Parents should be responsible

Parents should be responsible

I'm responding to the letter Who should be responsible?
written by Etie S. Dirapradja in The Jakarta Post, on Oct. 20.
While Etie's anguish about the safety of her daughter is totally
understandable, at the end of the day, Etie is the only one
responsible for her daughter.

Etie implies that her daughter does not tell her that she had
been late to school because she maybe she was afraid. It's the
parents' responsibility to encourage a loving and sharing
relationship with their children. Children should know that the
only people who will protect them and love them unconditionally
are their parents. They should also know that their parents are
the only ones that they can go to for anything.

So if Etie's daughter has not been telling her parents that
she had been locked out of school, the issue is entirely between
Etie and her daughter. Etie also suggested that the school should
never refuse late students. It is hard to believe that Etie is
serious when putting up this suggestion.

People in most developed countries appreciate and respect
other people's time. Children learn from a very young age to go
to school on time, turn up for appointments on time, whether it
is to church, the doctor's or to a party. Adhering to this simple
discipline shows respect for one's self and others. Jam karet, or
procrastination, is the exception rather than the norm. Children
should learn that it is extremely impolite to turn up anywhere
late, as it is not only rude to disrupt a lesson, a lecture, a
meeting or whatever, but also unfair to the people who were there
on time.

Obviously, Etie's daughter is able to get to school on time
occasionally. It would be great if her parents can help her get
to school on time every day so that she does not miss out on her
lessons, so that she does not get lured into any crime and that
she does not have to disturb her teachers and her classmates.

The school is absolutely correct in closing the gate on time,
as long as it makes the rules clear to parents and students that
classes start, say at 7:30 a.m., therefore the gate should be
closed at 7 a.m. Students getting locked out after the gate has
been closed are entirely the responsibility of the parents.

NINA QUAN, Jakarta