Wiranto urges critical students to offer solutions

Wiranto urges critical students to offer solutions

YOGYAKARTA (JP): Minister of Education and Culture Wiranto
Arismunandar called on students who have recently become
increasingly loud in their criticism of the government's handling
of the economic crisis to offer their own solutions.

"To prove their commitment to the people, campus activists
should not only speak out but also make useful statements,"
Wiranto said in a speech during the installment of the new rector
of Gadjah Mada University, Ichlasul Amal, here yesterday.

Wiranto said that in difficult times, people usually placed
academia in the front line of any movement and students should
therefore take up the challenge.

Wiranto's remarks come as the country is witnessing almost
daily student demonstrations on university campuses. They are all
demanding economic and political reform as the way to tackle the
economic crisis.

Wiranto's visit to the Gadjah Mada campus was greeted by a
demonstration by some 60 students protesting his earlier remarks
which described students who dabbled in politics as "amateurs".

They reminded the minister by yelling and brandishing placards
that during his tenure as the rector of the Bandung Institute of
Technology from 1989 to 1997, he expelled no fewer than 66
students.

Eleven of the students were subsequently jailed after they
organized a protest against the visit of then home affairs
minister Rudini.

Wiranto made a memorable remark on Saturday when he said
students should not emulate Indian leader Mahatma Gandhi by
staging hunger strikes as a way to air their grievances.

He was referring to groups of hunger-striking students in
Bandarlampung, Surabaya, Palu, Salatiga and Yogyakarta.

Dialog

The Gadjah Mada student leaders said they shared the
skepticism of some critical scholars about the recent invitation
for dialog from the Armed Forces on account of the military's
reluctance to support the students' version of political reform.

Riday La Ode Ngkowe, the chairman of the student senate, said
that in order for a dialog to be held, there should first be
equality, freedom of expression and transparency. He demanded
that the dialog involve as many students as possible.

He also called on the Armed Forces to guarantee that the
results of the dialog would be implemented.

Armed Forces Commander Gen. Wiranto said last week that all
levels of the military were ready to hold dialogs with the
students.

In the East Java capital of Surabaya 500 students from Adhi
Tama Institute of Technology held a protest yesterday.

In Jakarta, Antara reported that Gen. Wiranto did not appear
at a scheduled discussion which was organized by students from a
number of universities yesterday.

The discussion was attended by students from the Christian
University of Indonesia, Atmajaya University, Syarif Hidayatullah
State Institute of Islamic Studies, Driyarkara School of
Philosophy, Tujuh Belas Agustus University and the Christian
Student Movement.

The news agency quoted the organizers as saying that the
reason for Wiranto's absence was unclear.

However, the chairman of the organizing committee, K.
Baraberi, said the Armed Forces headquarters confirmed it had
received the invitation last week.

"We kept checking and officials there said that the letter had
been forwarded to the Armed Forces Commander," Baraberi said.
(23/nur/byg)