Fujin Bu helps Japanese-Indonesian women connect with their culture
Fujin Bu helps Japanese-Indonesian women connect with their culture
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Nancy Takasaki, the maiden name of Mrs. Krisnawidjaja, prefers to
spend her Wednesday mornings folding paper into animal shapes and
making washi ningyo, Japanese paper dolls.
With her friends Kiyoe Sitanggang, Endang Tanaka and Lina
Simoka, Nancy devotes at least one day between Wednesday and
Saturday to Japanese cultural activities, including learning how
to produce Japanese handicrafts.
The four, all Indonesians of Japanese descent, are
participants in a program called Fujin Bu.
"This program is about doing positive things. The program aims
to facilitate housewives, especially those of Japanese descent,
in spending their time wisely," said Nancy, the coordinator of
the program.
"It's a much better way of spending an afternoon than watching
gossip shows or attending arisan social gatherings."
The Fujin Bu program was established under the Yayasan Warga
Persahabatan, a foundation that supports people of Japanese
descent across the country.
The program was formulated to encourage more women to become
involved in the foundation's activities, Nancy said.
"The program was first initiated on April 29, 2000, so that
the foundation could maximize the participation of women
members," she added.
Fujin Bu, which means "Women's Department", provides an
opportunity for women to make good use of their spare time by
studying various Japanese traditions, such as the Japanese tea
ceremony, origami, making washi, and Japanese shuji calligraphy.
"In this program, we learn together. There's no teacher and
there's no student," Kiyoe said.
The women said they learned about almost all Japanese
traditions from books or Japanese friends who often visited the
foundation's offices in Tebet, South Jakarta.
Nancy said that learning Japanese traditions would teach them
the philosophy of that culture.
"For example, washi or origami upholds the principal that
nothing should be thrown out. Every single used item can be used
to make other things. It teaches us how to live efficiently," she
said.
Lina added that despite trying to learn her grandparents'
traditions, she also used the program to help her earn extra
money.
"I often sell the products we make during the program at
school bazaars and they attract a lot of consumers," she said.
Nancy said that she was also looking for opportunities to sell
the products they created so they would not be dependent on
donors to finance the foundation's activities.
"If more women become involved and more handicrafts are
produced, we could sell them and use the money to finance the
foundation's social activities," said Nancy, who is also the
foundation's treasurer. (006)