Handbook on feminism handles typical queries

Persoalan Pokok mengenai Feminisme dan Relevansinya (translated from Some Questions on Feminism and its Relevance in South Asia) By: Kamla Bashin and Nighat Said Khan, 1986 Published by: PT Gramedia Pustaka Utama, 1994 Price: Rp 3,500, 66 p.

JAKARTA (JP): Every Sunday evening SCTV airs the Hidden Room series, a curious and delightful look at weird experiences. Last Sunday was no exception.

Clancy, a dentist and mother of four, tumbled into fantasies that became real. The male leads of romantic novels she had read popped into her bathroom, kitchen and medical practice room.

After a long day of these funny experiences, her unsuspecting husband and children didn't change despite her brief hysteria. They continued to demand that she care for the entire noisy lot, including the cat.

Working mothers like Clancy are a rich source of humorous (and serious) films -- they are always living hilarious, balancing act all-give-and-no-take lives. In reality, of course, this is far from amusing.

This role is among the issues that Nighat Khan and Kamla Bashin point out -- in a serious manner -- in Some Questions on Feminism and its Relevance in South Asia. Their translation is now available in Indonesia. The writers are from Pakistan and India respectively, and are both long time feminists in their countries.

The short book was recently translated in a notable cooperative effort between publisher PT Gramedia Pustaka Utama and women's advocacy group Kalyanamitra. The interesting question and answer format highlights universal questions about feminism and throws in a few specific ones for South Asia.

Khan and Bashin live in societies known for their particularly harsh attitudes and treatment toward women. The most notable and drastic is wife burning.

Indonesian women can find some comfort in the fact that we do not share such customs.

However, the rest of the typical views in the book hit home. For instance, is the feminist the destroyer of the peaceful home?

"Yes," the writers say. Feminists do destroy homes, "but not peaceful ones."

Peace in the home, not merely women feigning peace, is the foundation of democracy, they argue.

For Indonesian readers championing indigenous values and expectations about women, further reading into the issue may bring more caution in championing our low divorce rates compared to "the West."

Other typical questions, or rather, assumptions discussed are: Doesn't feminism only concern middle class women? Don't feminists get upset over trivial things like the word "chairman"? Why do women activists exclude men in their groups? Aren't feminists bra-burners and men-haters? Why is feminism surrounded by such controversy?

And on feminism and motherhood: "We only wish that each woman has a right to choose whether and when she wants children," that parenting, too closely associated with mothering, should be shared with men. "Only then would motherhood be creative and fun."

A valuable contribution here includes a simple, general definition of feminism: "an awareness of oppression and exploitation towards women in society, at work and in the family, and conscious action by women or men to change this condition."

Feminism is seen as "the only -ism which enters the sacredness of the home," and brings every woman face to face with her brother, husband and family. It isn't like questioning capitalism, for instance, because she must dispute a role which has long been considered undisputable. No wonder such awareness makes everyone uncomfortable.

The personal nature of the problem makes it hard for many to see the sensible: "Families would have more resources...if women are not forced into constantly needing protection. The responsibility and economic pressures over men would be less."

The urge to contemplate a woman's position in her family and community comes out in the discussion of each query.

There hasn't been a thorough debate on feminism in Indonesia yet, but numerous articles in the media already reflect the conflicts. The Indonesians calling for a comeback of the main role of motherhood and homemaker may well gain insight from the book's arguments.

That is, as a woman noted, "if they read with their hearts, not only with their eyes."

The book is welcome because translated works on feminism are rare, and most English books are for the already initiated, delving deep into theoretical discussions.

People are often left bewildered by the differences in feminist discourse. They are disappointed by the disjointed "shopping list" collection in local books. Dinamika Gerakan Perempuan di Indonesia (The Dynamics of the Women's Movement in Indonesia), is an example. It is just a collection of points with no editorial effort to bring the various ideas together.

But like the philosopher Toeti Heraty Noerhadi recently said, such awareness of injustice does not rely on theories, but on perception. Theoretical debates are needed to sharpen thorough analyses, to question ingrained and possibly wrong beliefs.

Yet reality, where a woman stands in relation to family and society, and confused societal backlash against a woman voicing her opinions and options must be addressed first.

It is on this level that a question and answer book is so important.

-- Ati Nurbaiti