Photo: Twitter/@RadioDakta
It’s well known that teachers in Indonesia’s public schools don’t get paid very well, so you can imagine how little guru honorer (part-time teachers) make. But full-time teachers at least get the benefits that go along with being a civil servant (PNS), whereas guru honorer get little more than their meager pay.
That’s why about 20,000 part-time teachers took to streets this morning at around 9:30 am, demonstrating on Jalan Gatot Subroto in front of the House of Representatives (DPR) building, forcing police to divert traffic along the highway. The teachers want to be given full PNS status and hope to force meeting with the government and the president to have their voices heard.
The teachers come not just from Jakarta but from all over Indonesia. Among them were citizens of Banten, Magelang, Garut, Sidoarjo, Sumedang and Grobogan. The rally was organized by teachers unions and Forum Honorer Kategori 2 Indonesia (FHK2I).
“We are so tired of being part-time employees. Lift us up to become civil servants,” said one of the rally’s speakers, as quoted by Tribunnews.
The teachers carried signs demanding that the government start making them civil servants before the end of the year and to also raise their salary. Some signs noted that guru honorer made as little as Rp 300,000 per month.
The rally caused traffic on Gatot Subroto to come to a near standstill going towards Slipi, with only one lane remaining open.
