Teacher set up federation

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Disappointed by the poor performance of the Association of Indonesian Teachers (PGRI), which many consider to have acted as little more than a collector of levies during the new order regime, a group of teachers announced on Thursday the establishment of the Federation of Independent Indonesian Teachers (FGII).

The federation was established by nearly 100 teachers representing 25 teachers' organizations from Jakarta, Bandung, Garut and Tasikmalaya, during a modest ceremony at the Proklamasi Monument in Menteng, Central Jakarta (photo above).

The ceremony started with speeches by representatives of the teachers, followed by the formal declaration establishing the federation, and ended with the singing of the teachers' hymn.

In its declaration, the FGII demanded that democracy and transparency be applied in education. They urged the government to give legal protection to teachers and also to provide greater funding for education, amounting to at least 30 percent of the state budget. They further demanded that intervention by the bureaucracy in teachers' organizations be stopped.

During the ceremony, the teachers, who work in various types of school ranging from kindergartens and elementary schools up to junior and senior high schools, did not wear their official Korpri (Indonesian Civil Service Corps) uniforms, but rather T- shirts and casual clothes.

They claimed that the federation was necessary as the PGRI could no longer accommodate their aspirations. The PGRI was considered to be powerless in protesting against the misery experienced by teachers, mainly as the result of low salaries.

"As we know, the right to organize is guaranteed by the law. There is nothing wrong with the establishment of our own federation in order to advance the struggle for our aspirations," Amir Hamzah, a teacher from the state-run SMUN senior high school said.

After the declaration, the teachers marched to the House of Representatives' building and the Ministry of National Education to press for their demands to be met. -- JP