Jakarta's schools taking precautions against SARS
Sari P. Setiogi, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
A number of local schools in Jakarta are taking precautions against the possibility of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) transmission in the classroom following government warnings about the deadly disease.
Students at the Ricci Catholic High School on Jl. Kemenangan, West Jakarta, were told to start wearing protective masks on Monday.
"We were asked to bring masks to school on Monday. Our teachers said that they would also wear them," said a third grade student, adding that some kindergarten students in the same school complex had started wearing masks last weekend.
For financial reasons, her mother had bought her two masks at Rp 2,000 each in a nearby pharmacy instead of the N-95 type recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO), which cost Rp 35,000 each.
Students at the other Ricci Catholic School in Pondok Aren, South Jakarta, however, had not yet been asked to wear masks. "School will go ahead just as normal," said Martha, the mother of a student.
The St. Theresia Schools, which includes schools all the way up from kindergarten to high school on Jl. Gereja Theresia, Central Jakarta, issued a warning letter to parents on Friday regarding the dangers of atypical pneumonia.
"The letter informed parents to build up the resistance of their children and if a student had a fever, not to send the child to school," one of the parents said.
Meanwhile, other schools were carrying on with their normal activities. Most high school students are now facing preparatory tests for their final examinations, which will be held next month.
The Harapan Ibu Junior High School in Pondok Pinang, South Jakarta, SMU 70 State High School in Bulungan, also South Jakarta, a Christian high school run by the BPK Penabur association, the SMUK V School in Kelapa Gading, and the Tiara Bangsa School in Cibubur, East Jakarta, will all be holding classes as normal, with students not being asked to wear masks so far.
The Jakarta health agency had earlier issued a directive on SARS, ordering all hospitals, clinics, hotels, air and sea transportation operators, as well as schools, to be on the alert for the spread of the disease.
"All school principals and teachers should help inform (students) in the school, especially those who have just returned from or are planning to travel to countries suffering from the epidemic, about the transmission of SARS and how to prevent it," agency head A. Chalik Masulili said in the directive.
Most international schools here are operating as usual with the staff keeping in touch with the medical authorities. Only the Singapore International School (SIS) has been closed following advice from the Singaporean Ministry of Education.
In Singapore, schools have been shut since March 27 but are due to reopen in stages over the next two weeks.