No remedy without patience

Anger is just one letter short of danger and that's what the recent riots have shown. They have achieved nothing but to destroy the country's economy, though they think they have achieved something great.

By burning the buildings and malls they have deprived the employed of jobs thereby increasing the chances of unemployment. Those who were working as salespeople, delivery men, cashiers, etc. in various malls have lost their jobs because of the people who burned the malls. It will take a long time to reconstruct those malls and until then all these people have to starve without work. They were more or less earning at least enough to support their families up to an extent. The people who carried out those riots have caused further deterioration to the economy.

And they have done so much harm to the Chinese people. Do they know that Chinese live throughout the world? One out of six people is Chinese.

It was the Chinese who boosted the economy. It was they who provided employment opportunities for people.

Any Indonesian company says knowledge of Bahasa Indonesia is essential. But are there any Chinese who says knowledge of Chinese is essential. Even their children don't know their mother tongue. They frankly say they don't know a Chinese language. They even don't know their national anthem. They sing the national anthem of Indonesia along with other children. When they have accepted Bahasa Indonesia as their mother tongue, Indonesia as their motherland, Indonesian Raya as their anthem, why aren't they accepted as part and parcel of the country?

No great force has been achieved in a single day. No war was won in a single day. Victory can never be achieved without perseverance. No remedy can be found without unflinching patience. Don't wake the sleeping lion. Join hands with them to form a better economy to form a better future.

UMA RAMAKRISHNA

Jakarta