'RI' education system creates a stupid nation'

'RI' education system creates a stupid nation'

By Lela E. Madjiah

JAKARTA (JP): Indonesia has a lot to be proud of. Though still
classified as a developing country, it planted one foot in an
area once dominated by advanced countries when its first wholly
domestically produced airplane, the N-250, made its maiden flight
on Aug. 10, 1995.

It is now preparing the next generation of planes with more
sophisticated technology.

Earlier, Indonesia earned international commendation for its
food program achievements, which transformed Indonesia from the
world's biggest importer of rice to a nation with a self-
sufficiency in rice by the mid-1980s. Indonesia has also earned
the world respect for its success in curbing the population
growth.

The success list can go on forever, so when one of the
country's intellectuals blasts the nation as "stupid", in spite
of all the country's achievements, something might be very, very
wrong.

"As a nation we are becoming more and more stupid and have to
start all over again. (Intellectually), we are back to 1900,"
says Yusuf Bilyarta Mangunwijaya.

Popularly known as Romo (Father) Mangun, the Roman Catholic
priest-cum-freedom-fighter-cum-architect-cum-literary-man cites a
list of examples to explain his concerns.

"The suggestion that we issue a law on religious tolerance is
an example of our stupidity. What modern country will regulate
such a thing as religious tolerance?" he argues.

The proposal came a day after the Oct. 10 Situbondo incident,
in which five people died when a mob attacked several churches
and Christian schools in the East Java town.

Government officials and analysts have since come up with
different theories to explain the incident. Most agree that
religious tolerance is the main, if not the only, issue behind
the incident.

However, Romo Mangun believes that religion is never the
issue.

"Religious tolerance is never a problem in Indonesia, among
the people. It is something that has always been there," he says.

"There was no such a thing as the burning down of mosques or
churches during the Dutch colonial times, or under the Japanese
occupation, or during the independence war. There were no
churches or mosques burned down during the Old Order period, or
even during the communist domination. Logically, there must have
been a lot of churches and mosques burned down during the
communist heyday. No, the burning of churches and mosques is not
a religious problem, it is the problem of the New Order,"
comments Romo Mangun, a prominent community leader in Yogyakarta.

According to Romo Mangun, religious conflicts can be
fabricated or accidental. Either way, the outcome is always
hazardous to the general public and may become a boomerang to the
schemer, he warns.

Indonesia's reaction to the awarding of the Nobel Peace Prize
to East Timorese separatist leader Jose Ramos Horta, is another
example of the nation's stupidity, he says.

"We should have questioned ourselves: 'Why did the prize go to
Horta?' There must be reasons. Instead, we accused the Nobel
Committee of politicking, that it (favored) friends," he says,
adding that Indonesia's stance on Horta's prize was shameful.

"And it is another proof that our intellect and objectivity
are at the lowest end," he declares.

Romo Mangun blames the nation's stupidity and low level of
intellect and objectivity on its educational system.

"We have to be honest with ourselves, that what we have are
not schools in the true sense of the word. What real schools we
have are an exception. Our schools are nothing more than a
training place, where teachers are not real teachers but
instructors, bureaucrats, tamers or even commandants. Our
children are not students, but little political cadres," the
former lecturer at Gadjah Mada University in Yogyakarta laments.

The result of the current educational system is obvious.
Indonesians are getting more and more stupid.

"Not just the children or university students, but our leaders
too. They make stupid statements, which culminated in their
comments on the Nobel Peace Prize," says Romo Mangun.

Student brawls, too, are the result of the country's poor
educational system. Brawls are students' way of expressing their
discontent with the system.

"Student brawls occur everywhere in the world, but what
happens here are not brawls in the fair sense of the word. They
are criminal acts. Why? This is because students are frustrated
with the system but cannot do anything about it. So, they smash
cars and destroy buildings. As long as the system remains, such
criminal acts will continue," he warns.

Aware of the problem, Romo Mangun has started a nine-year
experimental primary school in Central Java, aimed at helping
children from poor families.

"We started two years ago, and hopefully by the end of the
experiment -- seven years from now -- this little research will
help us arrive at a conclusion of what constitutes a proper
primary education, especially for poor children," he explains.

Romo Mangun believes that changing the situation calls for a
revolution in the educational system, particularly in elementary
school.

"I believe in the slogan -- it's a slogan, don't take it
seriously -- that it doesn't matter if the university education
is rotten, but primary education should be of high quality."

Quoting Socrates, he says the aim of (primary) education is to
help every child give birth to the "eternal truth" which is
already within him or herself.

"All of us are nothing more than midwives who help children
give birth to the wisdom, intelligence and skill which already
exist within them," he explains.

He warns that only fascist and communist countries try to
"create" children according to their will.

"But you see for yourself how fascist and communist countries
crumbled," he points out.

Another major problem in the current educational system is the
ranking system, in which children are recognized through their
academic achievements.

"Once a child ranks in class, he or she is subjected to
'abuses' because their parents will force them to maintain their
ranks, send them to courses, and prevent them from being
children," says Romo Mangun.

The fact is, Indonesian parents have been "abusing" their
children for 30 years.

"How can children become intelligent when they are abused? An
abused child will not become smart, he or she will be weak," he
points out.

He says he can guarantee that children who rank first in their
class are not the most intelligent. The most intelligent children
are usually ranked lower, fourth or seventh or even eleventh.

"This is because they find the system boring but realize that
they have to go through it. So, they do what their teachers
expect them to do, but half-heartedly, and turn to other sources
to enrich themselves," he argues.

"To me, the happiest children are those who don't give a damn
about the ranking system," he adds.

Romo Mangun notes that pushy parents, who force their children
to rank high in class, are consumed by the fear that their
children may not survive in today's competitive environment if
they do not rank first on school. They teach their children to be
competitive. The various children's contests that now exist are
evidence of the efforts to instill competitiveness in children.

"Life is not just about competition. Competition is
destructive. Children are destroyed in competition. We should not
teach our children to be competitive. Instead, we should teach
them solidarity, for only through solidarity will a child be able
to fully develop his potentials," he maintains.