'Ibu' Gedong, a model for Balinese women

'Ibu' Gedong, a model for Balinese women

By Dewi Anggraeni

CANDI DASA, East Bali (JP): We tend to think that because we
know a public personality well, so would others.

When a Balinese member of the People's Consultative Assembly
(MPR in its Indonesian acronym), fainted during one of the
sessions, some fellow members were heard commenting, "She's a
Hindu. She doesn't eat meat", as if that explained everything.

There is a great deal more about the member, known as Ibu
Gedong Bagoes Oka, than being a vegetarian Hindu. And when she
has not skipped breakfast to spend time meditating, which she did
that morning when she fainted, she is usually fit and healthy,
because her diet is balanced and adequate. And at 79, Ibu Gedong
is not only very lucid and politically and socially aware, but
also extremely high-spirited.

She is without doubt one of Indonesia's first feminists,
though probably not in the popular sense of the word. She is
petite, understated, softly spoken, and her attire is modest to a
fault.

But her lack of physical presence is more than compensated by
her strong personality, which fills any room in which she is
present.

In her room in the Hotel Mulia, immediately after the last MPR
session, she was surrounded by a number of reporters and photo
journalists. Ibu Gedong was expressing her discontent about the
mooted plans to eliminate the Ministry for the Empowerment of
Women.

"The Assembly's chairman believes that Indonesian women have
achieved the position they were seeking. How untrue!" she said,

"Two-thirds of our population are women, yet they are still
regarded as inferior to men. The entire history of humankind
has shown that women have always been downtrodden and
marginalized. Even in areas where the tradition is matrilineally
based, men still make the decisions that matter," she said, her
voice soft but emphatic.

Ibu Gedong believes in action, but not necessarily political.
"If every woman in this country goes beyond mere planning, mere
'gonna - gonna do this, gonna do that' -, and actually begins to
act, they're going to be a formidable force. Start from something
very simple, start from self."

She becomes impatient with the tendency to follow, and adhere
to, a particular political ideology.

Curiously, she herself is an adherent of Gandhian philosophy,
which she stresses is not a political ideology. "Gandhi always
said, learn to think for yourself. The Guru can only show you the
way, but the power to think is in you. We need the courage to
show ourselves," she said.

Ibu Gedong also believes in the balance of man and woman. Each
has innate strength which complements the other. She recalled the
time she was booed by protesters in the United States after she
had said, "My husband is my god," She waited until the booing
subsided, then continued, "and I, am his goddess."

"Nothing," she said, "can happen in a man's world without
women. As Gandhi said, woman is the mother of man."

Ibu Gedong Bagoes Oka is not all talk. One of her achievements
is the foundation of two ashrams in Bali. One is in Candi Dasa,
and another in Denpasar. Both are located on her family land.

While the two ashrams base their broad outlines and day-to-day
philosophy on Gandhian thought, each has its own characteristics.

The Canti Dasa Ashram was founded in 1976, on a site adjacent
to the beach. Asked if she had definite plans about it then, Ibu
Gedong confided that apart from a vague concept of implementing
Gandhian teachings in her own community, she had no plans. She
did not know about keeping accounts, finances or anything
remotely resembling business management.

"I just started," she said, obviously putting into practice
her belief in "start with something simple."

She had the good fortune of having a network of friends, in
Indonesia as well as overseas, who believed in her and her
determination, and who also had influence to varying degrees.

Within several years, her Canti Dasa Ashram was known among
those who came to her assistance. People began to become
committed members.

From overseas and other parts of the country, apart from
volunteers who help build up and further develop the Ashram,
there are also those who come as paying guests and yet are
willing to observe the regulations. These include, among others,
abstention from eating meat, smoking, drinking alcohol, making
loud noises, and the cohabiting of unmarried couples; things many
people take for granted in this modern society.

Ashram members, as far as possible, live on what they make and
produce themselves, following the principle of swadesi or self-
sufficiency, one major aspect of Gandhian thought. School-age
members have their education paid for. Many who have left and
gone on to build their own lives outside, still profess to be
committed to helping the Ashram whenever necessary.

In 1991, Ibu Gedong converted her own residence in Denpasar
into a small ashram. Being across the road from the Udayana
University campus where she is a senior lecturer, most of its
members are university students.

They too, have their education paid for.

For these young people, Ibu Gedong fills a unique place in
their lives. She is feared and loved all at once. They
continuously ask as to what Ibu would say about what they have
done, especially when they have just made a mistake. They realize
that they are expected to take the initiative and not wait for
Ibu's instructions, but they cannot bear the thought of her
disappointment when they act mistakenly and things go awry.

"But boy, when we do something right, and Ibu smiles, even the
frogs in the garden seem to smile with us!" said one member who
would rather not be identified.

Knowing Ibu Gedong is like knowing a Balinese institution. And
in her, the Balinese people, especially the women, have an
unmistakable role model.