established in 1984, is suffering
\nfrom a significant drop in the number of students, from over 100
\nstudents to less than 20 students now.<\/p>\n
\"The school began having financial problems when Kyai Muhammad
\nBaidullah, one of the school leaders whose relatives in Mecca
\nalways sent money to help cover expenses, died in 1995,\" said the
\nschool leader, Muamal Hamidy.<\/p>\n
Muamal said the school did not have plans to invest money to
\nlook for financing alternatives.<\/p>\n
\"We are hoping for help from our successful graduates,\" he
\nsaid.<\/p>",
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