Anti-Chinese attitude

Anti-Chinese attitude

On June 1, 2000, which happened to be Pancasila day, my three
female friends and I had a very shocking experience as we met a
very anti-Chinese man in Alessandro Nannini Cafe at Plaza
Senayan, Jakarta.

We were given a table in the corner. However, noticing an
unattended table, one of my friends who is Chinese like me, asked
the waiter if the table would accommodate the four of us. At that
time, the man who was sitting near where I was standing shouted:
"Hey"! to my Chinese friend. She didn't hear it. My friend
returned telling us that the other table had been reserved. As
she was about to sit down, suddenly the man sitting behind her
moved his right elbow roughly towards my friend's chair and her
back. Then followed an exchange of arguments as we tried to blame
each other as to who really started the trouble.

A cafe employee came to our table to stop the quarrel. "It's
all right! We are all one. We are all the Indonesian people"!, he
said.

I was shocked that the man who looked educated could be so
ill-mannered. On that particular day we were supposed to think of
how to strengthen the unity of the people of this beloved country
of ours.

A. TRESNASARI

Jakarta