Students mark National Education Day with rally

Students mark National Education Day with rally

JAKARTA (JP): Just as World Labor Day brought a slew of
rallies across the country on Tuesday, students and teachers took
to the streets on Wednesday to mark National Education Day.

The rallies were highlighted by a variety of demands, from
calls for peace, to better and more affordable education and
improved welfare for teachers.

In many schools in Banda Aceh, junior high school and high
school teachers led their students in recitals of the Koran and
prayers for the end of violence in the rebellious province of
Aceh.

Aceh Governor Abdullah Puteh presided over an official
ceremony to mark the day, promising to provide more funds to
rebuild and renovate schools and education facilities in the
province.

He pledged to double the allocation for the education sector
to 14 percent of the total provincial budget in the next fiscal
year.

"The education sector has been severely affected by the armed
conflicts in this region, with many schools being burned down,"
Abdullah remarked.

In Jakarta, President Abdurrahman Wahid led a ceremony at the
State Palace to commemorate the day.

In his address, the President discussed the philosophy of
education and again pledged to increase the allocation of funds
for education.

Minister of National Education Yahya Muhaimin expressed
concern about the millions of children unable to continue their
educations because of economic hardship and conflicts that had
forced them from their homes.

The minister said many children had to drop out of school
because their parents were no longer able to earn a living wage.

"This condition is worsened by violence in various regions.
These disturbances have damaged education facilities, and many
children can no longer go to school because they have become
refugees."

National Education Day is commemorated on the birthday of Ki
Hajar Dewantara, who founded the Taman Siswa school in Yogyakarta
in 1922 during the Dutch colonial period.

On the streets of the capital there were several
demonstrations held to highlight the poor state of the nation's
education system.

About 300 junior high school and high school students marched
to the Ministry of National Education in South Jakarta to express
their concern with problems in the education system.

Director General for Elementary and Secondary Education Indra
Jati Sidi met with the demonstrators. However, the discussion
became heated when the students tried to force their way inside
the building compound. The situation was calmed when police
reinforcements arrived.

Students in Palu, Central Sulawesi, held a rally to
communicate their demands. About 200 members of the Muhammadiyah
Youth Association met with provincial council speaker Murad
Nasir.

They demanded the abolishment of Ministry of Education Decree
No. 501/1993, which obliges female students not to cover their
ears with their headscarves when taking photographs for their
school IDs.

"Such a ban is humiliating to Muslims, especially for women,"
rally leader Ahmad said.

In Ujungpandang, South Sulawesi, approximately 200 street
children held a rally at the Mandala Monument to demand the
right to free education and health care.

In Bandung and Surabaya, students demanded better education
facilities and higher salaries for teachers.

In Semarang, hundreds of teachers marched to the Semarang
District Court to demand the release of their colleague Dwi Aji
Yulianto.

Dwi, a teacher at Pangudi Luhur elementary school, was
arrested and charged with slapping a student in October. The
teacher was angered when a student, Ardi, set off a firecracker
in class while he was teaching.

"The court must declare Dwi not guilty," the teachers shouted.
(02/25/27/prb)