Bishop Belo happy with education in East Timor

JAKARTA (JP): Dili Bishop Carlos Filipe Ximenes Belo said East Timorese have to admit that the Indonesian government has outdone itself by providing them with the best educational facilities.

Antara quoted Belo in East Timor's capital of Dili as citing on Wednesday the Dili Vocational School as an example of a good school with qualified teachers and adequate facilities. He spoke to the news agency after presiding in a ceremony to bless a new building of the school.

He called on East Timorese students to make the best use of the expensive building "in accordance with the aim of Indonesian development, namely developing well-rounded, accomplished human beings in East Timor".

"We need 'development people' with intellectual and moral qualifications that will prepare them for the third millennium which will be marked with challenges and hope," Belo said.

In his speech, Belo also spoke about discipline, reminding both teachers and students that good school facilities alone do not produce quality East Timorese. Discipline and the willingness to apply oneself to one's studies are also needed, he said.

He criticized local institutions, including the church, for poor time discipline. "We use 'rubber time' and procrastinate," he said.

"People who use 'rubber time' are not ready to enter the third millennium where scientific and technological acceleration demands that people always be ready," he said.

"How are we going to enter the 21st century with such human resources?" Belo said, recounting of his experience meeting a truant student. (swe)