The Constitutional Court is required to be free basic education in public and private schools, this is the challenge – Viralterkini

Viralterkini.id, Jakarta – The Constitutional Court (MK) decides that the state is obliged to eliminate basic education for nine years, including elementary to junior high school, both in certain public and private schools.

This decision is considered as a progressive step to ensure equal access to education, but a number of observers assess their implementation will lead to big challenges if not accompanied by a mature supporting policy.

The verdict was read out by Chief Justice Suhartoyo in the trial of reading the decision of the National Education System Law (Law Sisdiknas Law), Tuesday (5/27/2025).

The Constitutional Court granted a portion of the request for material testing against the phrase “minimum compulsory education at the basic education level without collecting fees” in Article 34 paragraph (2) of the National Education System Law.

Constitutional Justice Enny Nurbaningsih explained that the exemption of basic education costs should be valid not only in public schools, but also in private schools that accommodate students because of the limited capacity of public schools.

“The phrase in the article has created the gap of access to basic education, especially for students who are forced to attend the private sector,” he said.

The Constitutional Court stressed that Article 31 paragraph (2) of the 1945 Constitution mandated the state to finance basic education without distinguishing the types of schools.

Data of the Academic Year 2023/2024 shows the limitations of capacity: Elementary school schools are only able to accommodate 970,145 students, while private schools accommodate 173,265 students.

For junior high school levels, state schools accommodate 245,977 students, while the private sector accommodates 104,525 students.

However, the Constitutional Court stressed that not all private schools must be free. Private schools that have additional curriculum – such as international or religious curriculum – are often chosen on the basis of parents’ preferences, not because of the lack of access to public schools.

“In this case, students understand the consequences of higher financing according to their choices,” said Enny.

In addition, the Constitutional Court also underlined the importance of distinguishing between private schools that received assistance from the government and those who were fully independent.

Private schools that do not receive state assistance funds cannot be forced to eliminate costs, given the limitations of the state budget.

Executive Director of the Center for Education and Policy Studies (PSPK), Nisa Felicia, stated that this step would only be successful if the government was able to guarantee the quality of the designated private school.

He considered the quality of quality between private schools was very large. “There are elite private schools, but there are also quality below standard. If the state finances students to enter schools that are not feasible, then that is a new problem,” Nisa told BBC News Indonesia.

For example implementation, Nisa mentioned the PPDB program together in DKI Jakarta that allows students to be accepted in private schools for free through strict selection.

The provincial government finances private schools with certain criteria, such as accreditation and national assessment results.

“However, the strength of the DKI Jakarta budget cannot be compared to other regions that are very limited,” he said.

PSPK data shows that there are 241 regencies/cities in Indonesia that experience lack of capacity at the junior high school and Madrasah Tsanawiyah levels.

That is, more than 40% of the region faces serious problems in providing access to basic education through public schools.

Nisa reminded that the financing scheme must be explained in detail, especially for schools that have a complex curriculum structure, such as madrassas that have more subject teachers.

“If everything is borne by the state, then the private school is de facto that has become the property of the state,” he said.

Meanwhile, education observer from Paramadina University, Totok Amin Soefijanto, said that the regional government must be more innovative in addressing the Constitutional Court’s decision.

“Children who cannot be accommodated in public schools and must go to the private sector must be borne by the APBD,” he said.

Totok also assessed that the eradication of education in certain private schools will add to the government’s fiscal burden.

Therefore, sustainable financing solutions are needed, including the possibility of rearrangement of the current education budget allocation of 20% of the state budget.

“For example, official schools can be considered paid. This is part of an effort to rearrange budget priorities,” he said.

He also encouraged the government to immediately follow up on the Constitutional Court’s decision through technical regulations so that there was no violation of the constitution.

This Constitutional Court’s decision opens up opportunities for expanding access to basic education more evenly in all regions of Indonesia.

However, the success of its implementation is very dependent on the seriousness of the central and regional governments in developing technical policies, as well as commitment to ensure the quality of appropriate education in all schools, both public and private.