Catholic school parents consider police report

Urip Hudiono, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The parents of children attending the Sang Timur Catholic School in Ciledug, Tangerang, are considering filing a complaint with the police following the almost complete sealing off the school for more than two weeks by a zealot group.

"We are still trying to resolve the matter amicably. Should this fail, we may report the case to the police as a last resort," parents' forum chairman Hillon Goa said on Wednesday.

He said that should no amicable solution be possible, the parents would lodge a complaint with the Tangerang Police on Thursday, although he was not yet sure precisely what the contents of the complaint would be.

"Our legal advisors are still working out the specific details," he said. "Obviously, we will be requesting that the government ensure that the basic, constitutional right of our children to an education is fulfilled."

Hillon explained that although the children had returned to school, they would still be afraid and insecure -- which would affect their studies -- as long as the problem persisted.

A group calling itself the Karang Tengah Islamic Communication Forum held a rally at the school on Oct. 3, protesting that Catholic religious services were being held there.

The rally ended with the group sealing the school's front entrance gate with a two-meter-high concrete wall, which forced the school to postpone the return to school of its 2,417 students -- including 137 autistic and mentally retarded children -- for a week.

As the back entrance to the school is inconvenient for the children, the school decided to open a new entrance on its eastern side to provide easier access for them.

However, on Wednesday morning the same group stopped all vehicles dropping off students at the new gate.

Upon learning of the new incident, dozens of parents immediately came to the school to pick up their children.

Ibu Mega, one of the parents, said she had decided to come to the school in person as she was worried that her 11-year-old daughter, who is in fifth grade, would be further traumatized.

"She recently lost her father. With this trouble at the school, I've noticed that her grades have been dropping," she said. "I have been thinking of taking her to a psychiatrist."

Parents have also reported their dilemma to the executive board of Nahdlatul Ulama (NU), the country's largest and most influential Muslim organization.

Following a meeting on Tuesday night with the chairman of the NU's advisory board, Abdurrahman "Gus Dur" Wahid, Hillon said Gus Dur had expressed a willingness to help settle the case, while making clear that the NU would not tolerate one-sided actions that violated the law.

Separately, the Indonesian Catholic Community Forum has reported the case to the National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM). Officials from commission visited the school last week to collect information of the case.