Education Reform: A Licence to Torture?
Last September, our esteemed Minister for Magic implemented new educational decrees, setting in motion an educational reform never before seen, and allowing the Ministry to intervene in a body that, by tradition, had always remained on the sidelines of political life. Among the implemented reforms is Decree No. 22, the one that started it all, by which the Ministry may appoint a suitable candidate for a teaching position if the headmaster of the establishment is unable to find one. There is also Decree No. 23, which creates the position of "High Inquisitor" to supervise the work of Hogwarts' teachers and assess their suitability for the post. Finally, Decree No. 25 confers authority on the High Inquisitor to have the final say regarding punishments, sanctions, and so on. These could be considered good reforms if they were genuinely focused on the wizarding community's best interests. However, they are measures that have turned Hogwarts into a political tug-of-war between the school's administration and the Ministry.
Decree No. 22, which was supposed to guarantee that a candidate was the most suitable person to teach a subject, brought Dolores Umbridge, Undersecretary to Minister Fudge, to Hogwarts as the Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher. She later became the first High Inquisitor. It is quite curious that someone who did not even pass the O.W.L. for that subject was appointed as suitable for the position of Defence Against the Dark Arts Professor. On the other hand, it seems rather strange a priori that someone who is part of the teaching staff of the school would be appointed as an inquisitor, as the purpose was supposedly to create more balance in the educational institution. An imbalance that has not taken long to be seen in different aspects of the institution's management.
Various irregularities have been committed, such as arbitrarily imposing and removing punishments according to an individual's origin, ideology, and level of loyalty to the Ministry. The list of punishments imposed is more typical of a Muggle military institution from the last century than of a civilised school for wizards, and includes carving a copied phrase into a student's hand with a Blood Quill. A dark artefact which, although useful for signing contracts, is being used for purposes outside the law. Using it as a method of punishment is, without a doubt, a method of torture.
Is it possible that an institution that has historically stayed away from politics must now become a political battlefield where the bargaining chips are the students themselves? It seems that this is the case, and that the Ministry has conferred on Dolores Umbridge the power to do and undo as she pleases, which includes torturing students. Is torture perhaps a new educational method that has passed through the mind of our Minister for Magic? Or has Umbridge taken on attributions beyond the powers and trust given to her?
Let us hope that the authorities have something to say about it.
—Mercurius
The Ministry's Response
The Auror Department was in a pandemonium from early in the morning, and rightly so. Helga knew the reason. Umbridge. She had been the one to send all the Aurors, including herself, the dossier prepared by Mercurius on the Minister's Undersecretary. An Auror might sweep some dirt under the rug, but when it had reached so many people at the same time, it was starting a chain reaction. She had even arranged for it to reach Madame Bones. It had been a coordinated effort with her friends, who had been in charge of publishing the new article. A way of cornering the Ministry and forcing them to take action.
All of the Aurors were summoned for an emergency meeting. They had been expecting to do something, but not to involve the entire department. This meant the matter was going to be taken far more seriously. Helga observed those presiding over the meeting: Madame Bones and the Head of the Auror Department, Scrimgeour. Madame Bones was a righteous person who would act without hesitation against any illegality, and Umbridge's list of crimes was long. Scrimgeour was ambitious, and from the way he glanced at Fudge at times, Helga knew he wanted his job. Of course, Umbridge's actions had been favoured by Fudge, because of how he had given power to someone who, in turn, also wanted to overthrow him.
"Amelia wanted to have hard evidence against Umbridge. All this information that has come into the Ministry is a kind of miracle," Kingsley told her. "The dossier has reached all of us, but the real evidence only reached Amelia. She has shown it to Scrimgeour. It looks like something serious."
"It is. From what he told me, it was a very thorough piece of research," Kingsley murmured. "Besides, I've glanced at the dossier. It looks like the work of an Auror."
"I hadn't had time to read it in depth."
"I'll get to the point. Did you have anything to do with it?" Kingsley asked.
"What could I do against a big fish in the Ministry?"
"You are more competent than you appear. I know that well. We've worked together on more than one occasion, and I can see it. I also know that Umbridge is going after the Potter boy in addition to Dumbledore, and that there is a connection between the Potter boy and you. I also know that you do not tolerate corruption. What doesn't add up for me is the press. It's brilliant, but it doesn't fit with you."
"What do you want me to tell you? You've already drawn your own conclusions, and it doesn't look like you're going to change your mind."
The room was filled, and both remained silent, waiting for the meeting to begin. It wasn't safe to go on talking now that the room was quiet. While there was a hubbub due to constant gossip, it was easy to talk; then not anymore. Neither easy nor safe. Helga could see that the whole department was not really gathered there, which could mean many things.
"I have gathered you here to form a strike team to arrest the Minister's Undersecretary. The dossiers you have received are true; and at the same time, a structured summary of the case," Scrimgeour said. "Madame Bones has shown me the proofs she has received, and they are conclusive. Dolores Umbridge is not only dedicated to torturing students, which goes beyond any law; she is also conspiring to take control of the Ministry. She has conspired to oust competent people from different departments and replace them with those who supported her, as well as seeking to destroy and criminalise those who were not to her liking, including various intelligent creatures."
"What we suspected for years but could not prove can now be done. We can't let her get away with it or give her room for movement. It's time to go get her," Madame Bones said.
"We'll have to go to Hogwarts tonight," Scimgeour said.
"Are you suggesting that we raid the Great Hall full of students?" Savage asked.
"We're not going to raid anything. We will ask you to turn yourself in."
"That can go wrong," Helga said. "We can't predict how she'll react, and if half of what I've heard from her is true, I don't think she'll react well."
"I don't think Dumbledore will allow anyone to be arrested at school, either. What kind of image would that give?" Dawlish commented.
"You know what I think, and I think like Nymphadora Tonks; we would be endangering students and teachers if we go to arrest her there. I think it is better to summon her to the Ministry," said Madame Bones, "or to any other place that does not pose a danger to others. We should set up an operation. A trap."
"No. We need to act as soon as possible," Scrimgeour said. "With what has come out of the article, she can be on notice. We must act as soon as possible."
"I've never seen her read The Quibbler," murmured one of the Aurors.
"We can't take anything for granted. That's why it's necessary to send a team to Hogwarts. Today. I'll deal with Dumbledore later," Scrimgeour pressed.
"I need a team today. I'll send three. That should be enough."
"I don't agree," said Madame Bones.
"We can't let her slip away."
Helga exchanged a glance with Kingsley. That was one of the problems. The two most influential people in the department did not show a united front in an important meeting. It was infuriating. She understood the need to act as soon as possible, but at the same time, she knew that the best thing to do was to present a united front. If this was happening to arrest someone like Umbridge, she didn't want to imagine what would happen in a really pressing situation, like the Quidditch World Cup or with the Death Eaters and Voldemort himself when they openly showed their faces. Helga took a deep breath, keeping the urge to point out that detail, and leaned back relaxed in her seat. If the chief of the Aurors and the director of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement disagreed, it was a recipe for disaster. Helga could also see in all this a political movement; Scrimgeour wanted a medal with which to earn points to become a minister.
"Shacklebolt, Tonks, and Savage. You take care of it," Scrimgeour announced.
Umbridge's Arrest
From Umbridge's point of view: She was upset? No, the correct word was furious. In that castle full of disgusting children, everyone pointed at her and murmured, but she had not been able to get anything out of them. They did not respond to her and simply ignored her, or, those who did respond told her that according to the latest decrees, they were not authorised to share that information with her. The latter were mostly from the worst house of all, Gryffindor. But she couldn't do anything. The professors, her main opponents, constantly stood in the way, sending the students off before she could do anything. She could punish everyone who did it, but it was happening all over the castle. She had to nip that behaviour in the bud, and the way to do that was to catch the ringleaders, those who had instigated everything.
"I'll find them and if not, I'll use someone as a decisive example for everyone," she murmured.
Nothing improved throughout the day or afternoon. It seemed that with each passing hour, the murmurs about her increased. That got on her nerves and made her want to explode. But she couldn't do it; she had to restrain herself. If she really wanted to take control of the world to mould it her own way, she needed a foundation that she wouldn't have if those teenagers blew her up. But she had to bring down the leaders or potential leaders.
She arrived at the Great Hall at dinner time. In her usual place, she found a copy of that shoddy magazine that would be the first to be closed, The Quibbler. There was an article, an article that was about her. She could feel her temple throbbing. She did not like the insinuations of that article. They put her in a bad light. She crumpled up the magazine with a gesture of rage. She could feel how both students and teachers looked at her, mostly with hostile looks. The only one who seemed oblivious to it all was Dumbledore, but that guy was politically finished with the claims he was making that the Minister didn't believe at all. Dumbledore was digging his own grave, and she would love to be the one to lay the final stone, at least at the political level. She would take care of it. First, she would have to contact her partners; then she would take care of the school. She got up to go to her office; she was halfway through the dining room when everything changed and any plan she could have made went overboard. Three Aurors entered the Great Hall. All three sounded familiar to her. They were faithful workers of the Ministry but not very attached to Fudge's policy. There was one of them she would just throw out of the Ministry because of the ridiculous pink hair she wore.
"Dolores Jane Umbridge, you are under arrest. Surrender peacefully and the consequences will be less," said the one she knew as Savage.
She was not going to turn herself in. It was not fair that they demanded it. She hadn't done anything. They couldn't go after her for a newspaper article, and she would take it upon herself to prove it. But she would not allow herself to be captured without a fight. To do so would be to admit a guilt that she did not have. She drew her wand and pointed it at the Aurors. They couldn't do anything to arrest her without a fight while the children were there. If she had to use them to get her way, she would.
"Turn yourself in," Savage demanded.
"You'll have to come for me," she said, pulling out her wand.
A pandemonium was immediately set up. If it weren't for the presence of the students, she would have the upper hand, but she could take advantage of their presence. The younger ones were scared, and the older ones didn't seem to know how to react. She pointed her wand at the Auror. What she could not foresee was that the teachers would take advantage of this to disarm her. She did not know which of them it was, only that it had left her at the mercy of the Aurors.
"You will pay me for this! You cannot do it! I am the Minister's Undersecretary!" she shouted as she was arrested.
"Not anymore," said the pink-haired Auror in a firm whisper, as she picked up Umbridge's wand from the ground.
"I deserve respect!"
"Excuse me for breaking into dinner," Shacklebolt said with authority as she was taken away.
Fudge's Damage Control
Cornelius Fudge had no doubt that he was nervous. In the early afternoon, he had received a copy of The Quibbler. It was a magazine that he had never taken seriously, although from time to time it published a written article that was a criticism of his educational reform or rather of how it had been implemented. The first intuition he had was precisely to go hunting for the owner of the magazine to have the one who had written the article. But when he finished reading it and saw who signed it, he changed his mind. That author, Mercurius, did not write for the sake of writing; but he took seriously what he wrote and documented himself well. Still, he didn't like what the article said or the position in which it left him.
Shortly after finishing the article, he had had a visit from Madame Bones and the Head of the Aurors, Scrimgeour, showing him the evidence that proved the veracity of what Umbridge had done according to the article, as well as some other things. Different plots against different people, including him. He couldn't tolerate that. He hadn't expected that this woman would want to overthrow him and take his job, and worst of all, he had trusted her too much. It was time for damage control. He signed the arrest warrant without hesitation, meanwhile he thought about how to approach the situation so that he would not get away from it and that it would not all turn against him. Of course, with this, and what came out later, no one would believe what that woman said. She had knowledge of some underhand deals she had made.
"Weasley, summon the press. All media, not just The Daily Prophet. We have to give a statement in half an hour."
It was the best decision. He was not going to plan a speech, that would be too noticeable; he already had the basics in mind. He just had to dress up a bit and be relaxed and presentable. He waited in his office, until the moment to leave and go down to the atrium to show his face. He would prove to the wizarding community that he had made a mistake by trusting that Umbridge would execute the decrees well and that they had been misrepresented by the woman. He would also tell the press that having suspicions of this because of some complaints that had reached him, he had made her investigate finding shady matters that he planned to reveal to everyone. That was the game of politics.