Sang Timur parents demand solution, again<\/p>\n
Parents of children attending the Sang Timur Catholic School in
\nKarang Tengah district, Tangerang, on Monday urged Mayor Wahidin
\nHalim to take immediate measures to ensure that their students
\ncan study in peace.<\/p>\n
Parents' forum chairman Hillon Goa said that all existing
\naccess into the school compound have been blocked by local
\nresidents.<\/p>\n
\"We want a guarantee that there'll be no more disturbances ...
\nthe administration must find a solution by Dec. 20 or violence
\nmight break out,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Wahidin said the administration would assist the school's
\nmanagement in procuring land to build a new road access to the
\nschool compound.<\/p>\n
\"The school has no financial difficulty in buying; what is
\ndifficult is persuading locals to sell part of their land,\" he
\ntold reporters after meeting the parents' forum.<\/p>\n
Arguing that the school had violated its permit by holding
\nreligious services for the local Saint Bernadette parish, local
\ngroups built a concrete wall blocking the school's main gate on
\nOct. 3.<\/p>\n
The administration demolished the wall on Oct. 25, but locals
\ncontinued to ban cars from passing the neighborhood to reach the
\nschool, forcing 2,417 students -- including 137 autistic and
\nmentally retarded children -- to walk about 500 meters to reach
\nthe school's back door.<\/p>\n
Recently, local residents built walls on two alternative
\naccess routes into the school.<\/p>\n
\"Such actions by local residents not only make it difficult
\nfor us to go to the school, but it also disrupts learning and
\nteaching activities,\" Hillon said.<\/p>\n
Although the case was being handled by the National Commission
\non Human Rights and the National Commission for Child Protection,
\ntension was still high in the neighborhood.<\/p>\n
Wahidin said that the basic problem between the school and
\nlocals was easy to address, and was related to the use of
\nneighborhood streets, \"but since it has been mixed up with
\nreligious issues, the residents have been provoked and the
\nproblem has became more difficult to solve\". --JP<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/sang-timur-parents-demand-solution-again-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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