Catching My Teacher: 1. The golden boy

0:00This BBC podcast is supported by ads outside the UK. Decisions made in Washington can affect your portfolio every day, but what policy changes should investors be watching? Washington Wise is an original podcast from Charles Schwab that unpacks the stories making news in Washington right now and how they may affect your finances and portfolio. Listen at Schwab.com slash Washington Wise. That's Schwab.com slash Washington Wise. Taco Bell's crispy chicken cron-trep slider is back. Everything you love the first time with a plot twist, Hidden Valley Diablo Ranch, a defined condiment twist. The Diablo Ranch crispy chicken cron-trep slider, only at Taco Bell, and participating in your talkable locations for limited time and while supplies last. Before we start, I want to let you know that this series of world of secrets contains references to sexual abuse.

1:05Eustron looks down at the message on his phone. Find a safe place somewhere quiet now. It's from his sister. They haven't spoken in months. There's always noise and very little privacy at his college in Indonesia's mega city Jakarta. Eustron walks outside, scanning for somewhere, a spot in the garden. Under some vines not far from the road, it'll have to do. But when he calls back, it's not his sister who answers. It's his teacher. The headmaster of his former boarding school. He's at Eustron's school. This is a man Eustron Reves. He calls Abba. Father. Yes, Abba? I never, never thought Abba would come to my house. It caught me off guard. But I knew, I knew exactly what he wanted to talk about. So he hits record on his phone.

2:07Secretly captured. What can be done to attract those words, my child? You know, I can't sleep. I can't sleep. Because of what you shared, our enemies are using it to destroy the school. This will destroy the school, my child. I'm going to get a little bit of a problem. This will destroy the school, my child. Eustron's head is spinning. He lanes against the wall. If this is leaked to the media, I'll be destroyed. Abba will be ruined, completely destroyed. This is not the way to treat your father and my child. He's relentless. Yeah, well, cover the shame of your teacher. Cover the shame of your teacher.

3:11My teacher, I had never even heard him cry. And now he was crying to me. He needs to decide. Will he cover up his teacher's shame? Will he bring him down? This is World of Secrets. Season 13 from the BBC World Service. Catching my teacher. I'm Rebecca Henshki. Episode 1, The Golden Boy. On Lombok, the island next to Bali. The sea-pea fishing villages have been transformed into yoga studios, juice bars, and these Instagrammable bamboo gyms. The white sandy beaches of the south of the island are drawing more and more tourists.

4:13The pace of change is breathtaking. But a short ride on a motorbike inland, set back from the road amongst rice paddies, coconut groves, low hills, is the Abul Barakat Islamic boarding school. Here, every day for those aridum that rarely changes. In an open wooden pavilion with an iron roof, students sit cross-legged, knees touching, reciting the Qur'an. Boys on one side in crisp white shirts and traditional black patchy caps. Girls on the other side, a sea of white headscarves over green dresses. At the front is the school's founder, the headmaster. 52-year-old Ahmad Imamuddin Sumar or Abba.

5:14With a trimmed beard, white turban and flowing robe, he sits watching through round glasses, constantly feeding prayer beads through his fingers. It's 2018, and Yusrann Azahidi is 15. He's moving around, filming the prayer service on his phone. He's one of the only students allowed to have one. It was one of the privileges that came with doing the school's social media. I was allowed a smartphone. He's devout, diligent, vocal and good with the camera. He posts photos, records events, and makes videos for their Instagram and YouTube accounts. Welcome back to our channel. Today, we will talk about widespread brown eyes, a quick, easy smile. Yusrann is popular, but Ziye, who's in the year below him, finds him. What's up with this guy?

6:18I'm sitting where I like to sit in the middle, so I can see Abba. Get his blessings, and there's this annoying guy who is always in the way filming. But yeah, Yusrann was his smart, very smart, and kind of famous at school. He was close to the teachers and close to Abba. And did you think he was cute? He was cute, right? There were many others that were better looking. They're taught in Arabic and English alongside Indonesian. But as you've probably gathered, they're telling their story in Indonesian, so actors are voicing their words. Deep friendships and memories are made here. But the lesson they're taught to remember the most is Samina wa Tanah.

7:18Samina wa Tanah. Samina wa Tanah. We're here and we are bay. And the person they need to obey here is the headmaster. The man they're told to call Abba, father. He's a very dignified person. He has this strong presence, probably because he doesn't joke around much. He really carries himself with authority. Another important thing, he rarely gets angry. When he teaches you can tell it comes from the heart. He's never harsh. In fact, he firmly believes that you should never lose your temper or lash out. Yeah, he's always been like that. Very patient. He does have this really strong charisma, like great authority,

8:22but with calmness. It's hard to explain actually the way he carries himself, wearing a turban, a rope, holding prayer beads. It all gives off this image. It was kind of crazy because everyone saw him as extremely special. He tells them he can see the future and students pass on stories of his predictions coming true. This video on their YouTube account shows rows of children bowing and kissing his hand as he passes. Zia and the other students are an allowed mobile phones, or to use social media. And the girls and boys' dorms and bathing areas are kept strictly separated. The boys wash in the river, or the girls have their own bathroom. And love and dating, it's not encouraged.

9:25Yeah, according to Abba, if a marriage starts from love, it's not good. If it's just driven by desire, it's not right. That's what he taught us about girls. And he was really firm about it. He strongly disapproved of students dating. He even said that when he got married, and at the start, he didn't really focus on feelings like love or desire. I think he even said that before he proposed, he kept a photo of his wife in front of where he prayed for just about a week, just reflecting like, do I actually feel anything or not? He didn't want the decision to be based on desire. He taught us that even a little bit of desire can lead us in a negative direction. Abba's wife, Hermiati, doesn't teach, but keeps the boarding school running. They told her to call her Umi, mother, and she enforces the rules. Umi is strict. You can see straight away how firm she is.

10:27If you do something wrong, she'll say it. That's what she's known for, being very strict, very firm. She is the one everyone at school was kind of afraid of. The girls and the boys. At official events, you see her sitting beside Abba in full-length pattern dresses and headscarves. She's a round face and bright eyes behind glasses. She's simple, kind of arrogant. But I didn't really react to it. I was just like, okay, I don't want to do anything with you. It wasn't just fear, more like I just didn't like her. The way she was, she would suddenly get angry, throw people's things. I just thought this person is kind of crazy. And she didn't like how I'd battery it at me.

11:29Because why Yustron is publicly praised. He's like the face of the student body. It's Ziyatator Rahma, O Ziyah, that Abba pays private attention to, quiet guidance and encouragement. At the boarding school, I was serious and took on loads of extra things. I thought the junior students, English, Arabic and religious texts. I used to teach them in my spare time, so I thought, I don't know maybe I'm getting this attention from Abba because I often help out. He gives her a special name. Jamila, beautiful in Arabic. He told me I was beautiful and smart compared to my classmates. And from the way he looked at me, I felt like I was not just.

12:29Her close friends also tell us she's beautiful, that her skin is perfect like a capable artist. A face just so cute you want to squeeze it. As they get older, the other girls start to notice how Abba treats her differently. They said things like, this is so full of herself, like that, you know, because I was too close to Abba and I would get permission to do whatever I wanted, stuff like that. It wasn't what I wanted. It just, that I was close to him and they didn't like me because of it. So every day that, that give me, and I still look and talk about me, basically everyone in my cohort didn't like me except for Mahima and Wanda. Her dad left her mom before she was born and hasn't been part of her life since. So I have never had a father. I guess I felt like Abba could take on that role for me.

13:34And he did call me his child. He's the only person I really believed in and trusted. You know, the kind of love a student has for their teacher? The one who gives you knowledge guides you. Family Pack sounds serious. 2.99 a pound sounds seriously good. Fresh chicken tenders are just 2.99 a pound through September 22nd at Grocery Outlet. Go ahead, make dinner look easy. Shop smart, discover more. Stop wasting your nights on a mattress that doesn't get you. Experience the most comfortable mattress in the world. The sleep number smart bed. At the touch of a button. You can personalize your comfort. Choose firmer or softer. Adjust cooler to warmer. And right now save up to $2,500 during our massive Labor Day event.

14:36Hurry into your local sleep number store today. Because we have your number. The AT&T Guarantee is all about having your back. With AT&T Internet Air, your home Internet is backed by the AT&T Guarantee. In the rare event of a network outage, you'll automatically get a credit for a full day of service. It's like waking up from a nap. The warm blanket resting on your shoulders. Ah! Visit AT&T.com slash guarantee to learn more. When the connection matters, it has to be AT&T. Credit for Internet Air downtime lasting 20 minutes or more restrictions and exclusions apply. See AT&T.com slash guarantee for full details. In 2022, Zia is in her final year. She's 17. It's January when Longbox Beach is a packed with tourists. With no air conditioning in the classrooms, by midday, Zia's uniform clings to her. And her hair feels sticky under her headscarf. She needs some air, some water. So she slips out under the excuse of needing the toilet.

15:38And is walking along the garden path when Abba calls out. He said, my child, come here. I need to speak to you. So I went straight over to him. Then he said, I'm going to take care of you. I'm going to take care of you. I'm going to take care of you. I'm going to take care of you. Over to him. Then he said, there is something Abba needs to tell you, but I can't do it here. We need to go to my house. So she follows him, past the canteen, down the side passage, overgrown with banana trees to the back door of his family home. The standing in the spare room, it's bare, just a large carpet spread out on the floor. The curtains are drawn, blocking out the midday sun. The door that leads to the rest of the house is also closed. The atmosphere is stifling.

16:39Zia faces him. Yeah, I was like, Abba, what do you need? I asked him in Arabic. He said, I want to declare my love for you. Can I hug you? I was suddenly very scared and I didn't know what to do. He hugged me, then sat down on the carpet, stretching out his legs. Like this. I felt very weak. He then pulled me down so I was sitting on his lap. I crossed my arms tightly, crossed my chest like this. I was very scared. Then he started kissing me, kissing my face, my cheeks. I was trying to keep my lips tightly together like this so he couldn't really kiss them. I didn't want to be kissed on the lips.

17:41He was stroking and touching my body, but I kept my arms tightly crossed. He kept stroking me. He then said, my child, if you love me, do what I'm doing to you. Do it to me, he said. Then he whispered to me. He whispered to me that after doing this, we will take a mandi taubat. We will taubat together. He told me when everything is done, when everything is final, there will be no more problems. Mandi taubat, a ritual bath of repentance. I couldn't say anything. I was weak. I shut down. He kept kissing my cheeks. I think he opened my head's carf, not all of it. I don't remember, but part of it, I was crying. I felt weak. I didn't know what to do.

18:43This was someone I respected above anyone else. Suddenly, the door handle moves. Someone's trying to get in. They were crying loudly. That opened the door. What are you doing in there, Dad? And they kept banging on the door. It was one of his children. I don't know which one. Zia phrases. Should she cry out too? He panicked. It seemed like he was debating whether to tell me to get out or hold me there. He didn't say anything. The knocking got louder. It feels like ages, perhaps, at seconds. Then he said to me silently to get out. I rushed out the back door. I just ran and ran. She runs into the girls' bathroom,

19:45collapsing in one of the narrow empty cubicles. I felt shattered as if my life had just stopped. I didn't know how to live. It was like my whole world was suddenly ruined. My life was destroyed. I had so carefully taken care of myself. I protected myself. But now I felt very dirty, ruined. And I was lost. The person I trusted most did this. She doesn't tell anyone. She just asks permission to go home. Her mum's confused. But when Zia tells her she's just not feeling well,

20:47she doesn't push. Her mum has worked hard, alone to pay for her education, and was just a few months left before graduation. Zia worries telling her, will either break her or she won't believe her. She's got a return. But this time she'll make sure she's never alone. I kept telling myself, don't talk to Abba, don't talk to Abba, don't end up with him alone. Just stay as far away as possible in the crowd. I was really focused on avoiding him. It was very hard though. Because every time I left the home to study, I always would. And sometimes he tried to call me over. I pretend not to hear or find some way out. But this one time, another teacher heard him calling me and told me, hey Abba is calling you. So I couldn't avoid it. And he just whispered,

21:47Abba misses you, my child. I couldn't say anything to Benis. I just nodded like a robot. I was like, if I could, I would run away from this boarding school today. But if I did that, ran away and not graduate, everything would be wasted, right? So I just kept saying to myself, keep going, be patient, keep your head down, and then get as far away from Abba as possible. Hello. Hello. Welcome to Keiro. Please wait. Sit down. Oh God. Far away from Abba. 10,000 kilometers away.

22:48Look, look, look. Zia Bagan's hard before telling us to climb into the tuk-tuk. Four of us, Mahima, my producer and I nod in, Zia and me, on a seat made for two. And we dive into the flow of the city of Keiro, Egypt. We were just about to hit the wall. And then when I looked out the wall is exactly in front of our face, suddenly down to the left. It was like we were on the dodgemukas. And Zia's leading the way. She knows this city. This is her home now. She's very confident. She's here studying at Al-Azah University, one of the most prestigious Islamic institutions in the world, following in the footsteps of other students from her school.

23:52Here I wasn't going to be haunted by Abba. I was far away. To be honest, I didn't really know what would come next. I hadn't really prepared much. I took the opportunity because I just wanted needed to leave. And here I was in Egypt. So I was just like, go with it. Don't overthink it. We're walking along narrow streets that weave between crumbling apartment blocks. The balconies above almost touch each other. Zia's striding in front leading the way to her apartment, skillfully side-stepping, the motorbikes that lunge at you. If you know where to look, there are familiar signs of Indonesia here. There's shops selling nasi gaurang and Indomie. And there's a food stall that Zia's just walked into

24:52that has all the spices and sauces that you need to make Indonesian food. It's like a little Indonesia in Cairo. But it's still such a different place from the rice paddies and fertile volcanic soil of Lombok. Here it's crowded and busy and full of history. And man made things. And Zia's loving it. Now we are in a desert mosque. Come on! Wow, so beautiful mosque. She takes us to a campus. So beautiful, yes? Look at what's your substance for here. In here, it's really peaceful looking out over the white courtyard.

25:56The marbles reflect in the sun so harshly. It's almost hard to look at. And around it is this carpeted terrace. There's intricate carvings above and beautiful columns. And here on the carpet in the shade, students are reciting the Quran or discussing things together or revising. It's a place to come to to learn. But also a place you can just come to and sit down and think and reflect. Hello, Zia. Zia has been posting about her new life on Instagram. Guide videos and striking portraits in carefully colour-coordinated outfits in front of beautiful mosques and crowded markets. Post that Yusra says.

26:57I remember her from school, but I didn't know her name. I just remember seeing her walking around. She always had a book in front of her face, this big vocabulary book that basically covered her face. She was quiet, disciplined, very focused. She was like the alarm for the morning prayers. If you saw Zia moving, you knew it was time to get up. And now here she is. Her post pop-up and I'm like, now wait. This girl, this piz girl actually uses Instagram. Suzy, this girl? Oh, surprised. Yusra, by now, is studying at his college on the outskirts of Jakarta. And from his dorm there, he slides into her DMs. Yeah, I think I said something like, whoa, you're on Instagram. And she wrote back straight away saying, of course. And she said, I know your birthday. She had seen this video I posted of me climbing a mountain to celebrate my birthday. And get this, we were both born on the 13th of July.

27:57Me a year before her. So that was what kept us talking. We just kept chatting, but honestly, it was super casual. Just something to pass the time. I mean, honest, it was because I was kind of bored. I just kept chatting to him. I'm just being truthful. I had nothing better to do. So I just said yes to whatever. Yeah, I can do it. I'm not a person. I just feel like I'm a little bit weird. It feels good, though, talking to someone from boarding school. Someone who was also singled out by Abba. Something they both not sure yet what begins to build. It was slow at first. I only shared the normal stuff I wasn't fully honest yet. Like really going into everything.

28:58I was scared to talk about it. So yeah, it was gradual step by step. It took a long time before I could really open up. I'm not the kind of person who can just tell everything at once. It's about a year after they first connect on Instagram. Zia's been telling us from little pieces of the story as they get closer. She's careful, testing the waters. But each time he listens. So slowly she starts to really trust him. We were chatting late night time in Egypt when I told him everything about what happened with Abba. I wasn't crying. I just told him straight. I taught the story in detail. I taught him everything. And he listened. It felt like everything I believed in, everything I thought was right, was suddenly collapsing.

30:01She was saying the name of the man who I viewed as a father. Whatever he said, I accepted immediately. Just like that. There was never even the slightest doubt in my mind. He said, wait, is that true? Why didn't you say this back then? I said because I was afraid people wouldn't believe me. He kept saying, well, lohi? Oh, you saw him was really shocked. Really, really shocked. Yeah, I said, are you really telling the truth? Because if you're not, are you prepared to go to jail for defamation? For slander, for lying? I felt really confused. I hadn't made the right decision. What if it now was spread? What if my reputation is destroyed? They're powerful people. That's next time, on World of Secrets.

31:03This has been Episode 1 of 5 of Season 13 of World of Secrets. Catching my teacher on the BBC World Service. The World of Secrets Zia is voiced by Prili Latukonzina. Umara Esteglal is Yusron and Paul Agusta is Abba. World of Secrets, catching my teacher, is written and produced by Rebecca Henski and Mi Endang Nordin. Sound recordings by Duikimarta, the sound design and mix is by Andy Fell. Original music by Al Furef and the executive producer is Neil Makarte. It was a BBCI investigation for the BBC World Service. Thanks for listening.

32:04Terima kasih sudah mendengar. Silakan Chari, Ipe Sanguru. The BBC World Service has been a very long time lasting 20 minutes or more restrictions and exclusions apply. See ATT.com slash guarantee for full details.