Local skinheads take a walk on the milder side

Jan Johannsson, Contributor, Jakarta

On Jl. Barkah, an otherwise nondescript side street in the South Jakarta suburb of Tebet, several long-established Jakarta skinheads have gathered in a small store known as the Warriors Shop.

Among them is an easygoing young man by the name of Uti, who is acknowledged by many as having been the first skinhead in the country.

He opened the Warriors Shop several months ago in order to spread the traditional skinhead message, as well as to sell difficult to find skinhead accessories and tapes of the many Indonesian bands that play Oi! music, a peculiar skinhead take on punk music.

Of all the Western-derived subcultures that developed in this country during the 1990s, skinheads are the most surprising to many. After all, skinheads seems unavoidably linked with specifically Western concerns and with Western racism.

Over the last decade Indonesia has developed its own version of this surprisingly durable youth cult. Most of the nation's major cities now contain pockets of youths who have adopted the style -- shaved heads, Doctor Martens boots, braces, black flight jackets, Fred Perry shirts -- music and some of the beliefs of their Western counterparts.

Before you dismiss the phenomenon as mere mindless imitation of Western trends, it's worth taking a closer look at the goals of the skinheads. The existence of Indonesian skinheads says something about the struggle for identity that people face in an age of cultural globalization.

Perhaps those people who peddle simplistic prophecies of a "clash of civilizations" might be surprised by an Indonesian skinhead subculture that can encompass not only religion but also feminism.

The story that Uti and the others tell has nothing to do with fascism or racism -- rather it is a universal one of the struggle for self-respect and meaning in tough times.

"I first became aware of skinheads when I went to study in Singapore in the mid '90s," said Uti. "At the time I was hanging around with skateboarders and punks who showed me a copy of The Skinhead Bible. I immediately wanted to become a skinhead, because it seemed different, more positive -- not like other youth movements.

"Skinheads were neat, smart and clever."

Uti returned to Jakarta with a copy of The Skinhead Bible and began spreading the word among Jakarta's punk and skateboarder circles. Soon after came the region-wide financial crisis, providing a ready audience for a message of working-class pride and identity.

During 1997 and 1998 the numbers of skinheads in Jakarta boomed, helped no doubt by the spread of Internet cafes offering easy access to information about Western subcultures.

Uti puts the numbers of skinheads in Jakarta now at between 500 and 1,000, and says the number in other towns is impossible to estimate.

Just like in other countries, local skinheads usually come from lower-middle class and working class backgrounds. However, Indonesia's economic circumstances have dictated some differences from the subculture as it exists in other countries.

"In Singapore you see all the guys decked out from head to foot with skinhead accessories. But here in Indonesia it's not always easy for us to get those clothes," said Dani, another Jakarta skin.

As a result, and perhaps also as a concession to the climate, Indonesian skinheads can often be seen getting around not in heavy Doctor Martens boots, but rather in the classic local rubber thong.

As Hadi, a Jakarta skin who sings in the band Antisquad and also happens to be a film student at the Jakarta Arts Institute, said: "Being a skinhead is not what you wear, but who you are".

But while Singapore and Malaysia play host to the ridiculous spectacle of Malay skinheads with swastika armbands who assault Bangladeshis in the street, Indonesians seem to have opted almost exclusively for the nonracist version of the cult.

Another major point of difference with the original subculture in Europe is that the bulk of Indonesia's skinheads are Muslim.

"We still go to the mosque and pray every week," said Uti. "There is no reason why we can't be skinheads and Muslims also."

But they are far from being fundamentalists or extremists. The politics they do display often seem to be of a traditional left wing variety.

When asked about what he wants the government to do, Hadi said: "I would like the government to give more money to support art and music."

When pressed further, the skinheads come out with the usual grievances of corrupt officials, inflation and unresponsive politicians. They plainly see that fascism and racial or religious antagonism is not the solution and dismiss the racist skinheads of other Asian countries by noting.

"It's silly. Nazism is for white people -- we have our own problems here," Hadi said. "Our band is not nationalist, just proud to be Indonesian."

Dani is an admirer of Indonesia's first president Sukarno and is interested in learning about socialism.

"The Soeharto government twisted our history so I don't know much about Indonesian socialism in earlier times. But I know Sukarno advocated socialism and I think that capitalism is not good for third world countries."

Interestingly, Indonesia is perhaps the first country in the world to feature a female skinhead band with a feminist message. The members of Keep On, who are also all Muslim, say that they like the skinhead attitude of self-respect and started the band to improve the status of women in the underground music scene.

"Before that we couldn't even watch bands without having some guys trying to grope us," one of the members said.

This may seem like a slightly quixotic endeavor, but at a recent Keep On concert in Purwokerto, Central, a crowd of largely male skinheads sang along enthusiastically to songs with a feminist message.

Since the band started the situation for women has improved in the underground scene, says Keep On singer Debby, but not in Indonesian society.

"There are more women in the work-force now, but maybe it's just because employers think they are easier to exploit."

But beyond their political concerns, what the skinheads in Indonesia seem most hungry for is recognition by fellow skinheads around the world.

Antisquad will soon have its album released in Europe by French record label Bords de Seine and Keep On are in negotiations with another French label, but the Indonesian skinhead scene is still largely unknown in other countries.

While for superficial observers the idea of Indonesian skinheads seems like an oxymoron, Indonesian skinheads' own sense of identity seems to transcend racial and religious differences.

As I leave the Warriors Store, I decide to buy a souvenir, a T-shirt with a red and white logo and the words "Indonesian Skinheads Division". Is it OK if I buy it, given that I'm obviously not Indonesian?

"No problem. Just wear it in Melbourne and let them know we are here."