Labuan children study the Koran at Madrasah

LABUAN, West Java (JP): The clock strikes 1 p.m. Dozens of children flock into a decaying classroom at Madrasah Tunas Bahari, an Islamic school in the fishing village of Teluk in Labuan, about 160 kilometer west of Jakarta.

About 50 young pupils between five and seven are eagerly waiting for Ustadz (religious teacher) Amin Mugmie to give them a lesson in the Koran and Arabic.

Before the teacher arrives, some children recite Koranic verses. A few minutes later, Mugmie comes and starts the lesson, which lasts an hour.

"I realize that the time is too short, but I have to teach four other classes. Each class gets only one hour," said the teacher, who gets nothing for his services.

The school is divided into five grades and the lessons run from 1 p.m. to 7 p.m. every day including Sundays and holidays. The lessons include Koran readings, An-nasyid (Islamic songs), Arabic and moral teachings.

Madrasah Tunas Bahari is not the only Islamic school in the Teluk neighborhood, but it is the only one that provides free education for the 300 children of the village.

Located on a plot of land belonging to the Labuan fishery agency, the school building is actually a kindergarten.

"But the building is empty after 11 a.m.," said Mugmie.

The school has had more than a thousand students since its establishment in l989. "Many of them continue their studies in more advanced Islamic schools in Labuan, Serang and Pandeglang, while the others are now helping me teach younger kids," Mugmie said.

"Basically, most children here feel enthusiastic about attending this school, but get no support from their parents. They come here on their own initiative," Mugmie added.

In this village, boys are expected to help their fathers with the fish, while girls are needed by their mothers to look after their younger siblings and run the household.

When he first came to the village, he found no children attending Koran reading lessons. After school, all the children would hang around on the beach or in the fish market until late at night, he recalled.

Their parents didn't really care what they got up to, nor did they ask about school, let alone help their kids with homework, he said.

"These children got into the village's night life -- gambling, alcohol," he said.

The gate to adult sex was also opened to them.

"Most of the houses here are very small. They have no bedrooms. The children may watch their parents or others making love. In many cases, two or three families live together in a small dilapidated hut," said Mugmie.

Modern media have probably had a negative impact on the children, he grumbled.

"Well-educated parents may control their children's TV hours. But here, they are allowed to see all kinds of things," he said.

Although the Teluk fishermen live in decaying houses, modern electronics such as TVs, radios, tape recorders and even satellite dishes are common in the village.

It is still unclear whether the lifestyle of these people has affected the marriage rate in the village. Young boys and girls are already familiar with birth control such as pills and condoms which are easily found in small kiosks.

"I was concerned to see these children growing up without guidance from their parents. I'm trying the religious approach to change their 'wild' lives," Mugmie said.

While reading the Koran, Mugmie explains the meaning of each verse and its relevance to daily life. He also tells the children stories about the Prophet Muhammad and other religious stories.

"I just want the children to understand good and bad, to live their lives in accordance with Islamic teachings," Mugmie said.

Students, for instance, must take a bath and put on modest clothes before attending school. "Before, these children rarely washed. They only swam in the ocean," he said.

The children are also taught obligatory prayers five times a day. "By praying, children are trained in discipline," he said.

Mugmie realizes that it is not an easy task to change local children's habits. "Their parents are not role models for their kids. How can we expect these children to pray if they never see their parents do so?" Mugmie said.

Other obstacles also got in Mugmie's way. The majority of the people here had previously rejected his idea of running the school, but they could not dash Mugmie's desire to educate their poor children. "It is my intention to improve their education because the children badly need it for the future. Only God knows," he said.

It seems Mugmie's efforts have borne sweet fruit.

He recalled how life used to be among local people. "In the past, when a man died, nobody in the neighborhood could read the Koran. The family of the deceased had to invite someone from another village to recite the Koran," he said.

Now the children are doing well. They can read the Koran well enough. The children are often invited to various religious ceremonies to recite the Koran or to perform Islamic music and songs, he said proudly.

Some parents have also started to pay more attention to their children's activities. "Many of them have even learned from their children how to perform shalat and read the Koran," he said.

Mugmie said that about 60 parents donate Rp 500/student a month to buy chalk and books. "Thank God, they finally understand the importance of their children's education."(raw)