Inscrutable you: Graham makes sense of Indonesia
Inscrutable you: Graham makes sense of Indonesia
Dewi Anggraeni, Contributor, Melbourne, Australia
The People Next Door: Understanding Indonesia
Duncan Graham
University of Western Australia Press, Western Australia, 2004
Paperback, 189 pp
For decades, sociologists and political scientists in the Western
world have published books on Indonesia. In the meantime,
however, good books written outside academia, by those who are
genuinely interested in exploring other cultures, are few and far
between.
The recent launch of Graham's book is worthy of our attention.
To begin with, he opens his author's note with Mohon jangan
tersinggung (please don't be offended). The reader may be
intrigued, or suspicious about what lies within its pages.
Is the author going to metaphorically strip Indonesia bare,
showing all her imperfections, including those she herself would
rather not know?
No, Graham does not serve Indonesia up warts and all, but he
does paint an interesting portrait of her, apparently after
spending time to become acquainted with her, then allowing her to
confide in him; a more gentle and civilized way of obtaining
information.
As the title suggests, the book has been written primarily for
Australians, though it certainly is useful reading for other
nationals, as well as Indonesians themselves.
The way Graham describes the Indonesia he encountered and
observed is revealing but affectionate all at once. He emphasizes
differences and contrasts vis-a-vis Australia without expressing
too much biased judgment. The instances he describes as anomalies
or absurd are always accompanied by equivalents in Australia, or
by introspective ponderings.
For example, on religion, Graham wrote: "For Indonesians,
religion is not an add-on, it's at the core of life... Inter-
faith marriage is illegal. However, most people seem to accept
the restriction which many Westerners would consider a gross
intrusion into their private lives by the State."
The last paragraph of that section reads, "And if religion
creates that ease of mind and soul, who are we to criticize as we
wander a spiritual desert of materialistic values and selfish
ambition?"
The book is made alive by anecdotes illustrating and
underlining the values of the local culture, often in a humorous
and entertaining way. And being a good journalist, Graham did not
forget to include profiles of real people, from personalities of
note to the average Amin and Aminah, so to speak.
It seems that Graham feels most at home in East Java, because
he devotes most of the last part -- one-third, no less -- of the
book describing people, events and customs in this province. And
interestingly, while he maintains an engaging manner throughout
the book, the language certainly accelerates into a raconteur
style when depicting everyone and everything East Javanese, all
the while never once forgetting to draw parallels with Australia.
In parts where a non-Australian may smile at the humor, an
Australian reader will, without doubt, hoot with laughter.
About a pesantren (Islamic boarding school)in Lamongan (where
Bali bomber Amrozi was brought up), he wrote: "Are suicide
bombers being groomed for stardom, as the anti-Islamic conspiracy
theorists who have never been to Lamongan will surely believe?
Trying to gainsay such allegations is like convincing
fundamentalist Muslims that the Salvos (Salvation Army) don't
carry Armalites in their trumpet cases."
Graham breaks stereotypes without being tendentious. In the
part about people with social conscience who are also doers, he
tells of Alam, a Muslim who went to a Catholic school because his
father, a low-level public servant and widower raising three
other children, considered the education might be better, though
certainly more expensive.
"I was frightened at first because I thought they might try to
convert me. But there were no problems. I even went to church
sometimes," he quotes Alam as saying.
In the section about language, he casually explains what
former president Abdurrahman Wahid (known by his nickname Gus
Dur) meant when he said Australia was being "childish" about its
involvement in East Timor, a comment which offended many
Australians then.
"Gus Dur is saying, 'I know you're right, just don't make a
big thing about it'".
The People Next Door is safe to bring into your bedroom for
bedtime reading, without it becoming just harmless entertainment.
On the contrary, it is a serious book presented in a light-
hearted and charming way, written by an Australian who is serious
about further opening communication between his country and
Indonesia.