SP/Fana F.S. Putra – A student has reported to police that the deputy headmaster of a Jakarta high school threatened to withhold her diploma if she refused to give him oral sex.
"He threatened that he would not issue my grade point [report card] and [graduation] certificate. I'm scared," said M.A., the 17-year-old student of a high school in Matraman, East Jakarta.
The deputy headmaster, identified with the initial T., forced her to give him oral sex four times between June and July last year, the student said. The first case happened on June 26, 2012, M.A. claimed, adding that T. asked her to meet him in front of a bank office in Utan Kayu, East Jakarta.
In another incident, the student reported, T. brought her to a dark area in Ancol and forced her to perform oral sex. Afterward, he gave M.A. Rp 50,000 ($5.17) to go home by cab, she said. In the more recent case, the headmaster asked for more than just oral sex when he invited the student to his home, M.A. said.
"I refused," M.A. said. "Looking at the condition of the house, it [the sexual advance] seemed to have been planned before."
The student said she decided not to answer phone calls from T. and confessed the harassment to a teacher, who encouraged M.A. to report the case to police.
M.A. claimed that T. threatened her after she spoke to police. T. also gathered members of the Intra-School Student Organization and said that M.A. lied about the oral sex, and asked for support because his wife is pregnant, M.A. said. Even though he has stepped down from his position as deputy headmaster, T. still serves as a biology teacher at the school.
"The headmaster and class teacher intimidated me," M.A. said. "I still go to school but can't be free. I'm afraid even to go to the canteen."
Some teachers and the headmaster of the school, as well as officials from the East Jakarta education agency, asked M.A. to halt her lawsuit until final exams are over. Head of Jakarta education agency Taufik Yudi Mulyanto said he had suspended T. from his position as the deputy headmaster on Friday afternoon.
"Today I gave an instruction to the headmaster to remove the deputy from his post and to suspend him as a teacher," he said. Taufik said he would monitor the legal process and ensure T. would comply with the investigation.
Jakarta Governor Joko Widodo said on Friday that T. would be fired if he is found guilty of the students claims. "I have already checked it, and have ordered to suspend him as deputy headmaster and teacher as it is a bad example," Joko said. "And if it's true, we'll fire him."
The Jakarta Regional Representatives Council (DPRD) had previously demanded the immediate dismissal of the teacher."I want the teacher that molested the student to be fired," member of DPRD Jhony Simanjuntak said, adding that teachers should set a good example for students. "Why do we have to hire teacher with bad morality? The Jakarta education agency should not be afraid to take a firm action."