Situbondo well-known for its Islamic boarding school

Text and photos by Bayu Ismoyo

Situbondo made headlines in October when a mob attacked several churches and Christian schools in this East Java town, killing five in the process. In fact, Situbondo (population 45,000), the capital of Situbondo regency, is normally a quiet district town. The regency itself is home to 5.5 million people, three universities and 53 Islamic boarding schools (pesantren). The regency serves as a training ground for the Infantry Weapons Center and the marines, but it is the pesantren which make it famous. The regency has produced one of the nation's great ulemas, the late Kyai As'ad Syamsul Arifin. Recently, The Jakarta Post photographer Bayu Ismoyo visited a pesantren in the area. The following is his report.

SITUBONDO, East Java (JP): Everything is quiet here at Pondok Pesantren Mishbahul. Even the laughter from the cracking of jokes fails to disturb the serenity around the school.

Located on Jl. Merak No. 40 in Situbondo, the school is led by Kyai Haji Saifullah Sholeh, who is chairman of the Situbondo chapter of the Indonesian Council of Ulemas, chairman of the Situbondo Haj Brotherhood Association, an executive of the Situbondo's Nahdlatul Ulama and a former member of Situbondo's regency parliament.

Today, more than 100 students are studying at the pesantren for high school students, which was set up in 1970. Since its establishment, between 7,000 and 8,000 students have graduated from this pesantren.

Most of its students come from outside the regency -- Besuki, Madura, Banyuwangi and Bondowoso -- to name a few. Of the current students, only around 40 live there. The pesantren also accepts high school age students who are not enrolled in schools but wish to improve their religious knowledge.

"Staying at the school is better than staying at an ordinary boarding house. Here we can improve our knowledge of Islam," one student explained.

Daily schedule

For its students, the school offers a perfect 50-50 combination of religious and non-religious studies.

The daily schedule reflects the school's curriculum. Activities start at 2:30 a.m. with morning prayer and Koran reading. Then the students go to their respective schools outside of the pesantren. Students who don't live in the pesantren come when classes start at 2 p.m. The afternoon session closes with afternoon prayer at 3:15 p.m. From then until 4 p.m. the students can choose between a brief siesta or teaching at the madrasah (Islamic primary school) -- for which they receive a monthly honorarium of Rp 20,000 -- which is followed by late afternoon prayers and wirid (saying praises of Allah). More Koran reading and classes are scheduled until it is time for the dusk prayer of maghrib and more Koran reading. Bedtime comes after the evening prayer and more Koran and general studies.

All of these activities are directly supervised by Kyai Saifullah.

The tight schedule is expected to help the students become pious Moslems, who respect their parents and teachers, and are competent in society. It is no wonder that the general public often turns to the pesantren for advice and answers.

The students are also required to serve the community, mainly in the form of teaching students how to read the Koran. The school hopes to turn out graduates who are excellent not only at school but also in society.

The Mishbahul pesantren also strives to dispel the image that Islamic schools produce experts in religious matters only, which it does by holding science and general contests. The school once won a regreening contest by turning the area around the school into a green area.

Like all pesantren, the Mishbahul pesantren also observes various taboos. Students, for example, are not allowed to go out at night, go to the movies or date. Violation of the regulations can result in dismissal. Such strict discipline is aimed at maintaining the school's reputation.