Ministry of Human Rights: Alleged Misappropriation of KIP Tuition Funds Potentially Violates Students' Rights to Education

Director General of Human Rights Services and Compliance, Ministry of Human Rights, Munafrizal Manan. ANTARA/HO-KementerianHAM/am. (ANTARA/HO-KementerianHAM)

JAKARTA - The Ministry of Human Rights (HAM) assesses that the alleged irregularities in education assistance funds in the Kuliah Smart Indonesian Card (KIP) Program are not only related to aspects of financial governance, but can also have an impact on the fulfillment of students' basic rights to obtain education.

Director General of Human Rights Services and Compliance at the Ministry of Human Rights, Munafrizal Manan, said that if the alleged irregularities were proven, the impact could extend to hindering access to education for students from poor families.

"If the alleged diversion of student education assistance funds is proven, it has the potential to harm the fulfillment of human rights, especially the right to education," said Munafrizal in his statement in Jakarta, Sunday.

According to him, the misuse of education assistance funds can cause students to lose the opportunity to continue their studies. Therefore, this issue is not merely seen as a suspected case of corruption or a financial administration problem, but also concerns the protection of human rights.

Munafrizal explained that the right to education is a constitutional right guaranteed by the state. This guarantee is regulated in Article 28C paragraph (1) and Article 31 of the Constitution of the Republic of Indonesia in 1945, Law Number 39 of 1999 concerning Human Rights, and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) which has been ratified through Law Number 11 of 2005.

Based on this foundation, he emphasized that there should be no practices that hinder the fulfillment of the right to education, especially for students who come from families with economic constraints.

He also emphasized that the education assistance program is one of the instruments used by the state to fulfill its obligation to guarantee access to education for the community. Therefore, the misuse of assistance funds has the potential to hinder students from obtaining this right.

In the perspective of human rights, Munafrizal assessed that the alleged irregularities in the KIP Kuliah funds could have various negative impacts. Starting from students who were forced to stop their studies, the loss of opportunities to improve their quality of life through education, widening the social gap, triggering psychological pressure for students and their families, to lowering public confidence in educational institutions.

Therefore, the Ministry of Human Rights reminds that universities that receive and manage education assistance funds have the responsibility to ensure that the distribution of assistance is carried out appropriately, transparently, and accountable so that student rights are still protected.

"It is a paradox that universities that are entrusted with fulfilling the right to education actually make students lose the opportunity to receive education," he said.

Munafrizal added that the Ministry of Human Rights respects the ongoing law enforcement process. If there are elements of criminal acts, he hopes that the handling of the case will be carried out in accordance with the applicable provisions so that it can provide legal certainty while fulfilling the sense of justice for the parties who are harmed.

Outside of the legal process, he emphasized that protection of student rights must remain a priority. For this reason, Munafrizal encouraged the relevant ministries together with universities to prepare mitigation steps so that students who are affected can continue their education until they graduate.