Education bill could threaten national unity, educators say

Suherdjoko and Agus Maryono, The Jakarta Post, Semarang/Purwokerto

About 5,000 students and teachers from Catholic and Protestant private high schools staged a rally on Saturday at the Central Java legislature to protest against the education bill now being deliberated at the House of Representatives.

The teachers and students, who came from the provincial towns of Semarang, Ungaran, Magelang, Salatiga, Magelang, Ambarawa and Muntilan, said the bill was a threat to national harmony.

In their statement read by Catholic priest Tri Hartomo, the protesters said the bill was not in line with the preamble of 1945 Constitution which states that one of the national objectives is to build an intelligent nation.

"Instead of educating people, Article 4 of the bill asserts that national education aims to produce faithful and devout people," the statement read.

Article 13 is at the center of the controversy as it stipulates that students have the right to obtain religious lessons in accordance with their faith from teachers of the same religion. Hence, a Catholic school, for example, would be required to provide religious instruction in Islam for its students of Islamic faith.

On the same day, about 200 teachers grouped under the Banyumas People Concerned about Education (MPPB) took to streets in the Central Java town before gathering at the regional legislature to express their objection to the bill.

They said the bill contained articles that would undermine national harmony and leave too much room for the government to intervene in education.

"Not only does the bill contain contradictions in the use of language, definition and legal concept, it has the potential to spark social upheaval and national disharmony," the teachers said in their statement.

The House special committee for the bill completed its deliberation last month. Anwar Arifin, the head of the committee, told The Jakarta Post that the House Commission VI for education would call a plenary meeting to accommodate responses to the bill before it is endorsed early next month.

The rallies in Semarang and Purwokerto followed a wave of protests in Jakarta last week.

Since early March, the bill has sparked protests, mostly from Christian schools.

The situation turned thorny when some Muslim organizations held counter rallies in favor of the bill, asking the House and the government to uphold an article that stipulates punishment for those who violate article 13 of the bill.