'My family does not celebrate Imlek'

'My family does not celebrate Imlek'

The Soeharto regime, in its futile effort to force the Chinese to
become Indonesian, banned Chinese art and culture. Now, the
government has lifted the restriction and even recognizes Chinese
New Year, locally called Imlek, as a national holiday.
Discrimination against the Chinese Indonesians, however, remains.
The Jakarta Post spoke with some Indonesians of Chinese descent
about their personal views.

Maria, 18, is an employee at a private company in Kuningan,
South Jakarta. She resides in Tanjung Duren, West Jakarta, with
her family:

I have to admit that I don't celebrate Chinese New Year
despite my ethnicity. My family has abandoned the tradition, so
I'm not doing anything special in observance of the upcoming
Imlek.

However, I do appreciate the government's effort to recognize
the country's Chinese ethnic community, especially in designating
Imlek as an official, public holiday.

I have rarely experienced discrimination from any part of
society, even when I have had to deal with complicated
bureaucratic procedures. I think, so far, so good.

Well, I might be treated in a somewhat discriminatory manner
when I walk in public, as some men would shout at me and call me
Chinese. But it doesn't bother me much, as long as there is no
physical harassment.

John, 32, works at a multinational company in Kuningan, South
Jakarta. He is a resident of Kebayoran Lama, South Jakarta:

I don't think I will hold a special party to celebrate Chinese
New Year. I know it's part of the Chinese tradition, but it's not
necessary for me to observe it, because my family abandoned the
tradition a long time ago.

Anyway, "thank you" to the government, who has acknowledged
the existence of the Chinese in Indonesia.

However, I still face discrimination, for instance when I
applied for my identity card. The administration officials
apparently treat native- and Chinese Indonesians differently.

The district administration official told me clearly that he
treated and charged us differently because I am Chinese.

I still remember that I had to pay about Rp 500,000 for my ID
card. I regretted the experience, even though I got it in only a
day.

I had to pay this "fee" to the neighborhood unit chief.
Otherwise, I would have had difficulties obtaining my ID card.

Not all Chinese here are treated in such a way, though. There
are many who are lucky to have a kind neighborhood unit chief,
who is very cooperative and not greedy.

I haven't had any problems with other bureaucratic procedures,
such as with my driver's license.

Everything has been fine so far at my workplace, at my school
or in my neighborhood. I get along well with all my friends.

Aipi, 23, has been working for a private company in Mangga
Besar, West Jakarta, for two years. She lives in Pademangan,
North Jakarta, with her family:

I will celebrate Chinese New Year, but of course, it will be
different from when I was a child. One thing for sure, is that I
won't get any ang pau (a gift of money given at New Year).

I'm glad that us Chinese have now received recognition from
the government. At least there won't be any more bans on Chinese
cultural activities.

However, I think that there is still a lot of discrimination
against the Chinese, particularly when I have to deal with
applying for my ID card with the district administration. The
problems start from the neighborhood unit chief, who tends to
make the procedures much more complicated, compared to the normal
procedures for native Indonesians.

Once, I protested the irregular procedure, and the
neighborhood unit chief threatened me, saying that I would not
get the ID card. He said that it was normal for Chinese to pay
much more than usual. I had to pay him more than Rp 100,000. In
the end, I had to accept such discrimination in the bureaucracy.

On the other hand, I think I have gotten along well at school
or at my company. One thing I need to be careful about is riding
public transportation, because a friend of mine who was once
mugged told me that crooks usually target Chinese.

I think this is too much, because not all Chinese are well-
off. So why should they target us?

I only wish in the long run that the government and all the
people in this country will treat us the same as other
Indonesians, especially in bureaucratic matters and our welfare.

-- Leo Wahyudi S