Papuan researcher wins award for study on gender issues

Dewi Santoso, The Jakarta Post/Jakarta

A Papuan anthropologist, Marlina Flassy, has been declared the winner of the Peniti Emas community research award, capping a series of science and technology achievements by people in the remote province.

Marlina, 36, won the award for her research on gender issues faced by the Papuan Maybrad and Tehit tribes in Sorong.

State Minister for Research and Technology Hatta Radjasa said Marlina's research had showed that better education in the easternmost province could advance the interests of Papuan communities.

"That's why we have decided to honor Ms. Flassy with the award as we hope she will inspire women to play a greater role in the country's scientific and technological advancement," Hatta said.

Earlier this year, a Papuan high school student won an international physics competition in Poland, while a trio of Papuan students won the top prize in the National Youth Research Competition in Jakarta.

Marlina's research conducted in 2001, found changes to the value systems of the patriarchal Papuan communities, which had begun to provide women with access to education to improve their prospects for marriage.

"In the past, when a man proposed to a woman, he gave the woman only a package of kain timur (eastern cloth) as a bride price. But now, the higher the educational background the bride has, the higher she will be priced, sometimes amounting up to Rp 50 million (US$5,500)," the lecturer of the state Cendrawasih University in Jayapura said.

Another advantage of better education was that women were able to find work outside their houses and improve their families' economic welfare, she said.

An Office of the State Ministry for Research and Technology official, Utari Budihardjo, said Marlina's dedication to her work meant she deserved the award.

"She has done more than eight research projects on a series of issues, including reproductive health and gender," Utari said.

The award, introduced this year, is given to young women researchers from the eastern part of Indonesia and is aimed at encouraging women to do more research on gender issues.

Marlina received a Rp 30 million cash prize.