Jakarta (Kompas: 13/09/06) The introduction of the “new curriculum” – called education unit curriculum – should be seen as an effort to uphold school and teachers’ autonomy. Teachers now should abandon their conservative working ethics and be more creative.

The support will take the form of a resolution that will be delivered by several world organizations to the government.

“So, the government will have no excuses for refusing our demand,” said Muhammad Surya, the Head of the Indonesian Teachers Association, yesterday (10/9) in Jakarta.

This year, the government has just allocated 18.3 percent of the total state budget of Rp50.3 trillion for education.

Although this is an increase of around 18 percent compared to last year, the government is not yet capable of meeting the demands of the constitution.

The government has only promised to realize the educational budget gradually.

According to Surya, the demand for the realization of the budget has been supported by other delegations.

The support was acquired after teacher delegations from Indonesia exposed budgetary matters budget that are waiting to be carried out by the government.

The demand will be joined with that of other countries in the form of a resolution that will be sent to the government as well as to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and the International Labor Organization (ILO).

It is planned that the teachers will have prepared a resolution today (11/9) at the fifth conference of Asia and African teachers in Jakarta, held between 9 September and 11 September.

A total of 289 representatives from 68 teacher organizations from 36 Asia-Pacific countries are taking part in the conference.

Meanwhile, the government has prepared Rp2.9 billion of funds for the teachers of Indonesian workers' children in Sabah, Malaysia.

These contract teachers will earn a salary of Rp4.9 million per month for two years.

Coming from East Nusa Tenggara, West Kalimantan, East Kalimantan and South Sulawesi, these teachers will teach 3,300 children of Indonesian workers.

“They will start teaching two weeks from now,” said Fasli Jalal, the Director General for Increasing Educators and Pedagogical Workers' Quality.

Mustafa Moses and Sutarto