Dream in the Borderland

KOMPAS/SUCIPTO

Suraidah

In an old warehouse, Suraidah, 64, gathers the children of Indonesian workers on the Indonesia-Malaysia border in Sebatik Island, Nunukan regency, North Kalimantan, to study. She wants the children to have the time to play and dream as they wish without thinking about the costs their parents must bear.

In July 2012, Suraidah opened an early childhood education (PAUD) class in Sebatik Tengah district, which borders Malaysia by land and sea. Suraidah, who works as a midwife on a daily basis, borrowed a vacant food warehouse as a place for study and Quran recitals.

After teaching, she talked with 10 of her students. She choked. One of her students turned out to be from Kampong Bergosong, an area in the Malaysian territory of Sebatik Island. The access from Sebatik Tengah to Kampong Bergosong is by a three-hour walk, through an oil palm plantation.

Apparently, the boy was the son of an Indonesian laborer (TKI) working in a Malaysian oil palm plantation. Suraidah asked the boy whether there were many children who did not attend school? The boy answered there were many.

Sebatik Island in Malaysia is dominated by oil palm plantations. Many Indonesians work there.

From this simple information, Suraidah was determined to visit the village. She asked for help from the Sebatik Tengah district administration to help her visit the boy\'s village. She wanted to see for herself what life was like for the boy. Sebatik Island is at the tip of Kalimantan. The area is divided into two. The north side belongs to Malaysia, the south side belongs to Indonesia. Sebatik Island in Malaysia is dominated by oil palm plantations. Many Indonesians work there.

Sebatik Tengah district head told her that cross-border problems cannot be taken care of directly by the district head, but must be handled by the central government. Suraidah did not want to wait so long. She then decided to cross to Tawau, Malaysia, to the Consulate General of the Republic of Indonesia.

Arriving at Tawau, Suraidah explained her intentions and objectives. From there, she was provided with a letter of introduction by the consulate for any Malaysian police officers who asked her intent and purpose.

After receiving the letter, she and a welfare-empowerment team from Sungai Limau village and Sebatik Tengah district head drove along a palm plantation in the Malaysian territory of Sebatik Island. There, she found many Indonesian children and adolescents who did not attend school.

Suraidah offered to take care of and educate those children during the school day for free. She also coordinated with the plantation foreman. "The reception of the residents was good, but some lacked trust. In 2014, I took care of 10 PAUD children with two teachers," Suraidah said in Berjoko hamlet, Sungai Limau village, Sebatik Tengah district, on Thursday (15/8/2019).

Its position is exactly on the Indonesian-Malaysian land border in Sebatik.

She transformed a food storeroom under an elevated house into a modest place for the children to play and learn. The house upstairs was used as a boarding house for two teachers and the students. The board and education costs for the children came from assistance from the Dompet Dhuafa Foundation in East Kalimantan. Every weekend, the children\'s parents collect them to go home. Every Monday, the children return to the PAUD built by Suraidah, known as Sekolah Tapal Batas (Borderlands School). Its position is exactly on the Indonesian-Malaysian land border in Sebatik.

Sekolah Tapal Batas also serves as a facilitator for oil palm workers in Malaysia who do not yet have documents for their children. Several parents do not have these documents. At Sekolah Tapal Batas, Suraidah is their liaison with the Indonesian Workers Placement and Protection Service Center (BP3TKI) Nunukan to administer population documents.

Suraidah\'s anxiety was not over. She was afraid that her students would not continue school after completing PAUD as there is no special school for TKI children there. Finally, she founded the Madrasah Ibtidaiyah (MI), an Islamic school equivalent to an elementary school. She got easy access to operational licenses from the Religious Affairs Ministry because her work was already known.

In early 2015, the number of PAUD and MI pupils stood at 100. They were the children of migrant workers who worked in Malaysian oil palm plantations. The parents began to trust Suraidah and left their children to study there because some PAUD children had by now graduated and received a diploma.

The children went to the school without uniforms. At that time Suraidah thought the most important thing was that children could learn, play and be supervised. However, her students were ridiculed by several children in other schools. Her students cried in shame and complained to Suraidah, fondly referred to as Ummi. Suraidah wept as she recounted the story. She sobbed. At that time, Suraidah only prayed because she didn\'t have the budget for uniforms.

They have a schedule to teach the children about state defense. Students from various universities also teach at the school.

In 2015, assistance came from various agencies and individuals. Pertamina EP Tarakan Field provided help for the children\'s uniforms and shoes, educational support equipment and access to clean water. Sekolah Tapal Batas also received a land grant from a philanthropist in Sebatik Tengah. State lender BNI provided building assistance. PT Sago Prima Pratama provided solar power generation. "Soldiers guarding the Indonesian and Malaysian borders also assisted in the repair and painting of schools. They have a schedule to teach the children about state defense. Students from various universities also teach at the school," said Suraidah.

Suraidah is grateful, now Sekolah Tapal Batas already has student dormitories, a library, a mosque and an office for the teachers.

KOMPASSUCIPTO

Suraidah, 65, the founder of Sekolah Tapal Batas, a school for children of Indonesian migrant workers on the Indonesian-Malaysian border along Jalan Sinta Kampung Quran RT 14, Berjoko hamlet, Sungai Limau village, Sebatik Tengah district, Nunukan regency, North Kalimantan, Thursday (15/8/2019).

Suraidah

Born: Sidenreng Rappang, 2 December 1954

Education:

- Bachelor in Public Health from Hasanuddin University (graduated in 1990)

- Master in Nursing from Prince of Songkla University Thailand

(1998-2000)

Awards:

- 72 Icons of Achiever from Presidential Office for State Ideology Pancasila Teaching 2018

- High-achieving Teacher in North Kalimantan 2017