Education Minister Muhadjir Effendy 
The Indonesian government has met with Catholic bishops to discuss how a character-building programme could tackle extremism.
The programme is already in place in Catholic schools, but Education Minister Muhadjir Effendy is looking into applying the same model to state-run schools.
It is expected these schools will act as model schools for other institutions, providing examples of best practices in character strengthening among students.
“I met the bishops to ask for suggestions on character building because Catholic educational institutions have contributed much to education in Indonesia,” the minister told reporters following the meeting.
He referred to Catholic schools organising live-in programmes, whereby Catholic students from big cities stay for a few days in the homes of people living in remote areas where there is no electricity or clean water so that they experience the hardships other people have to live with.
“Live-in programmes are very good to build interdependency and mutual cooperation,” Effendy said.
Archbishop Ignatius Suharyo Hardjoatmodjo of Jakarta, the bishops’ conference chairman, said the programme instils social and moral sensitivities in students.
