The number of cases involving teachers resorting to violence when punishing errant students indicates a lack of awareness of the impact of such action on students' psyche, and is grounds for disciplinary action against the teachers, a prominent politician said on Thursday.
Supeno Budiyanto Uca, the deputy chairman of the Democratic Party's Bekasi youth wing, Pemuda Demokrat Indonesia, said that violence would create a traumatic experience for the students.
"A teacher's job is to educate, not torture, students," Supeno said, stressing the need for teachers to be role models for their students.
He was speaking in response to reports that an elementary school teacher in Bekasi, identified only as R.S., hit his students' hands with a steel ruler after none of them were able to answer his question.
Supeno said that the teacher's conduct was unacceptable and called for disciplinary action to be taken by the local education authorities.
"The Bekasi Education Office and the district head should take action," he said. "We will follow up on the case to prevent similar incidents from recurring."
He added that he would file a formal complaint with the education office, the National Commission for Child Protection (Komnas Anak) and the police.
In another incident reported this week, a teacher in Nunukan district, North Kalimantan, identified only as M.N., allegedly kicked and hit a student after the latter had thrown away some of his food.
Syaparuddin Thalib, the head of the Nunukan Education Office, said educators should be able to exercise control. He said that teachers should serve as role models for their students. Syaparuddin also said that teachers should take persuasive measure and not resort to violence when dealing with unruly students.
"We have to realize that hitting students is a violation of human rights. Everyone, including the parents and teachers, must realize that there are laws on violence that also extend to the protection of minors. We are really saddened by this incident," Syaparuddin said.
He added that the education office would conduct a thorough investigation into the case and would recommend that legal action be taken if the teacher's actions resulted in permanent physical injury to the student.
He also said that teachers who engaged in such methods of punishment must help in the students' recovery. "Teachers should be sympathetic toward the child and assist in their recovery. That's why we'll look into everything, including the child's latest condition," Syaparuddin said.
The student's parents initially filed a police report, but later dropped the charges after the teacher apologized.
In Makassar, South Sulawesi, meanwhile, hundreds of students from a vocational school held a demonstration on Monday to demand that the school principal, Rusli, resign from his post. The demand came in the wake of allegations that Rusli had hit seven students.
"We want Rusli to be dismissed because he hit our friends for no reason," said Ridwan, one of the protesters. He did not disclose the identities of his friends who were hit but said the principal's actions were unacceptable.
Rusli denied the allegation and told students and staff to not be swayed by rumors. He went on to state that he would press charges of defamation against those making the accusation.
Last month, police in Wonogiri, East Java, named Eko Purwanto, a teacher at an Islamic high school, a suspect in an incident involving the hitting of a student.
Three students who witnessed the incident identified Eko during the police investigation into the alleged assault. Eko reportedly hit a ninth-grade student in the face, causing the student to suffer dizziness, nausea and vomiting. The victim had to be hospitalized for three days and also underwent a CT scan.
Himawan, the school's principal, said the case should serve as a lesson for teachers to not use violence at school. He went on to claim that the school had avoided using physical punishment for the past two years.
Several countries worldwide ban corporal punishment. Poland was the first country to enact such laws, in 1783.