Private schools face closure

The city administration has ordered Yakeba foundation, which runs junior and senior high schools in Kalibata, South Jakarta, to close school buildings and stop accepting new students for the current 1994/95 school year because it is located on a plot of land owned by the Ministry of Finance.

"If the schools still accept new students for the 1994-95 school year, the government will absolutely revoke their operational licenses," said Soenarjudardji, assistant to secretary of the city administration for social welfare affairs.

Soenarjudardji said yesterday that the schools, which were established by Yakeba foundation in 1966, are located on a plot of land formerly occupied by PT Sepatu Bata on Jl. Taman Makam Pahlawan. The ownership of the land was transferred to the Ministry of Finance in 1992.

Arguing that they faced problems in channeling the students, the foundation's executives have been delaying plans to relocate the schools although they have already received Rp 712 million (US$329,000) compensation for the relocation.

Last week the city administration renewed it calls to nine schools, including Patimura, Jamin Jaya and Santo Alexander junior high schools, the YPIK Islam home economics school and Fatahillah senior high school, all located in Pasar Minggu, South Jakarta, to accept students from schools run by Yakeba foundation. (arf)