Enough is enough for RI Chinese<\/p>\n
By Rahayu Ratnaningsih<\/p>\n
This is the first of two articles on the relationship between
\npeople of Chinese and Malay descent in the country.<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): I strongly identified myself with the majority
\nof Indonesian people in their struggle to fight the oppressive
\nand corrupt regime of Soeharto. I "cried" with them when four
\nTrisakti students were murdered and have never condoned the
\ncorrupt practices that benefited only certain privileged groups
\nof people.<\/p>\n
However, only recently it dawned on me that I was suffering
\nfrom a major crisis of identity, that is shared by many of my
\nkind, and has manifested itself as a huge sense of rejection.<\/p>\n
I would like to articulate what is currently burning inside
\nme. I am experiencing a nagging disappointment with the only
\nhomeland I know, an experience shared by every other person of
\nChinese descent in Indonesia.<\/p>\n
For an Indonesian, or Chinese-Indonesian to be more precise,
\nwhat is now left to be proud of? Virtually nothing.<\/p>\n
This is the country which I long believed to be the most
\ntolerant Moslem society in the world, the multicultural and
\nmultiethnic make-up of which embodied its rich natural beauty.
\nNow the same country appears to some to be another Nazi regime in
\nthe making, with the Chinese taking the place of the Jews.<\/p>\n
Many Chinese-Indonesians who fled the country are still scared
\nto return. They feel the racial persecution which they recently
\nsuffered is a recurring disease with roots which can be traced
\nback to the Dutch colonial era. It reared its ugly head during
\nSukarno's reign and became progressively more pervasive and
\nsystemic throughout Soeharto's time in office.<\/p>\n
Many believe it will erupt once again in the not-too-distant
\nfuture. Those wealthy Chinese-Indonesians who are currently
\nabroad probably won't have anything to worry about, but the vast
\nmajority don't have economic means to escape, especially since
\nmuch of their property was burned and looted in the May riots.
\nNow they have to live their lives in fear of the next uprising.<\/p>\n
The last 60 days have been filled with polemic discussing
\nChinese-Indonesians' alleged role in their own persecution,
\nnarrated over the deafening silence on the part of the government
\nand the vast majority of Indonesian citizens.<\/p>\n
In an attempt to distract attention from the gravity of the
\nrecent human rights violations, many have resorted to the tired
\nold generalization that the majority of Chinese are money-
\noriented, filthy rich, greedy, less patriotic, and prone to
\ncollusion.<\/p>\n
Astonishingly, a similar justification was broadcast on state-
\nowned TVRI in its recent special report entitled Nuansa
\nReformasi. The channel is essentially the government's
\nspokesperson.<\/p>\n
It also aired a commentary by former minister of religious
\naffairs Tarmizi Taher, who implied that the main reason why
\nChinese-Indonesians were persecuted was because they tended to
\nseek allies with the powerful, rather than the common people.<\/p>\n
I believe this man, who has published a book on the history of
\nthe Chinese in Indonesia, needs to conduct a lot more research to
\nvalidate his claims before he can style himself as an expert on
\nrace relations in the country.<\/p>\n
The Program's narrator summarized the report by saying
\nChinese-Indonesians should try harder to assimilate with other
\nIndonesians, avoid building luxurious houses with high fences,
\nand join in with community night patrols.<\/p>\n
The fact that most rich Malays also build mansions and most
\nmiddle and upper class Malays never join in night patrols were,
\nof course, beside the point and not worth mentioning.<\/p>\n
The most ludicrous, hypocritical and blatant racist act of the
\nIndonesian government, in this case under Soeharto's rule, was to
\ntell the Chinese to deny their roots and cultural heritage in
\norder to assimilate more quickly with mainstream Indonesian
\nsociety.<\/p>\n
Having obediently followed every single decree forced upon
\nthem -- from obligatory changes to their names to dismissing
\ntheir tradition, language and faith -- Chinese-Indonesians still
\nfind themselves bombarded with discriminatory treatment.<\/p>\n
The result is a confused generation, of which I am a part, who
\nat times are embarrassed to admit they are of Chinese descent, as
\nif being Chinese was an awful disgrace.<\/p>\n
Such people have never known any other homeland, predominantly
\nspeak Bahasa Indonesia, were raised and educated in Indonesia,
\nand work and mingle with indigenous Indonesians, yet they are
\nstill outcasts because of their ethnic origins.<\/p>\n
Unlike Malaysia, which depicts itself as an integrated
\ncommunity consisting of three main ethnic groups -- Malay,
\nChinese and Indian -- Indonesian students are taught of their
\ncountry's diverse ethnicity and culture, but not in a single
\nschool book is it mentioned that Chinese are an integral part of
\nthe Indonesian nation.<\/p>\n
Given these facts, is it that strange for the Chinese to
\nremain unsure of their status and position, despite the fact that
\nthey are formally citizens of the Republic of Indonesia?<\/p>\n
Realistically, how can the Chinese community be asked to show
\ntheir patriotism if they are made to feel they don't belong in
\nthe nation of their birth?<\/p>\n
As I recall, in the 1970's when barongsai and liong
\n(traditional Chinese dragon dances) was still allowed, both
\nMalays and Chinese shared joyous moments during these cultural
\nfiestas. Some non-Chinese even danced in the performances.
\nCultural relations were much more harmonious at that time.<\/p>\n
The forced denial and self-deprivation of one's cultural
\nheritage under the false presumption that it is for the best is,
\nI believe, a type of persecution that should not have a place in
\na country that calls itself civilized.<\/p>\n
It is akin to the apartheid system adopted by the former South
\nAfrican regime. Hence, racism in Indonesia is not just about a
\nfew isolated bigots, it is systematic and structural.<\/p>\n
In stark contrast to government rhetoric on ethnic and racial
\nconflicts, the segregation of the Chinese from other racial
\ngroups in the country was deliberately engineered by Soeharto's
\nregime through its "divide and conquer" policy.<\/p>\n
The first advantage of this strategy is that it allows those
\nin power to take advantage of Chinese business acumen and
\npolitical vulnerability, a combination which opens the door to
\nrich pickings from blackmail and extortion.<\/p>\n
The second advantage is that it allows the government to
\ndeflect attention away from its own incompetence toward the
\npowerless Chinese. This ironically makes the Chinese community
\nmore dependent on the government for protection and provides more
\nleverage for blackmail.<\/p>\n
By banning all Chinese cultural icons, Soeharto sowed the
\nseeds of suspicion among other racial and cultural groups in the
\ncountry.<\/p>\n
This led to the perception that everything related to Chinese
\nculture was a potential source of discord and catastrophe, one
\nexample being the threat of communism.<\/p>\n
As we have seen, Soeharto remained silent when many Chinese
\nwere being raped and butchered throughout the country, both last
\nyear and in May. Leaving the Chinese to fend for themselves was
\none of his worst political crimes.<\/p>\n
This astutely well-disguised oppression ironically made the
\nChinese more dependent on Soeharto's administration. They were
\nconvinced that only his regime could save them from the hostility
\nwhich mainstream Muslim society frequently directed at them.<\/p>\n
Soeharto skillfully played this psychological game with his
\njingoistic rhetoric on nationalism.<\/p>\n
Now that Chinese-Indonesian businesses have been largely
\ndestroyed, people are beginning to feel the impact this will have
\non the economy.<\/p>\n
The ambivalence of the attitude of mainstream Indonesian
\nsociety to the Chinese minority can now be seen very clearly.
\nWhile on the one hand many people object to the Chinese
\ndominating the economy, they now realize that despite accusations
\nthat most Chinese businesses thrived through collusion with
\ngovernment officials, they can't start rebuilding the economy
\nwithout the Chinese.<\/p>\n
It should not, logically speaking, be a problem for Malay
\nbusinesspeople to rebuild the economy and simultaneously replace
\nthe Chinese in sectors which they formerly dominated. In fact,
\nthis is their big chance to prove they can do the job just as
\nwell as the Chinese.<\/p>\n
So, why than are there still angry voices condemning the
\nChinese-Indonesians who escaped the turmoil with their money, and
\ntheir lives?<\/p>\n
I marvel at the fact that after 60 days of intense pressure
\nfrom the National Commission of Human Rights and a number of
\nNGOs, not a word of an apology has been forthcoming from Habibie
\nor the Commander of the Armed Forces. Their only gesture has been
\na plea to the Chinese who fled the country to return and restart
\ntheir businesses. How convenient. You can't have your cake and
\neat it. After witnessing members of their families' being
\ntortured and killed, and their womenfolk gang raped, the Chinese
\ncommunity is now being told to remain patriotic and
\nnationalistic.<\/p>\n
This is the time to say enough is enough. Our respectable
\nleaders should halt all discussion regarding nationalist
\nsentiment among Chinese-Indonesian's until they have been given
\nthe equal rights as citizens which they deserve.<\/p>\n
Furthermore, Chinese-Indonesians should not even consider
\nrestarting business until the government has retracted all the
\nracist policies which were introduced over the last 32 years by
\nSoeharto's regime and the new government has guaranteed their
\nsafety.<\/p>\n
They must stop treating the Chinese community like dairy cows
\nwhich can be milked at will. On their part, the Chinese should
\nstop giving other Indonesians derogatory nicknames and adopt a
\nless condescending attitude toward them. We have learned the
\npainful way how it feels to be stereotyped and discriminated
\nagainst and so we must not inflict this horrible act upon others.<\/p>\n
The writer is a human resources consultant based in Jakarta.<\/p>\n
Window: This is the country which I long believed to be the most
\ntolerant Moslem country in the world, the multicultural and
\nmultiethnic make-up of which embodied its rich beauty. Now the
\nsame country appears to some to be another Nazi regime in which
\nChinese are the Jews.<\/p>",
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