Ex-SMP 56 teachers plan to sue education agency

Ex-SMP 56 teachers plan to sue education agency

Evi Mariani, Jakarta

Nine former teachers of SMP 56 state junior high school in
Melawai, South Jakarta, plan to sue the Jakarta Basic Education
Agency for downgrading their civil service rankings at the same
time the agency transferred them to new schools.

"We will soon file the suit with the State Administrative
Court," the teachers' lawyer, Lambok Gultom, said on Tuesday.

The nine -- Lizareni, Meliani Napitupulu, Murti Hizkil, Suedi,
Bagus Soekorono, Darmawati Nasir, Trisnaneli, Abdul Rochim and
Ellya -- are among a group of teachers who opposed a land swap
deal between the Ministry of National Education and property
company PT Tata Disantara in 2001 involving the land where SMP 56
stands.

One teacher who has refused to leave the school, Nurlaila, was
reported to the police by the city administration for practicing
"unlicensed education".

"I was the vice principal of SMP 56 in 2001 when the land swap
deal was signed. We (the teachers), with the exception of then
principal Titi Rohmani, knew nothing about the deal," Bagus
Soekorono said.

He said almost all of the teachers at the school opposed the
deal because it was reached without their knowledge.

Darmawati Nasir said the basic education agency assigned the
dissenting teachers to new schools in September 2003 and lowered
their civil service rankings by one level.

"As a consequence, my monthly salary was reduced by Rp 50,000
(US$5.80). The amount is not much, but you usually have to wait
for four years to be promoted.

"I feel uneasy that I achieved something and then I lost it
all of a sudden," she said.

Darmawati said she did not know she had been transferred to
SMP 87 in Kebayoran Lama, South Jakarta, until being told that
she would begin receiving her salary at the school in September
2003.

Some of the teachers filing the suit claimed that they were
told they would not receive their salaries unless they agreed to
move to new schools.

Bagus was transferred to SMP 86 in Cilandak, Rochim to SMP 66
in Kebayoran Lama and Ellya to SMP 235 in Ciledug, while the
other five were moved to the new SMP 56 building in Jeruk Purut,
all in South Jakarta.

The nine teachers have been summoned as witnesses in the case
against Nurlaila. Only Abdul Rochim and Bagus Soekorono have
already been questioned.

"Ibu Darma and Ibu Ellya were supposed to be questioned today
(Tuesday), but due to technical problems at police headquarters
-- the electricity went out -- we agreed to do the questioning
tomorrow," Lambok said.