The photo of a butter or 'bisbul' tree with colourful bee-hived benches in the profile picture really captures the vision of the school, which is to educate Indonesian younger generation into intellectual, religious, humanistic beings, within the equality and diversity framework. And the established initiative becomes a central programme to address two social issues: poverty and inter-group conflict.

Bisbul tree (Dyospyospilippensis) has a unique life cycle that it can only live in pairs: male and female. If only male or female tree is planted, the tree cannot grow. For this unique feature, bisbul tree can therefore be used as a symbol illustrating the importance of living together. Moreover, as a tree, regardless of who cultivates it, it never chooses to whom it will give its oxygen. Human beings claim themselves as the highest classified organism, but in reality we still often discriminate the people we are willing to give our help to. The life cycle of tree can teach students, teachers, school staff and society that even a tree (which scientifically is not blessed with a brain to think and a heart to feel) can be so humble and non-disciminatory - but why cant we who have the capacities to think and emphatise be like them?

Around the bisbul tree, bee-house-shaped seats are also installed .The seats are painted in different colors and are functioned to let students unwind and relaxed after they finish their classes. Bee house contains an implicit meaning for protection of the institution of education along with its genuine purposes. Bee itself is a honey-producing animal. As honey tastes sweet, all children are expected to be inspired to 'sweeten’ the relations among them, including to "revitalise" the disharmony that may arise due to the differences. The seats are made colourful to depict the beauty of being different. They are made to circle the tree as an illustration how students are expected to understand that misunderstandings caused by all kinds of differences may be reconciled when they are discussed together.

This living monument demonstrates the strong emphasis that the school puts in promoting peaceful coexistence through the holistic practices of democracy, critical and objective thinking, active participation and empathy. The social mission is also strongly embedded in the school culture and programmes. The chained and cross adopted child programme itself as a long-run programme of the school aims to fulfil these two goals - to eradicate poverty by providing good quality education to the under-privileged children so that they can lead a better, peaceful, anti-discriminatory life for themselves, their families and the society as whole.

Since it was first established in the 1990, the programme has given 2115 poor students the chance to access formal education. This means it has participated in the attempts to increase the number of educated young people in this nation. In economical term, this educational opportunity which is linked to the rising of employment opportunity should also be considered as a meaningful investment to bring themselves and their families out of poverty. In social term, by bridging contacts between different social groups (economic, ethnic and religion), this programme has attempted to at least minimise the prejudicial views against the ‘other’ group that might be held by the fostered child and foster parent themselves, their immediate family and friends and their surroundings.

We projected that the CCFCP’s alumni should be continuing their studies at a higher level and/or working with companies or becoming entrepeneurs, resulting the decline of unemployed and uneducated population. Following this achievement, we hope that more CCFCP’s alumni will become foster parents helping to provide educational opportunities to other poor young people, as agreed when they were once fostered children themselves. By keeping the programme going through the chained sponsoring mechanism, it is hoped that we can minimise the issue of financial dependability.

Problem

The purposes of the programme are two-fold: to alleviate poverty and to reduce the latent sentiments between different groups, particularly the Chinese and non-Chinese in Indonesia that are often initiated and caused by pre-determined negative stereotyping and prejudicial views. These two aims are interrelated because a great number of literature has identified the three way relationships between education, poverty and conflict (e.g. Geoffrey Sachs, World Bank, Lynn Davies)

Solution

We offer cross-fostered child programme – a programme in which children from disadvantaged families go to school through the sponsors of economically-able individuals. The latter (foster parents) pay the tuition and other schooling-related fees of the former (fostered children). Foster parents are also encouraged to nurture their relationships with their fostered children beyond the financial ties, e.g. introducing their own family to the fostered children and spending quality times together. Through these vocational activities, bonds will be strengthened and prejudicial views often endorsed by the society can be challenged and eliminated. By providing the space and opportunity for quality interaction between the foster parents and the fostered children (both come from different racial, ethnic, economic and/or religious backgrounds), it is hoped that both sides will learn to respect and empathise each other.

Example

Historically some multi-dimensional (ethnic, social status, religious) conflicts involving the aforementioned groups occurred, e.g.the 1998 riots, where horizontal factors (ethnic, race, religion) were enforced by vertical factors (political manipulation, socio-economic jealousy)to cause outbreaks. In relation to this past event, some people have argued that sentiments and stereotypes were used as a provocative tool to manipulate the often less educated, poor group of people to attack certain ethnic group, perceived to be well-off. By giving the poor children opportunities to be educated in a good quality school, they will be better equipped to compete in the labour market, and thence are able to improve their own and their families’ lives. When this group is well-educated and economically-sufficient, we hope that provocation to induce conflict will no longer work and peaceful society can be achieved. When combined with the close interaction and good quality relationship that is built between the foster parent and fostered child from different social backgrounds, the efforts towards prejudice reduction will be amplified. Through activities to maximise contact time and nurture bonding such as going out to cinema or shopping, giving presents or birthday cards to each other and sending festive greetings during religious celebrations, we hope that understanding and respect can be built. The involvement of community outside the school environment is essential because YPSIM wishes to minimise the often criticised mismatch between school culture and reality outside schooling.

Marketplace

The Fostered-Child Programme has been promoted by the Indonesian government since the 1990s. Nonetheless, its implementation is often seen and perceived to have been limited to state-owned schools. The purpose of the normal fostered-child programme that focuses on poverty reduction is also one-dimensional, and that differentiates it from our CCFCP in which it concurrently aims to promote diversity. Our programme is also guided and run using systematic mechanism and procedures of selection, and it has also been proven to be able to address the issue of financial dependence upon donators' participation.