Exhibits tell untold stories of women pioneers

By Mehru Jaffer and Ida Indawati Khouw

JAKARTA (JP): Never heard of Soenting Melajoe?

Join the crowd -- this is the name of a newsletter published in 1912 in West Sumatra by Rohana Kudus, the first "Indonesian" woman journalist.

This newsletter is another of the little-known facts about the contribution of women and rightly deserves a spot alongside the legendary Kartini, educational pioneer Dewi Sartika and Tjut Nyak Dien, in the making of modern Indonesia. The newsletter is now on display at an extraordinary exhibition, Celebrating Indonesian Women -- Kartini and Other Women Who Made a Difference, at Erasmus Huis.

With the anniversary of Kartini's birth on April 21, preparations are under way for the celebration of women's day. Unlike previous years, however, it is hoped that this year the celebration will be more meaningful than polite lip service to Kartini, the most well known of all Indonesian women.

This year Kartini Day will be spent in the memory of a broad range of visionary women and it will be approached as an occasion to salute all Indonesian women. A book will be launched on Rohana Kudus, covering her efforts to educate women and girls in Koto Gadang, West Sumatra, where she was born in 1884. She founded the school, Keradjinan Ama Setia, in 1911 and edited Soenting Melajoe.

The last century has ushered in momentous changes for the lives of women here. To a large extent, these changes have been due to the struggle for a more just, dynamic and peaceful society by women pioneers such as Rohana. Throughout the 1900s, individual women at the local level fought to make a difference in the often miserable lives of most women.

Maria Maramis was born in 1872 in Kema, North Sulawesi. An orphan at the age of six years, she was educated by an uncle. Although she went to school for only three years she continued to educate herself. Building upon her own experiences, Maria helped to set up schools in Sulawesi, Sumatra, Kalimantan and Java.

But it is almost impossible to obtain detailed information on women like Maria.

Although there are three of Kartini's letters on exhibit, the organizers admit reliable sources are hard to find when tracing the history of the women's movement. Much of this history still needs to be written and the process of locating letters, pictures, magazines, verbal recollections from members of the older generation and other sources continues.

I. Heidenbrink, the conservation manager of the Algemeen Rijksarchief, the Dutch national archives, in The Hague said: "Hundreds of Kartini's original letters are kept at the Royal Institute of Linguistics and Anthropology (KITLV in Leiden) while the Dutch national archives only has six pieces.

"We can only display three of the original letters in the exhibition here because the KITLV policy is that the heritage collection can't be taken abroad."

Acknowledging that there is "a lot of work to do", Heidenbrink said that Dutch institutions are prepared and willing to assist in the effort to find out more about women pioneers.

"I plan to cooperate with the National Archives of Indonesia and other institutions and individuals in efforts to locate more historical records on leading women, as it is important to reconstruct history from the primary sources available," he said.

"The cooperation will also search for letters from Kartini's friends in Holland, which could still be kept with the heroine's relatives here."

Although the pioneers of the women's movement have been declared national heroes, in the last 30 years all initiatives of women at the local level have been hampered.

The women's movement was frozen and with the birth of Dharma Wanita, an organization for civil servants' wives, in 1974, it was coopted in line with the state ideology. An idealized picture of the family was established and propagandized that greatly resembled traditional families in the West, with the man as provider and the woman as the caretaker of children. It is increasingly felt that during this period of relative peace and development the real needs of women were not addressed. In fact any criticism or opposition to the policies of the ruling regime was dealt with harshly.

A seminar, organized by the Dutch national archives along with various other institutions including the Yayasan Jurnal Perempuan, will be held at the exhibition on Kartini Day, April 21.

As people remember Kartini Day, it is important to recognize that Kartini herself be honored as is her due, but this exhibition also goes some way to show that other Indonesian women, equally inspiring for their various talents, should also receive our proud attention.

The exhibition is being held at Erasmus Huis, Jl. HR Rasuna Said, Kav. S-3, Kuningan, South Jakarta. Opening hours are 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays, 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. Saturday. Inquiries about the seminar can be directed to Yayasan Jurnal Perempuan (tel. 8372005).