Teacher summoned for questioning
Teacher summoned for questioning
Evi Mariani, Jakarta
The Jakarta Police sent on Friday a second letter to summon
teacher Nurlaila from disputed SMP 56 state junior high school,
expecting her to show up for questioning scheduled for next week.
The police summoned Nurlaila on Thursday but she did not show
up.
"We have summoned her as a suspect in allegations of illegal
academic activity, as filed by the city administration," city
police chief of special crime detectives Sr. Comr. Edmon Ilyas
said on Friday. "She did not inform us of the reason behind her
absence yesterday (Thursday)."
The administration reported Nurlaila and nine other former
teachers of SMP 56, located in Melawai, South Jakarta, in April
for allegedly allowing admission to the school without the
administration's consent.
The administration accused Nurlaila and the other teachers of
violating Law No. 20/2003 on national education, which stipulates
all schools must obtain permission from the provincial
administration.
Violators of the law will face a maximum 10 years in jail
and/or a Rp 1 billion (US$113,315) fine.
SMP 56 opened registration for new students, and so far around
50 children have been registered at the school. They do not need
to pay admission fees, tuition school fees for a year or a fee
for uniforms, as those expenses will be covered by the Government
Watch organization (Gowa).
Gowa chairman Farid Faqih said he supported the school in
continuing with its academic activities, pending the final
determination of ongoing litigation.
The administration has warned newly admitted and other
students of SMP 56 Melawai that it would no longer provide
authorized school reports if they continued to study there.
The administration, through the Jakarta Intermediate and
Higher Education Agency, entered into a land swap deal with
developer PT Tata Disantara in 2000. The site in Melawai was
bartered for plots of land in East Cilandak and Bintaro, South
Jakarta.
Teachers, students and parents opposed to the deal filed a
civil lawsuit against it, but the South Jakarta District Court
rejected their suit last December. The plaintiffs then appealed
to the Jakarta High Court, but no decision has been handed down
by the court as yet.