Educated women think little of Mega: Study

Dewi Santoso, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Women of high education in Indonesia look down on Megawati Soekarnoputri as the country's first female president, a dissertation found.

The dissertation was written by doctoral candidate Billy Sarwono Atmonobudi of the University of Indonesia (UI) based on in-depth interviews with an editor of national leading newspaper Kompas and seven women of different educational backgrounds, cultures and races.

It reveals that the seven women are of the opinion that Megawati only became president because she carries her father's (founding president Sukarno) name.

"They don't think Megawati herself is capable of being president. To them, without Sukarno, she is nothing. She is not as tough and intelligent as (president Baharuddin Jusuf) Habibie because she is a woman," the communication expert, popularly known as Oni, told a public forum at the UI campus in Depok.

In the debate, she was asked to defend her analysis.

The seven respondents are wives of young professionals, some have obtained university degrees and have opted to stay at home to run the household.

"Their perception of being good wives to their husbands and attentive mothers to their children is staying at home, bringing up the kids, cooking and doing housework," she said.

This, Oni said, was the result of a patriarchal society, that believes a woman's place is in the home, thus, leaving little room for them to participate in outside activities, let alone politics.

She added that for Chinese-Indonesian women, the pressure to stay away from politics was doubled as they were seen as a minority in the country and in their own culture where males are seen as superior.

"To them, women work because they need the money and not because they want to have a career. As long as their husbands can provide for them, they feel they should not work and just stay at home.

"Even if some Indonesian women do work abroad, their contribution is seen as insignificant as they work only as domestic helpers," Oni told the press, referring to Indonesian female migrant workers.

The media, she asserted, played a role in forming this perception as they were the "myth-maker."

"The media is reporting news through a male perspective as most of the reporters and editors are male. Female reporters or editors will have to see things through male spectacles to survive in their tough working environment," she explained.

This situation has created another perception that women who have succeeded in their career must had been very ambitious.

"This further shows that when women sit at the top or in good positions, the media often judges them based on gender rather than their capabilities," she said.

Thus, the ideal solution would be to have a gender perspective journalism. One example, she said, would be to have more women as sources.

"With the media reporting more gender-balanced news, the perception that women should stay away from politics will shift," said Oni.

I-box

News on Mega as reported by 'Kompas'

in Billy Sarwono Atmonobudi's dissertation

.TB.90" ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Year News ---------------------------------------------------------------------- 1993 Mega as the Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI) leader.

The paper emphasized more on her appearance such as her

light make-up and her role as the wife of Taufik Kiemas and mother of three children, rather than her capabilities.

1999 Mega as vice president. The paper described a gender-

stereotyping portrait of her weaknesses such as being

overly quiet and sensitive toward her supporters. The

paper closed the article by mentioning her father.

1999 Mega as presidential candidate. The paper did not give a

clear explanation as to whether her candidacy as

president was in doubt due to her lack of ability or her

gender. When she became the president, the paper called

her the Sphinx of Indonesia for her quietness.

2001 Mega as president. Although she was already president, the

paper still portrayed her as a woman who stood in

the shadow of her husband and her father. The paper

expressed fear that her power might be misused by her

husband.