A timid walk to a place free from discrimination

A timid walk to a place free from discrimination

Evi Mariani and Adianto P. Simamora, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

For the past two years, Daniel Kristanto, 28, has not been
afraid to get into a traffic argument in Jakarta despite his
obvious ethnic Chinese appearance.

"If a car tries to cut me off in traffic, I will fight back
regardless of the driver's ethnicity," he said.

This is something he would never have considered doing in,
say, 1997, because such a simple act of defense (or offense) was
sometimes enough to incite an ethnic riot.

"In big cities like Jakarta, I feel that my life as a Chinese-
Indonesian has improved in recent years. I feel more freedom now,
I can go anywhere without worrying about my Chinese look," Daniel
told The Jakarta Post.

However, one morning, he was reminded of the problems facing
ethnic Chinese while reading a national newspaper.

"There was an article about a graft suspect. The story
mentioned the suspect's name as well as his Chinese name,
something like 'Mr. X', whose real name is blah blah blah,'"
Daniel said.

"What about other Chinese-Indonesians who give Indonesia a
good name for the rest of the world? Like Susi Susanti, Alan
Budikusuma or Agnes Monica. Does the media ever mention their
Chinese names?" he asked, clearly irritated.

Since 2000, when then president Abdurrahman Wahid lifted the
ban on celebrating the Chinese New Year, some Chinese-Indonesians
have begun to emerge from the bitter past of violence and
injustice.

At the same time, some non-ethnic Chinese have started to be
more accepting of Chinese-Indonesians, walking side by side with
them.

But what a long walk they must take, so after four years the
road to a diverse and peaceful country still stretches far ahead
of them.

"There are some obstacles on the road toward a world free of
racial discrimination, it's true. But it's nothing to worry about
because we are on the right track," Benny G. Setiono, the
chairman of the Chinese-Indonesian Association, told the Post.

"Since the May riots in 1998, many Chinese-Indonesians have
begun to be more inclusive. We show that we care for others. For
example, we have sent dozens of medical workers to Meulaboh and
we will send more," he said.

Ester Indahyani Yusuf, whose organization Solidarity for the
Nation, works for a world without ethnic discrimination, agreed
that simple acts of kindness from the Chinese-Indonesian
community could tear down the walls of prejudice on both sides.

"For example, once a Chinese-Indonesian community helped out
flood victims around the neighborhood. They received a warm
response and a special speech from the community leader about
accepting Chinese-Indonesians as friends," Ester said.

Among the people who do not anchor political or economic
interests, discrimination and prejudice seem to be more easily
vanquished. A pleasant smile, a simple "hi" to the neighbors and
a brief chat usually do the trick.

But that often is not the case with the government and
officials.

Chinese-Indonesians still are seen as cash cows for some
government officials who make the process of applying for an
identity card or a passport a tormenting labyrinth.

Apart from this extortion in the guise of bureaucracy, the
government also has showed no interest in providing a clean and
honest start to help the people end prejudice.

"There has been no political will to seriously investigate and
seek justice for the May riots," said Ester, who has been working
on the issue for almost seven years.

There has never been an explanation from the government about
how the riots and the violence was able to take place under the
nose of the military and the police.

Bernard Wijaya, 56, a community leader in a housing complex
Pluit, North Jakarta, where 98 percent of the residents are
Chinese-Indonesians, said he had overcome the trauma of those
ugly events.

"We are glad that now we can celebrate the Chinese New Year
without fear," he said.

Indeed, days before the Chinese New Year, some houses in his
neighborhood are adorned with red lanterns, telling passersby the
owners are going to celebrate the Year of the Rooster.

However, at the same time, the tall and sturdy gates erected
after the riots are still standing, separating the housing
complex from the surrounding neighborhood.

It is as if the red lanterns are saying, "Yes, we acknowledge
we have been recognized and accepted and we're happy," while at
the same time the gates say, "But prejudice lingers."