FEW, an organization that binds active, busy women

FEW, an organization that binds active, busy women

By Izabel Deuff

JAKARTA (JP): A few smartly dressed white women laughed and
chatted in English in the Batur Room in the Mercantile Club on
the 18th floor of the World Trade Center in Central Jakarta.
Their classic cut suits were fitting attire for the suite, which
has a strict dress code, and the crisp white shirts of the
waiters who stood at intervals around the carpeted room only
served to emphasize the exclusive nature of this meeting.

That was on Thursday, June 28, at 6:30 p.m. Welcome to the
monthly meeting of the Forum for Executive Women (FEW).

Two new members were informally introduced and were cordially
invited to taste the tuna and the beef toasts. The bar was open,
but was avoided by the members, who preferred to have tea.

An hour later, led by FEW chairwoman Ann Walsh, the assembled
group moved toward chairs ranged in the middle of the room. Ann
began to speak. She welcomed the newcomers in a plain and easy
way -- just as a chief executive would do so. That night, 21
people turned up to watch a slide show presented by Carl-bernd
Kaehling, the special guest that evening, on one of his trips
through Maluku.

The beautiful white sands and clear seas met with universal
approval and generated several envious exclamations from the
audience.

Do these full-time and ever-air-conditioning-living ladies
work so that they too can treat themselves to such holidays? Had
they gathered to lay plans for just such a trip?

Not at all. This event was one of many, ranging from
entertainment to business activities, which are organized by FEW,
a non-profit organization with exclusively female members.
However, despite its membership rules, the main objective of the
group is not to defend women's rights or to empower women.

This non-feminist forum aims to link together working women
and involve them in a network. It gives them the opportunity to
meet people from a similar background and to exchange information
and socialize.

"FEW is different because we meet in the evening whereas other
women's associations usually organize activities in the afternoon
and target non-working women in particular," said Judith S.
MacCornick, a member and chief consultant at Persona.

FEW was born two years ago. Claire Kosh, one of the eight
founders, explained how the association came into existence: "We
were a bunch of friends, all working women. Unlike men who had
their business or their golf events, we didn't get the
opportunity to meet very often. We were flabbergasted that we
appealed to so many people the first time we held a meeting."

The first meeting was held on May 1, 1996, and was attended by
around 80 women. At first only foreign women came, then FEW
became more serious, set up a formal structure and became more
cosmopolitan. It has now welcomed women from as far afield as
Western Europe, North America, India, Singapore, Australia and
Indonesia.

On the last Thursday of each month, between 20 and 100 members
attend a regular group meeting. The size of the audience depends
on the subject for discussion. They have in the past organized a
jewelry event, a panel discussion of bankers, and in the future
might hold a wine tasting session.

According to Jenny Mann, an Indonesian member, most of the
local members are looking for opportunities to network with and
gain knowledge from foreign professionals.

Property consultant Alison Cooke has been a member of the
group for two years. "I wouldn't need to join such an
organization if I were in London or Paris because a business
network already exists. Here it's just opening up. It is a good
way to meet well-known and prominent people with whom it would
otherwise be difficult to get an appointment to meet."

FEW has already hosted Barbara Harvey, deputy ambassador at
the American Embassy, Nenny Soemawinta of ANteve and Tini Hadad,
chairwoman of the Indonesian Consumers Association. Other
prominent people who have spoken at the groups meetings are Mari
Pangetsu from the Center for Strategic and International Studies,
Jim Castle of the Castle Group and John MacBeth, the Jakarta
Bureau Chief for the Far Eastern Economic Review. The have spoken
on issues ranging from deregulation, growth opportunities and
Indonesia's economic crisis.

Non-members can attend the meetings but they have to pay an
entrance fee which ranges from Rp 30,000 to Rp 50,000, depending
on the venue and the food and beverage served.

To join the group you have to pay a registration fee of Rp
30,000 which covers the cost of maintaining the FEW directory and
printing a regular newsletter.

The organization currently has 220 members who are between 21
and 65 years old. The average age in the group is 30.

The members work for governments and local and international
private companies. They have good jobs -- they are divisional
heads, managers, professors, directors, vice presidents,
presidents and executive directors -- and transgress many sectors
of the economy.

Their successful careers make them much more self-confident
than other women. As Jenny said, "these women are very smart and
well educated. When they have a career they know exactly what
they want."

She compared them with Indonesian women, whom she said were
too shy, lacked enough aggression and were too willing to
compromise, adding that the group would like to have more
Indonesian members.

"We would like to have more Indonesian members," said Alison.

She told The Jakarta Post that one French woman was
disappointed at not having met any Indonesian people at one of
the FEW meetings. It should be an exchange where foreign people
can discover Indonesia and the local members can promote their
country.

Alison expressed a desire for FEW to become more active in
women's issues, especially in the aftermath of the widespread
violence that was directed toward women during the May riots. She
also said she would like the members to be more active in
proposing ideas for future meetings, but was still satisfied with
the forum because it was professionally managed. That was a point
every member seemed to appreciate, besides the efforts made to
give all the members a friendly welcome and to listen to what
they had to say.

You would be surprised how much you could learn from Goenawan
Mohamad, a famous Indonesian intellectual who is scheduled to
address FEW's next meeting on July 30.

Anyone who is interested in joining FEW should contact Aparna
Vidyanath on 530-7892 or 530-0088.