Mario Teguh Super Club

By coincidence I watched TV O' Channel around 9:30PM tonight. "Mario Teguh Business Art" was on. I though he's just like any other motivators that are mushrooming across big cities in Indonesia. Well, you should watch it and judge for yourself. I think he's one of the best motivators.

Link to his website: Mario Teguh Super Club

There were a lot of questions coming from the audience or callers about how to get a big pay check. What struck me was his answers to these questions, "People who ask more will never get more, but people who do more will get more. Don't measure out your contribution by the pay that you get but by output that you contribute for your company's business and profit."

Orang-orang yang minta gaji lebih biasanya tidak dapat lebih, tapi yang melakukan lebih dan berkualitas akan mendapat lebih. Jangan takar tenaga yang Anda keluarkan berdasarkan gaji yang Anda dapatkan tetapi berdasarkan hasil yang dapat Anda kontribusikan bagi kelangsungan dan keuntungan perusahaan Anda.

Here I quoted something from his website:

Hidup itu harus hebat, kuat, luas, besar, dan bermanfaat; … yang sederhana itu adalah sikap-nya.

Bila ada pelajaran yang harus segera kau perbarui pengertiannya kepada sahabat terdekat yang namanya diri mu itu, maka pelajaran itu adalah tentang keberanian – sebuah nama bagi kesediaan untuk bertindak yang didasari oleh pengertian yang baik.

Inspiration: Maria "Ivo" Butet

I met an inspiring woman about a week ago. She introduced herself as Ivo – although with Butet as her middle name I’m sure she’s a Batak. It was a job-related meeting but we soon could talk like we’ve met long before this meeting.

She started her career as an accountant with Arthur Andersen (AA). What she did and experienced after AA are what really inspired me. She joined World Vision – an International NGO – and was stationed in Wamena, West Papua, after 3-year stint with AA. I repeatedly asked her what the key factor that made her chose World Vision and Wamena. She said, at first she didn’t know, it seemed just like a spur of the moment. But, only much later she realized that it’s the need to empower the local people in remote areas that enabled her to make this firm decision. (One day in the lift of BNI 46 Tower, when she’s still working for AA, she heard comments from two Caucasian expatriates behind her that said something like this: “These Indonesians only have Pentium 1 intelligence but they demand Windows XP.”) This was the trigger that put that fire in her heart – the burning fire to prove that Indonesians will not stay underdeveloped (and stupid) for the rest of their life.

She spent 6 years in Wamena and 3 years in Nias (during tsunami recovery). And below I listed down the things that caught my attention, provoked more thought, or just downright silly….


On Modern Gadgets
She said she didn’t miss television, radio, mobile phone (with the text messaging capability), internet (with e-mailing capability), computer, electricity, and the clubbing while she was in those remote areas. She only used her mobile phone to be functioned as clock or alarm. Furthermore she said, “If we can’t send message or report through e-mail, we still can use fax machine. Even if we don’t have fax machine we can still send our letters via post office. Right?” Stuj sek deh! *smile* I asked her how soon she could cope with the silence in the remote areas compared to the hustle and bustle of the big city like Jakarta. She said that it’s no big deal for her. Wow! (I guess only a few number of people miss Jakarta’s baseline decibel. It’s too overwhelming.)


On Poverty
There she could experience the other spectrum of poverty. In most urban areas in the big cities we see many slums, beggars, street kids, and other types of poverty caused by urban development such as lack of access to education, health care, economic network, etc. Yet, in Wamena it shows different spectrum – people that are not aware that they are manipulated and cheated. Their stone-age life and culture are preserved mostly for the sake of tourism.


On Casual Sex
After the October 6, 2000 incident, Wamena was left with unbalance proportion of men and women. After three months the authority felt that the male group couldn’t suppress their sexual need anymore. Then, they flew in prostitutes from other cities – as far as East Java to come to Wamena. The atmosphere was tensed with competition – gimana enggak – if around 1,000 men had to compete for around 400 women. Well, it’s easy to predict that it’s the fertile field for HIV/AIDS and other STDs.

PSK (Pekerja Seks Komersial) or prostitutes are as young as 10-year old girl. The local pimps usually gather the young prostitutes (usually around 10 to 17 years old) in their houses and expose them to a lot of X-rated movies. Then, these pimps ‘coach’ the girls how to seduce and satisfy their clients. The special-treated clients usually are politicians, members of parliament, or bureaucrats within the province or other territories. Such casual approach on intimacy is another seed of HIV/AIDS outbreak – and yet the local politicians and bureaucrats never approve any HIV/AIDS survey. Thus, we cannot find the real statistics about HIV/AIDS and other STDs in Wamena. *sigh*

These young girls know pretty well how to apply their rates among different target groups. If you’re somebody that they respect then they offer the intimacy for you for free. If you’re one of their friends, then you could pay them for around IDR 2,000. (My goodness!) But, if you’re politicians, member of parliaments, or bureaucrats the pricing is around IDR 500,000. The sad part of this whole situation is that these girls think that this casual sex is OK, as natural as the air they breathe. Then again, the HIV/AIDS campaign of Abstinence-Faithful-Condom is hardly successful in the area. *sigh*


On Tribal War
Hatred and vengeance are kept alive from generation to generation. So, tribal wars are still common. Is it fair to expect the local people that are pretty much live in stone-age culture to make quantum leap and adopt modern live smoothly – while at the same time we would like them to preserve their stone-age life and culture as one of tourist attractions to the land of Papua?

In Papua people can see the meaning of true man (manusia sejati) – where hatred, anger, sadness, happiness, disappointment, etc. are bluntly exposed. It made me recall the movie titled Apocalypto. The winner of any war is treated as hero within their tribe – a young girl is usually presented as trophy for this hero in the ceremony.


On The Wild Nature and The Old Way
Wamena is located in the grand valley of Baliem River, or famously called Baliem Valley (Lembah Baliem). The Baliem Valley’s altitude is about 1,420 meters above sea level and was once dubbed Shangri La. The incredibly lush and fertile valley is surrounded on all sides by towering peaks of 2,500 to 3,000 meters. High mountains surrounded Baliem Valley is usually overwhelming for new comers. Had been living deep down the remote areas had sharpened her connection to the mother earth. She always asked the local people when there were any environment or weather changes she observed around her. For example, the calmness and eerie silence always precede the ice frost that would sweep the valley, the earthquake would usually recede within the count of thirty, etc. She said see saw the most beautiful night sky there... the dark sky that are full with stars.

The Papuans already knew about family planning, not via contraception though. A man (husband) is not allowed to live with his wife after she delivers their baby. The separation usually takes two years during which the man (husband) can ‘marry’ other woman.


Cute Experiences
When I labeled them as cute experiences, I literally meant cute. *smile*

Can you imagine:

• the clothes that you just washed and left dry outside could disappear in minutes?
• the clothes, TV, and radio that you kept inside a locked room could disappear?
• when you woke up in the morning you had to play tug-of-war with someone outside the window that seemed very keen to possess your blanket?
• your lost jet pump was offered to you by someone within the same day?
• that you need to specify what you want in details? (Maksudnya kalo mau barter paku dan kaca dengan kayu dan batu maka harus dikatakan dengan jelas bahwa kayu dan batu harus dibawa ke tempat kita. Kalo nggak, ya anda ambil kayu dan batunya ndiri di hutan. *smile*)

On Aceh
Aceh was so exotic to the outside world until tsunami tragedy opened up the door for the outside world to land their feet on its soil and meet up face-to-face with the local people. Organizations ‘compete’ to put Aceh on their donor list as it could raise their prestige. She said she had the trouble to see so many expatriate-activists that were stationed for the reason other than the noble act of helping local people. Aceh people are rich and proud of themselves. Jadi susah untuk menerima masukan orang lain. Although the elite Moslem clerics fight to have Islamic law – known locally as Syariah Law – as Aceh foundation for local government law, it’s actually not widely supported by the majority of Aceh people. She said one of her colleague, a local Aceh woman, voiced her concern about it. On one occasion, a Peter Pan show in Aceh, female spectators were separated from male spectators. What irritated her was that all women were required to wear hijab while the men could enter the show as they pleased – ibaratnya kalo cowo mo buka baju atau telanjang dada ya boleh-boleh aja, tapi para cewe musti tertutup baju dari kepala sampe kaki. Aceh society is unique – the ruling elite limit the opportunity for women in many social aspects despite their historical realm that the women are the backbone of their society.


She said four NGO workers from World Vision survived plane crash – Garuda Indonesia flight GA 200, a Boeing 737-400 plane – that carried 133 passengers and seven crews at around 7AM at Yogya on March 7, 2007. Jokingly she said that’s because World Vision’s activists are protected by ‘invincible power’. They have experienced countless miracles… kalo belum waktunya, ya nggak akan mati.

When I kept repeating how great and terrific what she’s done, she said that nothing’s great and terrific about it. She made the choice freely and went through it without regret. She said she measured her success in those two areas by the level of local people empowerment after she or her team leave the remote areas. She was successfully coached the local Nias people to handle World Vision’s day-to-day administrative activities.

Indonesia need more people like her…. orang yang kagak hanya mikirin dirinya sendiri. Tops deh pokoknya! *smile*

Jerry Aurum

Found this site of Jerry Aurum. Check out his pictures under Artwork. I like Summer, Mist at Kelimutu, Al Hambra, and On the Way to Sevilla. I took the following from Kompas Cyber Media... read on...

JAKARTA, KCM - Adalah kekuatan yang memancar dari foto seorang Tatyana, artis Rusia, yang berpose bak disalib dengan bagian tubuh tertentu dibalut kain putih. "Itu yang saya artikan sebagai ’empowering beauty’," kata Jerry Aurum, di Senayan City, Kamis (22/2) petang.

Jerry, fotografer dan desainer grafis kelahiran Medan, 31 tahun silam, menggelar pameran foto tunggal bertajuk Femalography di mal premium kawasan Jakarta Selatan tersebut. Rencananya, 40 karya foto berukuran mulai dari 1,8 meter x 1,2 meter hingga 2,5 meter akan dipamerkan untuk umum mulai 23 Februari 2007 hingga 11 Maret 2007.

Perempuan, ujar lelaki yang amat mengagumi sosok ibundanya itu, tampil sebagai subjek yang aktif dalam karya Jerry. Para perempuan seperti Rachel Maryam, Aline, Dian Sastro, VJ Cathy, Susan berikut sederet nama tokoh yang lainnya hadir dalam foto gerak yang memancarkan kekuatan, tidak sekadar cantik. "Saya suka foto gerak. Ada yang melompat, gaya yoga. Itu namanya pose yang tak biasa," ujar peraih gelar cum laude dari Desain Komunikasi Visual Institut Teknologi Bandung (ITB) itu.

Femalography, adalah judul yang sama untuk pameran tunggal internasional pertama dan peluncuran buku foto Jerry Aurum di Gedung Ministry of Information, Communications and Arts (MICA) Singapura pada 27 September tahun lalu. Pada Desember 2006, Borders Bookstore Singapore menobatkan Femalography sebagai "2nd Best Recommended". Tertarik untuk memperoleh informasi lebih lanjut, silakan kunjungi www.jerryaurum.com.


Bangga juga euy ada orang Indonesia yang hebat gini *smile*. Cuma... kok foto perempuan-perempuan cantik dan dengan fisik sempurna ya.... Jadi teringat dengan foto Kim Phuc yang diambil Nick Ut waktu perang di Vietnam. Kim Phuc sekarang tinggal di Kanada. I was once touched by her picture baring her badly burned back and shoulder affected by napalm attack. And yet, her husband said that she's still beautiful. Hiks, hiks...

Andrea Hirata’s Pure Love

Indonesia is a land of paradox. We see, hear and read a lot of things related to corruption, mismanagement, natural disasters, injustice, discrimination, poverty, ignorance, etc. – all negative forces. However, there are also great and admirable things happening at these very minutes. And, the following story is just one among those great and admirable things happening in the country.


Tidak pernah ada yang bisa mengalahkan kekuatan cinta yang murni dan tulus. Cinta yang mendalam menebarkan energi positif yang tidak hanya mengubah hidup seseorang, tetapi juga menerangi kehidupan orang banyak.

By: Khairina
Source: Kompas Daily Newspaper, Saturday, November 11, 2006, page 16

Kemurnian cinta pula yang mendorong Andrea Hirata Seman (33) memuliakan guru sekolah dasarnya di SD Muhammadiyah, Belitong Timur, Bangka Belitung.

Terkesan ketulusan hati sang guru, sejak duduk di kelas III SD, Andrea berjanji membuat buku tentang guru itu. Niat itu baru terlaksana lebih dari 20 tahun kemudian, saat ibu Muslimah, guru itu, akan berulangtahun ke-59 pada 2005.

Buku setebal lebih dari 500 halaman dia susun dalam tiga minggu. Hasil ketikan itu lalu dia fotokopi 12 kali dan dia beri kepada ibu Muslimah dan 11 rekannya semasa kecil, yang dia kenal sebagai Laskar Pelangi.

Seorang temannya iseng-iseng mengirimkan karya Andrea itu ke penerbit. Dalam waktu beberapa minggu saja buku berjudul Laskar Pelangi (Penerbit Bentang, 2005) itu laris manis dan langsung dipajang di deretan buku-buku yang tergolong “best seller”.

“Saya enggak menyangka, banyak juga yang senang dengan buku seperti ini. Dulu, saya kira buku yang enggak ada gue-elu-nya enggak bakal laku,” ujar Andrea merendah.


Mengobati kehausan
Buku karya Andrea seolah mengobati kehausan para pencinta buku akan buku-buku Indonesia bermutu. Di tengah banyaknya buku bertema sejenis, entah remaja, percintaan, seks, atau kriminalitas, buku Andrea memberi pencerahan bagi pembaca.

Ide yang diusung Andrea sederhana. Andrea menceritakan kehidupan 11 anak sangat miskin, tetapi kreatif yang bersekolah di sekolah miskin di pulau kaya timah, Belitong. Begitu miskinnya orangtua mereka, sehingga Lintang – salah satu dari 11 anak itu – terpaksa berhenti sekolah karena harus membiayai hidup ibu, lima adik, dua pasang kakek-nenek, dan dua paman. Kini, Lintang hanya menjadi sopir truk tronton.

Padahal, Lintang adalah anak paling pintar dan paling bersemangat dalam menuntut ilmu. Dia tidak pernah membolos kendati harus mengayuh sepeda sejauh 40 kilometer ke sekolah. Beberapa kali rantai sepedanya putus dan dia bahkan terpaksa berhadapan dengan buaya, tetapi semangat Lintang untuk sekolah tidak pernah padam.

Kisah Lintang begitu menghanyutkan emosi Andrea. Dia mengaku menangis tiga malam saat menuliskan kisah kehidupan sahabatnya itu.

“Saya ingin menunjukkan masih ada Lintang-Lintang lain di Indonesia. Banyak anak-anak pintar yang tidak memiliki kesempatan,” ujar lajang yang kini bekerja sebagai analis di PT Telkom Bandung ini.

Andrea yang dalam buku itu dikisahkan sebagai Ikal berasal dari keluarga kurang mampu. Ayahnya, Seman Said Harun Hirata (73), adalah pensiunan pegawai rendahan PN Timah, sementara ibunya, Masturah (70), adalah ibu rumah tangga. Empat abang dan satu adiknya menekuni profesi seperti umumnya kaum marjinal di Belitong, yaitu sebagai penambang tradisional.

Kontras dengan kemiskinan warga asli Belitong, PT Timah digambarkan Andrea sebagai perusahaan berduit dengan lingkungan orang-orang berduit juga. Tergambar jelas jurang antara warga asli yang miskin dan petinggi PN Timah yang kaya.

Andrea seolah mendobrak tradisi dan keluar dari lingkaran kemiskinan warga Melayu di Belitong. Setelah sempat menjadi kuli panggul di pasar dan tukang sortir surat di kantor pos, Andrea berhasil mendapat beasiswa S-2 di Sheffield Hallam University, Inggris, dan lulus dengan predikat graduate with distinction. Tesisnya diadopsi menjadi buku.


Memberi inspirasi
Keberhasilannya, diakui Andrea, tidak bisa dilepaskan dari semangat dan daya juang yang ditularkan kedua gurunya semasa SD serta rekan-rekannya di Laskar Pelangi. Kobaran semangat ditambah kasih sayang di sekolah melecut Andrea untuk lebih baik. Maka buku inipun, ujar Andrea, dipersembahkan bagi rekan-rekannya dan kaum marjinal lain di seluruh Indonesia.

”Mudah-mudahan, mereka yang kini tengah berjuang tidak menyerah dan tidak kalah,” ujar Andrea yang novelnya sudah diterjemahkan ke dalam bahasa Melayu dan segera menyusul ke dalam bahasa Jepang dan Inggris.

Dan, Laskar Pelangi serta buku keduanya, Sang Pemimpi, terbukti menggerakkan hati banyak orang. Para pakar pendidikan berdiskusi memperbaiki sistem pendidikan di Indonesia, mengacu pada buku itu.

”Mungkin baru sekarang ada novel yang dijadikan acuan perbaikan sistem pendidikan,” kata Andrea yang mengaku sebelumnya tidak pernah menulis satu cerita pendek pun.

Novel ini juga memberi inspirasi seorang janda buruh di Cakung mengayuh sepeda belasan kilometer sehari karena bertekad mengentaskan kebodohan yang melilit anak-anaknya. Dia mengajari sendiri anak-anaknya berhitung dan membaca agar bisa menjadi lebih baik.

Andrea juga bertekad mamajukan pendidikan di Belitong Timur. Royalti dari buku digunakan membangun perpustakaan di Belitong Timur.

”Di kampung saya enggak ada perpustakaan, apalagi toko buku. Kalau mau beli buku, kami terpaksa ke Tanjung Pinang di Bangka,” ujar pria yang sempat tiga kali berganti nama itu.

Andrea juga mendatangkan beberapa pengajar dari Bandung untuk membimbing pelajar miskin Belitong Timur yang akan mengikuti seleksi penerimaan mahasiswa baru.

”Anak-anak di kampung saya pintar-pintar, tetapi tidak mampu. Jangankan bimbingan belajar, untuk sekolah saja sulit. Saya ingin memberikan kesempatan yang sama bagi mereka,” kata Andrea.

Kartini

Beberapa bulan belakangan ini banyak orang terperangah ketika Bapak Prof. DR. Harsya W. Bachtiar mengemukakan keberatannya tentang 'pengkultusan' R.A. Kartini sebagai pahlawan nasional Indonesia. Hal ini kembali menghangat sekitar bulan April tahun ini, menjelang peringatan hari Kartini 21 April 1988, terutama dengan akan diterbitkannya buku baru berisi 108 surat Kartini atau 55 surat baru yang selama ini belum pernah dipublikasikan oleh F.G.P. Jacquet melalui penerbitan Koninklijk Institut voor Tall-Landen Volkenkunde (KITLV).

Sejumlah perang argumentasi terjadi. Lepas dari pro dan kontra, sedikit tahu, banyak tahu, atau sok tahu, maka saya ingin memberikan opini saya tentang keadaan ini.

Sejarah - terkadang orang mencibirkannya. Kata beberapa orang yang sinis, ah, sejarah dapat diputar-balikkan! Pernyataan itu tak dapat dipungkiri, banyak contoh dapat ditampilkan. Tapi apakah kerja kita hanya sampai pada sikap sinis dan menertawakan tanpa mencari kebenaran melalui informasi dibantu dengan 'attitudes' yang benar? Sejarah dapat lebih akurat jika banyak peninggalan informasi (baik berupa tulisan, souvenir, maupun komentar teman-lawan) tentang yang bersangkutan dapat ditemukan dan dianalisa. Makin sedikit informasi 'otentik' hitam atas putih, maka makin banyak pula biasa sejarah yang akan terjadi. Demikian pula dalam kasus Kartini ini.

Dikatakan bahwa Kartini cuma 'diangkat' pihak Belanda sebagai contoh karena hubungannya yang baik dengan Belanda, tanpa membusukkan pihak penjajah tersebut. Juga dipertanyakan, mengapa Kartini rela dimadu jika ia memperjuangkan emansipasi wanita dan menentang poligami? Mengapa Kartini akhirnya menyerah terhadap keadaan? Seorang pahlawan 'kan pantang menyerah? Sekian alasan dan jawaban dibuat.

Coba kita bayangkan seorang Kartini - dalam lingkungan sangat mapan di suatu lingkaran kebangsawanan, di suatu negara jajahan di Asia Tenggara (yang notabene dengan 'miskinnya' kesempatan), pada awal abad 19! Sebagai seorang manusia (kalau kualitasnya memang sebagai manusia biasa) tentunya ia akan cukup puas dengan keadaaannya itu. Buat apa memikirkan keadaan wanita lain di luar lingkungan kraton yang tak berhubungan langsung dengannya? Buat apa bersusah-payah mendirikan sekolah demi kemajuan orang lain, tanpa penghargaan yang akan didapatkannya?

Tapi rupa-rupanya Kartini memang bukan manusia biasa, ia adalah manusia luar biasa. Bacalah surat-suratnya, berbahasa indah dengan ketajaman pikiran dan perasaan seorang wanita. Seorang wanita yang lebih banyak berdialog dengan pikirannya sendiri, melalui surat-suratnya kepada sahabat-sahabatnya. Adakah kini seorang gadis cilik Indonesia berusia 12 tahun yang berani dan fasih berkorespondensi dalam bahasa asing dengan orang asing yang jelas berusia jauh lebih tua dan berpengalaman?

Kehidupan masyarakat Jawa yang serba teratur, penuh simbol dan upacara serta berbagai pranata, bagi kaum mudanya saat itu terasa sangat feodal dan penuh kepincangan sosial. Protes? Itu tak layak dilakukan orang muda yang dididik untuk selalu kromo dan taat. Tapi Kartini melakukannya,... ia tidak pernah mengucapkannya janji 'patuh' pada suaminya dalam upacara pernikahannya. Kalau ingin dituliskan satu-persatu, tentu sangat banyak kelebihan Kartini lainnya.

Dapatkan anda menjawab, mengapa J.F. Kennedy yang dikagumi orang banyak dalam perjuangannya bagi persamaan hak orang kulit hitam di AS, ternyata punya hubungan intim dengan para boss mafia dan terlibat dalam beberapa love affair? Mengapa Napoleon Bonaparte, Si Jendral Kecil yang Brilyan itu, sesudah memimpin peperangan dalam padang salju di Rusia,... dapat seketika duduk menulis puisi dalam tendanya segera setelah pulang dari penyerbuan itu? Lalu, mengapa tak dapat kita mengerti mengapa seorang Kartini yang memperjuangkan kemajuan wanita dan menentang poligami akhirnya terpaksa kalah dari cita-citanya?

Mengapa dapat terjadi pengkultusan? Yah, dapat saja terjadi jika umum beranggapan ia patut dikultuskan karena tindakan atau pikirannya yang termasuk sangat dikagumi. Memang banyak pahlawan wanita Indonesia lainnya yang patut mendapat penghargaan yang lebih dari yang 'diterimanya' kini. Tapi itu semua bukan bermaksud untuk mengecilkan arti Kartini bagi bangsa Indonesia.

Kartini meninggal pada 17 September 1904, pada usia 25 tahun, dalam kedamaian sebuah kota kecil di pantai utara Jawa. Kartini tidak meninggal sambil memanggul senjata dalam medan perang melawan kolonial Belanda, tak setetes darahnya tumpah membasahi bumi Indonesia. Kematian yang wajar dan umum dihadapi sebagian besar wanita saat itu, beberapa waktu sesudah mengantarkan manusia baru menjenguk bumi ini. Tentu kita setuju bahwa seorang pahlawan yang dikultuskan adalah bukan hanya dia yang perkasa dalam peperangan, tapi juga dia yang mengalir dalam hati bangsanya melalui buah pikiran dan perasaan yang diungkapkan lewat bahasa pena.

Mari kita simak lagu yang kita kenal sejak kecil berikut:

Ibu kita Kartini putri sejati,
putri yang mulia cita-citanya.
Ibu kita Kartini pendekar bangsa,
pendekar kaumnya untuk merdeka.
Wahai Ibu kita Kartini,
putri yang mulia,
sungguh besar cita-citanya,
bagi Indonesia

Bagi saya ia tetap seorang ibu yang tak hanya berdarah bangsawan, tapi juga berjiwa dan berbudi bangsawan. Ibu Kartini sungguh besar cita-citanya bagi Indonesia!

Sumber: Suara GEA - Edisi April 1988, Rubrik Opini (hlm 31-32)

Raden Ajeng Kartini, Are We Really Free?

Indonesians commemorate April 21 as Kartini Day (or, Hari Ibu Kartini). It’s the birthday of Raden Ajeng Kartini, a prominent heroine in women’s emancipation movement in Indonesia. The government declared RA* Kartini as a national hero by Presidential Decree No. 108 dated May 2, 1964. Kartini is now celebrated as one of Indonesia's feminists and nationalist icons. This day is usually marked by activities within women's groups. In Indonesian schools children compete in national dress competitions.

In Indonesia beauty salons are usually packed on Kartini Day with women who need help with their hair and makeup. Many schools oblige the students to wear traditional costumes and then sing Ibu Kita Kartini (Our Mother Kartini), a song dedicated to Ibu Kartini. Some companies also have their women-employees don similar attires. To be honest I didn’t really like to commemorate Kartini Day like this. It’s very hard to do something that’s against my will and I felt like a fool! I think I had worn enough traditional costumes for Kartini Day during my elementary school. At work, I dreaded the day when I had to go to the office wearing traditional costumes—thank God, I could usually find excuse to skip this inconvenient ‘office rules’! Some of my friends didn’t like it too but they had no choice. [Why didn't we do something creative? Teaching the street kids on that day, for example. Or, letting working moms enjoyed their times with their children at home or in their work places?]

Moreover, to highlight the Kartini Day celebration, contests are organized for best flower arrangements, cooking and Kartini look-alikes. Sometimes, males are encouraged to take part, for cooking at least, although the look-alike pageant is off-limits. Geez! Do we celebrate her feminity or her feminist spirit?

If Kartini really was a hero of women's emancipation, I thought, why couldn't we girls and women wear pants on that day like the boys? OK, not pants but clothes that we like and feel comfortable to wear. I believe we would be happier to wear something that allowed us to move freely instead of being bundled up in tight, constricting outfits.

We learned from our school textbook that because of Kartini Indonesia’s women could now go to school. We are told that because of her, there are women doctors, engineers and politicians. In short, we are told to be proud because today there is equality between men and women. Well, is there real equality between men and women in Indonesia? Then, why are there so few women legislators when women constitute more than half the country's population? I know there are a few exceptions, but it must also be conceded that many of those women, like in other parts of Asia, rode the coattails of their male relatives to prominence.

We should also face the fact - this is still a man's world. Patriarchy has been the root of society for ages and it is not easy to change. Many still regard women as objects to be exploited, evident in our tabloids full of steamy photos of women. The naysayers argue that the women look happy in the pictures, that they made the choice to be photographed. Well, of course they will grin and bare it all when sexuality and beauty are still keys for women to earn a living in this country.

I can understand why Kartini had to struggle in her own way. She obeyed her father to an arranged marriage while kept writing about independence and equality. She was aware of the conditions and situation of her time. That’s why, I think, her struggles worked well in a subtle and gentle way, through her 'door' as a woman. Her far-reaching vision and intelligence made her able to see and choose the way that enabled her to make her dream come true. She was a Moslem yet in her attitudes, words and ideals, I find common kind of faith and values. She showed her strong character ~ her independent way of thinking, her courage to go against the current and her pioneer spirit.

[Kartini was a ‘soft’ rebel. She was a good girl. I wonder though, if Kartini disobeyed her parents and went it alone, would she still be recognized as a national hero today? May be not. Maybe her birthday would not be celebrated as a benchmark in women's emancipation in the country; she would have been a troublemaker, going against the norm in a feudal society.]

Then… are we, the women of Indonesia today, really free? Perhaps for some of us. Yet, think again. Are we really free? Are we really free to speak our mind and heart? Are we safe from sexually explicit looks when we walk on the streets? Are we free to be ourselves and not the ones imposed to us by society? Are strong and outspoken women still labelled as bitches? Why women in the top positions are being scrutinized more than their male counterparts? Are we doing enough to teach our young generation and male counterparts about gender awareness, that there should not be female subordination or male supremacy?

I have a dream, and in my dream women are not treated as objects, women are judged by their thoughts, personalities and achievements instead of a beautiful face or voluptuous body. We still have a long, long way to go. But, we should keep on going, shouldn’t we?

This is a tribute to my mother and my grandmothers. Thank you to raise me and to provide me with examples to be true to myself, to stand strong against the current, and to be a woman comfortable in her own skin. [Once I had fist fight with a boy - who liked to treat girls badly - when I was in the fourth grade. He never ridiculed and bullied me anymore after that. Blame my mom for that. *smile*]

Last but not least, does anybody want to lead a project in Wikipedia about Indonesian Heroines or Influential Women, or at least Kartini? I couldn’t find it… and hardly find many good resources around this subject.


Who is Kartini?
RA* Kartini was born on 21 April 1879 in the village of Mayong in the municipality of Jepara in Central Java. She was the daughter of Raden Mas Adipati Aryo Sosroningrat, the Regent of Jepara. He had 12 children from several wives. Having grown up in an aristocratic family, Kartini was strongly influenced by Javanese customs. Fortunately, her father was a wise leader and had great insight. He used to take his children to visit kampongs and villages, to help and work with the people, who at that time were under Dutch colonisation. These experiences heightened Kartini's awareness of the struggles of ordinary people, with whom she also developed a close relationship.

At that time, according to traditional custom, girls received no formal education. They were kept at home, and trained to be good wives, learning many kinds of housework skills. The parents would arrange marriage at the right time. It was rare that a girl would even have met her husband before her marriage to him. Being of wider experience and opinions, Kartini's father sent all his children, including his daughters, to have Western-type education at a local Dutch school. She was lucky to receive a Dutch education. This was normally reserved for Dutch and children of royal families. In doing so, he had taken a courageous new step, never before taken by Javanese aristocrats. As a result, he was considered a rebel against the traditional customs of his country. However, in spite of her father's courage, by the age of 12 Kartini had to stay at home, just like other girls. Kartini had to stop her formal Western-type education at this age because of the old Javanese tradition of pingit, which meant she had to stay at home and wait for marriage. During her days at home she wrote to her many friends abroad. She was a rebel against the strong tradition of gender discrimination.

But after those six years of schooling, Kartini found that her Western education had undermined the hold of Javanese customs on her. She regarded her years at home as 'imprisonment', and it caused her to query the 'burden of Javanese etiquette', which she found both 'silly and terrible'. She also opposed the polygamy which was permitted under Islamic Law, but which made women suffer.

She survived this time 'in a box' only by voracious reading of as many books as she could lay her hands on, and by corresponding with her Dutch friends. Her concern about colonialism, modernity, social injustice and women's oppression and rights constantly appeared in her letters.

Besides expressing her ideals, criticisms and concerns, Kartini also organized education for girls in the area where she lived. She also supported the revival of woodcarving and other traditional crafts among the villagers, and she herself took charge of the marketing. Through all this, she was a good Moslem, and continually prayed and fasted so that her ideals might be achieved.

In 1903, at the age of 24, she obeyed her father and married the Regent of Rembang, Raden Adipati Joyodiningrat, who was 50 and already had three wives and dozens of children. Her husband was said to be a supporter of progressive social policies. She had a scholarship to study in Europe, but her hopes to study abroad were dashed. Instead she established a special school for local girls. She realised that she would have far greater influence within Javanese society if she married a Regent. Together with her husband, she continued the activities that she had begun before her marriage. She also collected traditional Javanese legends for publication. In 1904, four days after giving birth, Kartini died at the age of 25.

After her death, all her correspondence with her Dutch friends, for example to Stella Zeehandellar, Rosa, were collected, edited and compiled by Kartini's sponsor and friend, J. H. Abendanon, a prominent colonial official. It made its way into a book in their original Dutch under the title Door Duisternis Tot Licht (Dari Gelap Terbitlah Terang or From Darkness to Light). This book appeared in 1911, and, by 1920 when the English edition was published, it had been reprinted four times.

"But it was not voices alone which reached me from that distant, that bright, that newborn Europe, which made me long for change in existing conditions. Even in my childhood, the word 'emancipation' enchanted my ears... and awakened in me an ever-growing longing for freedom and independence - a longing to stand alone. onditions both in my surroundings and in those of others around me broke my heart, and made me long with a nameless sorrow for the awakening of my country..." (Kartini to Stella Zeehandellar)

This written inheritance has proved to be effective and has strongly influenced the following generations up until the present. When they first appeared, her writings opened the eyes of both sides: the Indonesians and the Dutch. For the Dutch, Kartini's letters were the sign of friendship that overcame the differences between the two countries, and brought a new awareness of the reality of life for the colonized. For the Indonesian people, her letters expressed their frustration, pleas and hopes, which they had screamed silently for so long. At the same time, Indonesian nationalists were encouraged to move forward in their struggle to bring about Independence. Kartini herself had written: "Nationalism is already present in the social order as a saturated solution, ready to crystallize at the first shock".

Note: *RA is an acronym for Raden Ajeng, a noble title for ladies in Javanese aristocratic family (or known as kaum priyayi).


On her letters and thought
Many people disputed the authenticity of Kartini’s letters and thought due to her close relationship with her Dutch friends and Abendanon’s idealism to seek reform in colonialised Indonesia. On the one hand was Abendanon ~ a Director of Education, Industry, and Religion in the Dutch East Indies who was also known as a reformist, seeking to widen access to education for Dutch colonial subjects, and the person who collected, edited and published Kartini’s letters. On the other hand was Kartini ~ a privileged woman who felt trapped in feudal and patriarchal Javanese culture at that time.

Her letters were originally published in a highly edited form by Abendanon as a means of encouraging the colonial “ethical policy” in which liberal elements of the Dutch the colonial establishment felt it’s their duty to enlighten their colonial subjects, to bring them out of the darkness of superstition and ignorance. While liberals such as Abendanon supported education for the Javanese, however, their ideas did not address many of the contradictions of colonialism, and were in many was patronizing. Some have felt that Kartini, in criticizing feudal Javanese culture so strongly, implicitly embraces much of the value system of colonialism. Joost Coté, a scholar, in contrast, argues that Kartini’s writings are distinctly nationalist in tone, and identifies two key elements in them, which support such a conclusion. Kartini, Coté argues, has a complex and inflected attitude to both Javanese and Dutch colonial culture. She rejects aristocratic Javanese court culture but reclaims popular Javanese tradition; in a similar manner she rejects colonialism but demands access to the culture and science of the Enlightenment.

Some self-claimed feminists In Indonesia have criticized Kartini for being too subtle and gentle in her struggles then. If she despised polygamy why she married Raden Adipati Joyodiningrat who already had three wives? I think we should put Kartini’s action and decision in context, as suggested by some scholars. The following are some of the examples.

I was told that I should not forget that I was a Javanese, not a European woman. I could adopt European values as long as these did not conflict with our adat. I have learned three things from Europeans – love, sympathy, and the concept of justice, and I want to live according to these—Kartini 20 November 1901

Europe will teach us truly to be free—Kartini 10 June 1902

Reform is the product of the times! – it is not brought into being by the will of a single person—Kartini 18 May 1903

In her paper Kukathas said that Kartini dreaded the prospect of marriage to the Regent of Rembang. She described her wedding garments as her ‘costume of disguise’, and Roekmini (her sister) called it her ‘burial cloth’. Marriage meant the shattering of her hopes and admission into a new cage.

Within a few months, however her feelings were very different. She quickly came to admire the Regent who, as it turned out, shared many of her ideals. The reason he had sought out her parents and proposed marriage was that she was, by reputation, an independent-minded and interesting woman with a passion for social reform. The Regent himself was a highly educated man who had traveled to Holland and Europe, and had read widely. He therefore encouraged Kartini’s intellectual interests, and helped her prepare to open the school she wanted to found. He admired her learning and encouraged her to write a book on Javanese myths and legends, which he proposed they work on together. He shared her disdain for frivolity, as well as her criticisms of the Dutch administration and her sense of the injustice of the conditions of natives in the Indies. According to Kartini, he enlarged her perspective on the world. Of the things she came to admire about him, one was his unwillingness to subordinate himself: ‘my husband dares to look everyone in the eye’. Tell my sisters, she said, ‘my husband is worthy of my love and respect, totally.’

Indeed Kartini's life was very short. But, after her death, we should keep her spirit and idealism alive in the Indonesian people, especially in the women. When we read the extracts from Kartini’s letters, we may want to ask ourselves what qualities she envisions a modern Indonesian woman should possess, and indeed her vision of the place of women within a distinctively Indonesian modernity.


Books
Habis Gelap Terbitlah Terang (translated from Dutch to Indonesia by Armijn Pane)
Hari Kartini, yang diperingati setiap tanggal 21 April, selalu terekam kenangan tentang bagaimana hari tersebut diperingati. Lomba kebaya dan lagu "Ibu Kita Kartini", demikianlah kenangan itu. Di sekolah-sekolah dasar, sudah merupakan pemandangan tahunan jika peringatan ditandai dengan parade gadis-gadis kecil berkebaya bak potret atau gambar Kartini. [Read more...]

Panggil Aku Kartini Saja by Pramoedya Ananta Toer
Buy book at Select Books Online


Some Contemporary Heroines of Indonesia
Cut Syamsurniati: In Aceh, a woman warrior fights against fear (from Time Asia)
You can deal with terror two ways: you can hunker down, retreat from the world and let paranoia rule you; or you can do what Cut Syamsurniati did—fight back and reclaim your life. In January 1999, when soldiers and police engaged separatist rebels around Cut's village of Pusong in Indonesia's war-torn Aceh province, security forces killed seven villagers and injured 30. The menfolk of her village dared not evacuate the victims for fear of being shot as suspected rebels. "When I saw the men so helpless," Syamsurniati recalls, "I thought, 'Why can't women do this?'" So she and other village women negotiated with the military and escorted the wounded to the nearby town of Lhokseumawe for treatment. [Read more…]


Ester Indahyani Jusuf: Diskriminasi Bukan Hukum Alam (from Gatra Online)
Ester Indahyani Yusuf (33) bersama Komite Pembela Hak-hak Sipil dan Anti-Diskriminasi, berjuang menghapus diskriminasi di negeri ini. "Kami ingin menggalang dukungan agar RUU Anti-Diskriminasi segera diberlakukan," kata perempuan yang terlahir dengan nama Siem Ai Ling (putri mungil nan jelita) itu. Melalui Solidaritas Nusa Bangsa (SNB) yang dipimpinnya, ia menyosialisasikan RUU ini ke daerah-daerah. [Read more...]


Saur "Butet" Marlina Manurung: Mengabdi di Jalan Sunyi (from Kompas Online)
Neng Butet! Bolehlah perempuan Batak bernama Saur Marlina Manurung itu, disapa demikian? Maklumlah, beberapa tahun ia sempat menetap di tatar Sunda, sebagai mahasiswa Universitas Padjadjaran, Jatinangor, sebelum memutuskan hidup di belantara hutan di kawasan Taman Nasional Bukit Dua Belas, Propinsi Jambi, sekitar 225 km dari Kota Jambi ke arah barat. [Read more…]


What They Did With Their Lives (from Time Asia)
Grandmother Satima and mother Saidah, according to Pramoedya Ananta Toer, made him who he is. Two women gave me life. Two women of one flesh and blood, but sundered by fate. Two women who then defied that fate. Two women who taught me that the individual matters, above anyone or anything else. Two women who are my heroes. [Read more…]


Other Interesting Papers about Kartini and Women’s Studies in Indonesia
Apa Hebatnya Kartini? (by Limantina Sihaloho in Kompas Online)
Apa sih hebatnya Kartini? Goenawan Mohamad (seorang feminis atau pendukung feminisme?) pada kata pengantarnya dalam Aku Mau... Feminisme dan Nasionalisme: Surat-surat Kartini kepada Stella Zeehandelaar 1899-1903, menuliskan bahwa ide Kartini bukan datang dari ide seperti pemikiran feminisme Indonesia akhir abad ke-20. [Read more…]

Indonesia Women’s Studies Bibliography from UC Berkely Library

Teaching Indonesian Girls in Java and Bali 1900-1942: Dutch Progressives, The Infatuation with ‘Oriental’ Refinement and ‘Western’ Ideas about Proper Womanhood by Frances Gouda in Women’s History Review, Vol. 4, No. 1, 1995 (Washington, USA).

Abstract: This article examines the Dutch ‘Orientalist’ romance that inspired the creation of a system of private schools for aristocratic Javanese girls in early twentieth-century Indonesia. By inventing and exalting a pattern of reciprocity that presumably characterized feudalism in both a European or Asian setting – noblesse oblige – Dutch progressives expected that the education of aristocratic daughters would naturally ‘trickle down’ to poor women in village communities. In the process, upper-class girls were incorporated into a social taxonomy that mirrored Western sensibilities about status and gracious manners, while peasant women and Eurasian girls, who lived on the other side of the colonial divide, were inscribed with ‘otherness’. [Read more… in PDF format]

The Dilemma of a Dutiful Daughter: Love and Freedom in the Thought of Kartini by Chandra Kukathas (Dept. of Political Science, Univ. of Utah), Feb. 2005. Read more in PDF format.


Links
Kartini International Inc.
Kartini International is a dynamic, award-wining firm that specializes in gender equality and adult education services. Incorporated in 1996 in Ontario, the firm is committed to the vision and principles embodied by Raden Ajeng Kartini, a 19^th Century member of the Javanese royalty who was a passionate advocate for women’s education and rights. We actively seek to bring Kartini’s principles to the 21^st century in a blend of corporate and non-profit structures and practices. Our firm’s business ethics are based on egalitarian principles that include both women and men. This includes a progressive management structure that allows different team members to take the lead on specific projects based on their individual strengths and experience with the overall accountability and leadership provided by the firm’s Director, Dana Peebles. Our core team members are strongly committed to working in a collaborative framework and their experience and background reflects the diversity of the populations we serve.

Kartini International won the 2000 Canadian International Award for Gender Equality Achievement for the work we did on the CIDA-funded Gender in APEC project. We work at both the domestic and international levels. [Read more…]


Kartini Network: Gender and Women’s Studies Institute in Asia
Kartini is a network of women’s learning institutions and women’s organizations based in Asia formed for mutual capability building by sharing resources and also to give an Asian voice in the global advocacy for gender parity and women’s equality and the development of the full humanity of women. [Read more…]

Negeri Orang Tertawa

Oleh: Cak Nun (Emha Ainun Najib)

Berpengalaman Dijajah
Saya berasal dari sebuah negeri yang penuh kehangatan hidup. Bakat utama negeri saya adalah bergembira dan tertawa. Kaya atau miskin, menang atau kalah, mendapatkan atau kehilangan, kenyang atau lapar, sehat atau sakit - semuanya potensial untuk membuat kami bergembira dan tertawa.

Bangsa saya sangat murah hati. Mengekspor ke berbagai negara bukan hanya barang dan makanan, tetapi manusia. Penduduk negeri saya bertebaran diberbagai negara. Ada yang menjadi kaya, ada yang mati tak ketahuan kuburnya. Ada yang sukses, ada yang diperkosa. Ada yang pulang membawa modal lumayan, ada yang dipukul, diseterika, dibenturkan kepalanya ke tembok.. Dua kali saya membawa pulang wanita muda gegar otak dan badannya luka-luka, dari Cairo dan Riyadh ke Jakarta.

Aliansi anti deportasi di Jakarta melaporkan hampir 3 juta kasus penindasan atas tenaga kerja Indonesia diluar negeri, dan tak satupun yang diselesaikan, para pekerja yang sukses tidak ada yang bersikap egoistik: pulang ketanah air. Di Terminal 3 Cengkareng airport mereka menyediakan diri untuk ditodong oleh banyak yang memang menunggu disana untuk mencari nafkah. Itu membuat mereka menangis sejenak tapi kemudian tertawa-tawa lagi. Karena penderitaan adalah memang sahabat yang paling akrab dengan mereka sejak kanak kanak.

Bangsa saya sangat berpengalaman dijajah. Sebagian mereka menunggu penjajah datang ke kampungnya, sebagian yang lain menyebrang keluar negeri untuk mencari penjajah.


Tuhan Menyesuaikan Diri Pada Aturan Manusia
Bangsa Indonesia tidak memerlukan pemerintahan yang baik untuk tetap bisa bergembira dan tertawa. Kami memerlukan perekonomian yang stabil, politik yang bersih, kebudayaan yang berkualitas - untuk mampu bergembira dan tertawa. Kami bisa menjadi gelandangan, mendirikan rumah liar sangat sederhana di tepian sungai, dan kami hiasi dengan pot-pot bunga serta burung perkutut.

Bangsa kami sangat berpengalaman dijajah, juga saling menjajah diantara kami. Dijajah atau menjajah, kami bergembira dan tertawa. Sayang sekali belum ada ilmuwan yang tertarik meneliti frekuensi tertawa bangsa kami - di rumah, di warung, di lapangan sepakabola, di ruang pertunjukan, di layar televisi, ditengah kerusuhan, di gedung parlemen, ibadah dan di manapun saja. Ada orang yang terjatuh dari motor, kami menuding-nudingnya sambil tertawa. Orang bodoh ditertawakan. Apalagi orang pintar.

Kehidupan kami sangat longar, sangat permisif dan penuh kompromi. Segala sesuatu bisa dan gampang diatur. Hukum sangat fleksibel, asal menguntungkan. Kebenaran harus tunduk kepada kemauan kita. Bangsa saya bukan masyarakat kuno yang sombong dengan jargon: "MEMBELA YANG BENAR." Kami sudah menemukan suatu formula pragmatis untuk kenikmatan hidup, yakni "membela yang bayar."

Tuhan harus menyesuaikan aturan-aturan-Nya dengan perkembangan dan kemajuan hidup kita. Orang-orang yang memeluk agama sudah sangat lelah berabad-abad diancam oleh Tuhan yang maha menghukum, menyiksa, mencampakkan ke api neraka. Tuhan yang boleh masuk ke rumah kita sekarang adalah Tuhan yang penuh kasih sayang yang suka memaafkan dan memaklumi kesalahan-kesalahan kita. Sebagaimana kata-kata mutiara - "Manusia itu tempat salah dan maaf."

Kiriman: Eky Sri Handayani (Jakarta - Indonesia)