SPECIAL REPORT SecEd The ONLY weekly voice for secondary education To subscribe, call 01722 716997


SecEd Tel: 020 7738 5454 Fax: 020 7978 8319 www.sec-ed.com info@sec-ed.com sales@sec-ed.com


Managing director Matt Govett


Publisher and editor Pete Henshaw, 020 7501 6771 editor@sec-ed.co.uk Deputy editor David Taylor, 020 7501 6772 david.taylor@markallengroup.com Reporter


Daniel White, 020 7501 6750 daniel.white@markallengroup.com Illustrator Christos Mais


SecEd is advised by an editorial advisory panel. Members include: Paul Ainsworth: vice-principal, Belvoir High School, Leicestershire. Mark Blois: partner, Browne Jacobson (education law solicitors). Peggy Farrington: headteacher, Hanham High School, South Gloucestershire. Mike Griffiths: headteacher, Northampton School for Boys. Hilary Moriarty: national director, Boarding Schools’ Association. Neill Morton: headteacher, Portora Royal School, Enniskillen. Jo Smith: vice-principal, Long Field School, Melton Mowbray. Tina Stockman: teacher, Harlaw Academy, Aberdeen. Dr Bernard Trafford: headteacher, The Royal Grammar School, Newcastle upon Tyne. Simon Viccars: headteacher, Leon School and Sports College, Milton Keynes. Alex Wood: headteacher, Wester Hailes Education Centre, Edinburgh.


Sales department Associate publisher and advertising manager Abdul Hayee, 020 7501 6767 abdul.hayee@markallengroup.com Classified sales Rachel McElhinney, 020 7501 6728 rachel.mcelhinney@ markallengroup.com


Circulation department Tel: 01722 716997 Fax: 01722 716926 email: subscriptions@ markallengroup.com Subscription manager Chris Hoskins Circulation director Sally Boettcher


UK annual rates: Personal £52 Institutional (libraries, companies etc) £115 European annual rates: Personal £92 Institutional £165


Rest of world annual rates: Personal £113 Institutional £209


Printed by Pensord Press, Wales


Published by


Send your news in to: news@sec-ed.com or call 020 7501 6771


The teachers who face injustice and torture


Kate Allen


Director Amnesty International UK


Teachers have often been at the forefront of the struggle for human rights – either as human rights defenders themselves or by show- ing solidarity with some of the many thousands of people across the globe who are facing abuse of their human rights. On these pages are highlighted


the plight of four teachers who have suffered. There is Johan Teterissa, who is serving 15 years in Indonesia for leading a peace- ful protest; Khabibulla Akpulatov from Uzbekistan, who is in jail for standing up for the rights of local farmers; Rabiha al-Qassab, a teacher and wife of torture victim Ramze Shihab Ahmed; and Natalia Estemirova, a human rights activist and teacher from Chechnya who was abducted and killed in 2009.


Johan Teterissa Indonesia


Indonesia is the world’s third larg- est democracy, with a popula- tion of 232.5 million. It is made up of over 17,000 islands with numerous different cultures and traditions. Over the years, a number


of provinces in Indonesia have called for greater autonomy or independence from the central government. The government has often responded to these calls by cracking down on freedom of expression and using repressive legislation to criminalise peaceful political activities. Human rights defenders and peaceful political activists are among the first ones to be targeted and many have been imprisoned. In Maluku province, a tiny


archipelago of islands, there is no active armed pro-independ- ence movement – and that has been the case for several dec- ades. However, the raising of the Benang Raja flag, a symbol of South Mollucan independence, has continued. For some people it may just


be ceremonial – part of a tradi- tion. For others it is a political act of protest against the central government. For the Indonesian authorities these flag-raising events, although of a small-scale, symbolise direct calls for sepa- ratism and support for the pro- independence movement. Amnesty International itself


takes no position on the polit- ical status of any province of


St Jude’s Church, Dulwich Road Herne Hill, London SE24 0PB www.markallengroup.com


In the UK, Amnesty – and


teachers – can really make a dif- ference by raising awareness of human rights and taking action in support of cases like these. Amnesty supporters of all ages


send hundreds of thousands of appeal letters, emails and greetings cards – and these actions really do make a difference: whether they bring hope to those at the sharp end of the struggle for human rights or put pressure on governments to change their policies and practice. Members of our Urgent Action


Network send appeals within hours of being alerted to cases of indi- viduals in immediate danger. And the tens of thousands of


cards sent to prisoners of con- science, human rights defenders, families of people forcibly disap- peared, and others through our annual Greetings Card Campaign vividly demonstrate that the recipi- ents are not alone.


So how can teachers help? Teachers can raise awareness


of human rights issues with their pupils. Amnesty International has an active teachers’ network called TeachRights, which you can join online. The network is primarily aimed


at helping teachers to bring human rights into the classroom. TeachRights members get a


twice-termly e-newsletter which includes: • Our latest resources. • A calendar of upcoming human rights days, including resources to commemorate them with your students.


• Recommended resources from other human rights education providers.


• Professional development events and opportunities.


• Courses and events for your students. Of course if you are really keen,


you could also set up a youth group at your school. Youth groups receive regu-


lar campaign mailings and Youth Urgent Actions, which regularly feature Individuals at Risk cases and plenty of creative ideas for tak- ing action. Our Amnesty Youth Groups


respond enthusiastically to these calls to action, often with creative and personal contributions to our campaigns. In recent weeks, we have


received photos and self-portraits showing hundreds of our youth activists holding solidarity messages in Spanish for the Peace Community of San José de Apartadó in Colombia, whose members are in constant danger. These images were made into


a large weather-proof poster to send to the community to display there demonstrating international solidarity.


On a more personal level, teach-


ers can join Amnesty’s Urgent Action Network. Amnesty will then send details to you of one new case a week that you can show support for (you will also receive any sub- sequent updates on each of those cases). You could also encourage your


students to join the Youth Urgent Action Network – a specially tai- lored version of the adult network. The bottom line is that teachers


can really make a difference – and Amnesty really values your support.


Further information


• Amnesty’s Education page: www.amnesty.org.uk/education


• TeachRights: www.amnesty.org. uk/teachrights


• Urgent Actions for Individuals at Risk: www.amnesty.org.uk/ urgentactions (you can also email iar@amnesty.org.uk)


this was reduced on appeal to 15 years. A 23rd dancer was arrested in June 2008 and sentenced to four years’ imprisonment. Since the start of 2007, at least another 48 people involved in some way with similar flag-raising ceremo- nies have been arrested or impris- oned on charges of “rebellion”. Johan has been held at


Lowokwaru Prison in East Java since March 2009, thousands of kilometres away from his fam- ily in Maluku, who have been unable to visit him. In July 2010, Amnesty received reports that Johan was in need of urgent medi- cal care and was being denied access to medical treatment by prison authorities. Amnesty has not been able to confirm whether he has received treatment. Amnesty is calling for an


Global call: Amnesty is calling for the release of Johan Teterissa and his fellow protestors


Indonesia, including calls for inde- pendence. However, it calls on states to comply with their inter- national human rights obligations, which include respect for the right of everyone in their jurisdiction to freedom of opinion and expression, including the peaceful expression of political views. Despite these calls, the Indonesian authorities continue to target peaceful political activists and human rights defend- ers it suspects of being connected to flag-raising events. One of the victims is 50-year-


old teacher Johan Teterissa. Johan has been beaten and tor-


tured and has spent the last three years in jail – all because he led a


peaceful protest. The protest hap- pened on June 29, 2007. The gov- ernment had organised a ceremony in the city of Ambon, the capital of Maluku province, to mark National Family Day. Among the audience was president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono. During the ceremony, Johan


Teterissa led 22 other activists onto the field and performed a traditional war dance in front of the president. At the end of the dance the activists unfurled the Benang Raja flag. The response was immedi-


ate. Johan and 21 of the activists, mainly teachers and farmers, were escorted from the field by about 20 police and presidential guards, who punched them and beat them with rifle butts once they were out of sight of the president. They were then put on a truck where the beat- ings continued. According to reliable sources,


MA Education Ltd is an independent publishing company also responsible for education titles Delivering Diplomas, Headteacher Update, Fundraising for Schools, Early Years Educator and 5to7 Educator.


© All rights reserved. No part of SecEd may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without prior written permission of MA Education The publisher accepts no responsibility for any views or opinions expressed in SecEd.


ISSN 1479-7704


Imprisoned: Johan Teterissa has been tortured and in jail since 2007 for leading a peaceful protest in Indonesia


the group spent the next 11 days being moved between the provin- cial police headquarters, the district police headquarters, and the police mobile brigade at the Tantui base, where the police anti-terrorist unit (Densus-88) is also based. They were tortured in all three places, but the Densus-88 officers tortured them especially severely. They were beaten, forced to


crawl on their stomachs over hot asphalt, whipped with electric cables


and had billiard balls forced into their mouths. The police also beat them round the head with rifle butts until their ears bled, and fired shots close to their ears, damaging their hearing: many are still partially deaf. While they were bleeding they


were repeatedly thrown into the sea (the Tantui base is by the sea). The police threatened them continually with further torture, sometimes at gunpoint, to force them to confess. They were held incommunicado for the entire time, and had no access to medical treatment. On July 9, 2007, the formal


police interrogation began and statements were taken from the activists. During this interrogation the ill-treatment and torture con- tinued. They were taken from the police detention centre in Tantui to the Waiheru detention centre when their trials began. At their trial, some of the group


were told by the police to sign state- ments saying that they did not need lawyers. Others were assigned law- yers referred to them by the police, who advised them to plead guilty and relinquish their right to appeal. Twenty-one of the group


received sentences of between seven and 20 years’ imprison- ment for “rebellion”. On April 4, 2008, Johan was sentenced to life imprisonment for leading the flag- raising incident. Three months later


immediate investigation into reports that the activists were tortured and ill-treated while in pre-trial detention and has also called for those responsible to be held to account. Amnesty believes Johan and his fellow activists are all prisoners of conscience and is calling for their immediate and unconditional release. For the past two years, Johan


has been part of Amnesty’s Greetings Card Campaign. In December 2009, a reliable source informed Amnesty that he had received more than 600 letters of support from across the globe that month. Since then Amnesty groups


across the UK have been making patchworks calling for his release. So far we have received over 300. The others jailed with Johan,


who are serving sentences of between four and 20 years, are Ruben Saiya, Johny Riry, Fredy Akihary, Johan Saiya, Jordan Saiya, Pieter Saiya, Stevi Saiya, Piter Johanes, Ferjon Saiya, Melkianus Sinay, Semuel Hendriks, Leonard Hendriks, Ferdinand Arnold Rajawane, Marthen Saiya, Mercy Riry, Yohanis Saiya, Yosias Sinay, Abraham Saiya, Johny Sinay, Aleks Malawauw, Yefta Saiya and Buce Nahumury. For more informa-


tion on Johan’s case, visit www.amnesty.org.uk/actions_ details.asp?ActionID=655


2


SecEd • March 17 2011


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16