Confused perceptions about national identity<\/p>\n
Mochtar Buchori
\nJakarta<\/p>\n
Do we know what kind of a nation we really are? Aren't we
\noftentimes confusing our "real", actual identity with our
\nimagined one?<\/p>\n
These questions keep coming up in my mind, especially since I
\ntook part in a discussion on how to restore our tarnished
\nnational identity. At this meeting I had a chance to meet people
\nwho seemed genuinely interested in getting a better understanding
\nof what "national identity" means, and to discuss with them the
\nnumerous problems surrounding national identity.<\/p>\n
Seven "experts", including myself, were invited to this
\nmeeting, and each one was first asked to express his view
\nregarding the issue. These seven experts were all male and they
\ncame from various academic and professional backgrounds. It was
\nthus no wonder that more than seven different views and opinions
\nwere offered on the concept of "national identity" or "Indonesian
\nidentity".<\/p>\n
According to one expert there is just no such thing as
\n"national identity". He said this was a concept that was both
\nuseful and powerful, but its embodiment was still in the process
\nof becoming. What we have today in this regard is a collection of
\n"ethnic identities".<\/p>\n
Another expert responded by saying that even at the level of
\nethnic identity the picture that emerges is that of constant
\nshifts and changes caused by several factors. There are changes
\ncaused by generational factors, other changes from assimilation
\nfactor, while some changes simply occur because of the passage of
\ntime. The new generation among the Javanese or Acehnese, for
\nexample, are a bit different from the old stereotypical Javanese
\nor Acehnese. And with each successive generation this shift
\ncontinues to take place.<\/p>\n
There are also changes caused by interethnic marriages. The
\n"Jambon" (Jawa-Ambon) mix or the "Jali" (Jawa-Bali) mix has
\nbrought about children who assume their own group identity after
\nthey grow up. They are neither Javanese nor Ambonese nor Balinese
\nin their personality or cultural makeup.<\/p>\n
Still another expert claimed that there was only one sure
\nthing about "national identity" or "Indonesian identity"; that
\nit is multicultural. The problem related to this identity is how
\nwe express it in our social interactions. In expressing our
\n"Unity in Diversity" identity, there is the question of which
\nelement to emphasize. The "unity" element or the "diversity"
\nelement?<\/p>\n
There were other interesting observations made by these seven
\nexperts. Acting as "resource people" in this meeting, they were
\ntrying to help identify ways that will guide the nation toward a
\nmore clearly defined contour of national identity. Such a step is
\nconsidered important because leaving the nation unaided in its
\nsearch for undefined national identity can have disastrous
\nconsequences. It can lead the nation to a situation where it
\nremains indecisive in facing forced choices. What eventually
\nemerges will be a national character that is filled with
\ninconsistencies and contradictions. This is the identity of a
\nsick nation.<\/p>\n
A rather heated argument ensued between the experts and the
\nbureaucrats who organized the meeting when the moderator said the
\nideas and views expressed in the discussion would perhaps be used
\nto formulate policy to help guide the nation toward an existence
\nthat would inspire respect and awe among other nations.<\/p>\n
This idea was labeled bina bangsa and bina negara policy, i.e.
\na policy that would allow the government to determine how the
\nnation should be organized in the future.<\/p>\n
This statement prompted an immediate reaction from one of the
\nexperts. He argued that the process of becoming a mature nation
\ncould not be dictated from above. It is a process that should
\nproceed from the bottom up, not the other way around. Government
\nintervention should be limited to fulfilling the most essential
\nfunctions, i.e. facilitating society in its search for a final
\nformat of national identity.<\/p>\n
My contribution to this meeting was a personal view concerning
\nthe way the "identity crisis" has been playing out in society
\nand how it has caused a decline in our commitment to values.
\nPrevious generations committed themselves to values that
\nconstituted the guiding principles of this nation. These included
\nmutual respect, trust in one another, honest exchanges of ideas
\nand a shared commitment to a better collective future, among
\nothers. Do we still adhere to such values?<\/p>\n
I concluded that the surest way to overcome this identity
\ncrisis was to implement a new kind of value education in our
\neducational institutions. This new kind of value education would
\ndiffer from traditional education in three ways.<\/p>\n
First, it would encompass all kinds of values and would not be
\nlimited to esthetic and ethical values, i.e. values that underlie
\na sense of empathy.<\/p>\n
The second difference is that the new kind of value education
\nwould not aim merely to make the young generation cognitively
\naware of the values they should be observing in their individual
\nand collective lives. Beyond this goal the new value education
\nwould be designed to guide the young in the process of committing
\nthemselves to values they had come to know and understand. And
\nthird, this new kind of value education would be carried out by
\nall teachers in their respective subject matters, and not only by
\nteachers of the arts, religion and civic education.<\/p>\n
Why is the issue of national identity so important?<\/p>\n
Because identity determines the meaning of our existence. We,
\nas a nation, cannot possibly achieve anything beyond the limits
\ndefined by our identity. Are we a rich or a poor nation?
\nPerceptions differ. And this means that we have differing views
\nof one aspect of our national identity. To behave as a member of
\na rich nation where the majority of the people are poor shows a
\nvery poor sense of one's own identity and the identity of the
\nnation.<\/p>\n
Perhaps we will never be able to grasp the true identity of
\nour nation. In emergency situation we act on the basis of our
\ntrue identity, but in discourse we talk primarily in terms of
\nperceived national identity, which change from one generation to
\nthe next. And if we now feel that our national identity is on the
\nbrink of disintegration, it is the duty of every responsible
\ncitizen and group of citizens to restore this sagging identity
\nand prevent it from declining any further.<\/p>\n
Not the least important among these citizens and groups of
\ncitizens are politicians and political parties.<\/p>\n
The writer has a doctorate in education from Harvard
\nUniversity.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/confused-perceptions-about-national-identity-1447893297",
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