J

ust less than 100 days after the adoption of the Higher Education Law on July 12, 2012, the Constitutional Court has since last Thursday started to review the complaints filed by six students from Andalas University who claimed that some articles in the law contradict Article 28C point 1, 28D point 1, and 31 of the 1945 Constitution.

In its first session, the court held a video conference to hear their concerns relating to articles 65, 73, 74, 86 and 87. The six complainants argued that introducing university autonomy would lead to the absence of state responsibility in higher education management.

Similarly, articles 73 and 74, which apply Darwin’s theory through a centralized students’ recruitment system, would only enlarge discrimination practices. Overall, according to them, the act reflects a capitalistic system that is not in line with our Constitution.

Despite the law causing controversy, there are indeed some prospects.

First, the law creates a paradox between state and private higher education institutions. Article 74 of the law stipulates that state higher education institutions have to receive at least 20 percent of their total enrollment from the economically disadvantaged, not from those who have high academic potential.

As a state institution, all of its expenses will be funded by the state budget. Therefore, it is not necessary to limit the quota for the economically disadvantaged. It can be up to a 100 percent because they are public.

It would make sense if the law guaranteed, on the basis that a private higher education institution receives 20 percent of those disadvantaged students, the sufficient state budget to compensate the institutional expenses.

In any country in the world, private education is always much more expensive than a state one. However, this is not the case in Indonesia. At one state university in Jakarta, the tuition fee for a graduate program is Rp 13.5 million (US$1,404) per semester, but at a private one is about Rp 2-3 million per semester or Rp 100,000 per month (www.unpam.ac.id)

One can, therefore, easily speculate that such private institutions could operate far below the minimum academic standards. Katerina Tomasevski, the United Nations special rapporteur on rights to education in Indonesia (2002), simply associated these realities to a massive diploma disease in society.

Second, the law introduces community college (Article 59) that is to be established at all districts, or municipalities, across the country.

This is a paradox, Indonesia has enjoyed a significant annual economic growth of up to 6.5 percent during the last several years, has achieved a significant increase in its middle class society — of 9 million people a year in the last several years (tribunenews.com, Oct. 31, 2011), has allocated a minimum 20 percent of the national budget for education, and currently is starting to implement a universal 12-year basic education, but the gross participation rate at higher education remains stagnant at 17-18 percent (4.6 million students) to the total population at age 19-24 (25 million).

Education statistic data indicates that enrollment in 2007/2008 was 1.09 million, a decline from 997,000 in 2008/2009, and slightly increased from the 1.024 million in 2009/2010 (MOEC, 2011).

There is a great stagnation of gross participation rate at higher education institutions. As a result, community college appears to be a very short-sighted solution to address the flat and declining trend.

In my opinion, this trend is merely the tip of the iceberg, because of the long acute mismanagement of higher education in the past.

It suddenly appears to be a problem because people are now realistic in their intensions to achieve higher education as an investment in the future of their children.

The only modest way to recover it is to bring back trust to all dimensions of higher education management, a management of quality orientation.

Alfred North Whitehead in his book, Universities and Their Function (1927), states that universities preserve the connection between knowledge and the zest of life, by uniting the young and old in the imaginative consideration of learning. The university imparts information, but it imparts it ingeniously. At least, this is the function that it should perform for society.

A university that fails in this respect has no reason for existence. This atmosphere of excitement, arising from imaginative consideration transforms knowledge.

A fact is no longer a bare fact — it is invested with all its possibilities. It is no longer a burden on the memory — it energizes us as the poet of our dreams, and as the architect of our purposes.

Third, the law provides a clear modality for the internationalization of higher education institutions. In the past, internationalization has been perceived as a danger that could deteriorate nationalism.

The implication is the isolation of Indonesia as higher education destination for foreign students. In 2008, for example, the total foreign students in Indonesia was only 5,388, dominated by Malaysia, 2,227 (41 percent) and Timor Leste, 2,257 (42 percent). In comparison, Singapore and Malaysia hosted some 70,000 international students.

Article 90 of the law states that foreign universities can operate in Indonesia if they are accredited in their country of origin, collaborate with local universities, of a non-profit orientation, support national interest and prioritize the appointment of Indonesian citizens as faculty staff. In this respect, Indonesia could take a relevant lesson from Mexico.

During the last decade, several Mexican universities have immersed themselves in international networks. These networks generally operate by memoranda of understanding that, among other qualities facilitate faculty and student exchange as well as joint research and publication.

However, a unique model that takes internationalization a few steps further is illustrated by the Universidad del Valle de México (UVM). By its collaboration with Laureate International Universities, UVM has become Mexico´s largest private university and one of the top 10 in the country.

As a result of this cooperation, UVM became part of an international partnership that includes 70 universities in 30 countries, with a total of 700,000 students worldwide. This example on how the Bologna Process was implemented to promote international cooperation.

Finally, despite the law creating controversy, Indonesian higher education is now moving forward and indeed is gaining great momentum for internationalization.

Hopefully this step is the point of no return.

The writer is a professor at The State University of Jakarta.