Indonesian universities at the crossroads

Two unrelated events, the brawls at a Jakarta university and the sacking of a well-known university lecturer in Salatiga, have turned our attention to university life. Noted educator Mochtar Buchori argues that the events are symptoms of a lack of robust academic culture at the universities in Indonesia.

JAKARTA (JP): The sacking of Dr. Arief Budiman of Satya Wacana Christian University in the Central Java town of Salatiga and the physical clash between two groups of students at National University in Jakarta constitute two events whose implications are very critical for the future of university life in Indonesia.

Much depends upon the way we solve these two problems. We will either strengthen the academic culture within our universities, or we will reduce our universities into institutions without real academic meaning.

In my opinion, these two events stem essentially from one fundamental problem: The lack of a robust academic culture in our universities. For a long time now, the academic culture has either been weakened, or has never really blossomed at our universities. This situation has been a source of similar problems in the past. And if we fail to remedy it, similar incidents will happen again in the future.

Let us look more closely at each of these two events.

I do not really know what the actual substance of the dispute is that caused the "short circuit" at Satya Wacana University. But judging from the wide support which Arief Budiman has received from both his colleagues and his students, I think that he represents the views, opinions and attitudes of a fairly large segment of the Satya Wacana family in this dispute. It is quite unlikely that he is just fighting for personal gain in this case.

The existence of a crevasse among segments of a university community, caused by either disagreement, or misunderstanding, is a common phenomenon. In a university with a firmly established academic culture, differing views are first recognized, and subsequently scrutinized and harnessed to become a source of learning dynamics. In such a place, no academic conflict is silenced by the use of executive, or managerial power. Such a practice indicates only that the institution has not yet succeeded in establishing a solid academic base for its institutional life.

It should be noted here that the dishonorable discharge of a member of an academic staff is not an ordinary event. How many persons have been discharged like Arief Budiman in the history of university life in Indonesia? It is, therefore, very deplorable that such an unusual event was likened to the firing of a driver. This view reflects a total incomprehension of the nature of academic life.

Firing a senior member of the academic staff is in my opinion indicative of an immature academic culture. In most universities this immaturity has been expressed through less dramatic events, such as withholding a person's academic promotion, or blocking a person to receive a scholarship to pursue advanced study abroad. Steps like this have been commonly employed to punish persons considered too independent in their academic or political pronouncements.

The second event, the physical clash at National University in Jakarta between students belonging to the Himpala nature lovers' group on the one hand, and those belonging to the Menwa student regiment group on the other, is also indicative of the absence of a strong academic culture. The Himpala group represents an adventurers' culture. The Menwa group represents military culture.

It is the lack of a strong academic culture within the university, which in my opinion effectively averts the growth of a harmonious blending between the two cultures of masculinity and physical toughness. Instead, rivalry has developed quietly, and it was only a matter of time before the two clashed.

The question we have to answer is: How can we strengthen the academic culture within our universities?

I don't think there is a general formula for answering this question. Each university has to find its own path towards a more mature academic culture, taking into consideration factors regarding itself and factors relating to its various environments.

The way we take to solve these two problems will indicate the extent to which we understand the meaning of academic culture, and its role in empowering our universities to become meaningful institutions.

The writer is rector of the Muhammadiyah Teachers' Training Institute (IKIP), Jakarta.

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