'Hero' must be redefined

M. Taufiqurrahman, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

When Time magazine named Indonesian folk singer and youth idol Iwan Fals as one of Asia's contemporary heroes in 2002 for his defiant take on former president Soeharto's dictatorship, it was apparent that he had redefined the concept of heroism or in the words of Iwan's idol Bob Dylan Times They Are A Changing.

The same magazine named Butet Manurung, another young figure in its selection of Asia's heroes in 2004, a little known conservationist who lent her hand to educating the country's indigenous people deep in Sumatra's woodlands.

As time goes by, heroes from bygone eras will have little relevance to current conditions and a new definition of a hero is needed, historian Asvi Warman Adam of the Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI) says.

The government, he says, must diversify its selection of figures it awards the title of national hero to, so as to include persons whose contribution is more relevant to current conditions.

The titles do not have to relate to the past by selecting freedom fighters or military figures.

"The primary consideration is whether or not the figures have fought selflessly for a good cause, regardless of their political, social or ethnic background," Asvi told The Jakarta Post on Wednesday.

His statement came as President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono named five freedom fighters national heroes to mark Heroes Day, which falls on Nov. 10.

Asvi said people like rights campaigner Munir could be declared a national hero for his contribution to human rights.

"If the public thinks that Munir deserves the title, relevant organizations or people in his home province of East Java can propose that the government declare him a national hero," he said.

The State Secretariat singles out figures to be awarded from names proposed by the Ministry of Social Services, which receives entries from provincial governments.

The President issues a government regulation to confer the titles on the selected figures. Families or relatives of the awardees are entitled to financial support from the government.

Asvi said the government had not done justice to scores of figures who -- despite their indispensable contribution to the country's independence -- were excluded from history books and not given the credit they deserved, because of their political stance or simply their ethnicity.

"We have a freedom fighter named John Lie who broke through a military blockade imposed by the Allied troops in 1947 to purchase weapons for our fighters from neighboring countries. But he was not recognized as a hero simply because he was a Chinese- Indonesian," he said.

Separately, senior historian Taufiq Abdullah said that the only quality that made an individual eligible for the title was their untainted record in serving the country.

"Such a criteria will prevent the government from awarding the title indiscriminately," he told the Post.

He suggested that more titles be given to local heroes to honor the regions' contribution to Indonesia's independence.