'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.