Perils of multiculturalism

Perils of multiculturalism

For Indonesians, the rioting in France -- now entering its 14th
day -- looks disturbingly familiar. Here in our own country over
the last ten years, we have been no strangers to burning buses,
rock-throwing rioters, police officers battling protesters,
firemen trying to extinguish the flames, and the destruction of
public schools and churches.

It is precisely because we know how painful it is to
experience urban riots that our sympathy for the French people
and their government comes naturally. It is heart-wrenching to
watch France being devastated by what seems to be endless riots
affecting dozens of cities and towns across much of the country
day after day. The riots started on Oct. 27 in Paris following an
incident in which two young people were electrocuted. Some 1,200
cars have been burnt and 330 people arrested since the riots
began.

Due to its liberal immigration policy, France has often been
regarded by its less-accepting neighbors with a degree of
cynicism. It is home to refugees and asylum seekers from the
world over, from the Middle East to Africa and Asia, including
Indonesia.

As citizens of a developing country, we can only marvel at its
welcoming approach and its readiness to help all sorts of
afflicted aliens. It is not without reason that the famous maxim
-- Liberty, Equality and Fraternity -- was coined in France four
hundred years ago.

But playing host to so many nationalities is not without risk.
Perhaps France's neighbors are not completely wrong either.
Multiculturalism is a nice sounding word until it is translated
into reality. It is a complex phenomenon loaded with sensitive
issues like the divides between rich and poor, different faiths,
ways of perceiving things, and different habits, to say the
least.

To date, not a single multicultural country can claim it has
no social problems. As a multiethnic country, Indonesia is no
stranger to the perils of a multicultural society. It has
suffered a lot because of it.

Take shelter, a basic human need, as an example. Everybody
needs shelter but the problem is that shelter and housing in this
globalized world comes in various shapes and is of variable
quality. When the difference is too great between one community
and another, it can become a potent recipe for conflict.

France has a bold policy that declares everybody who comes to
the country to be French, no matter where they come from or what
their religious or ideological persuasion is. It is much the same
as when Indonesia decided in 1945 -- the year Indonesia declared
its independence -- that the members of the 400-odd ethnic groups
in the country would all be treated as Indonesians.

But 60 years on, ethnic and religious conflicts still
frequently occur in Indonesia, not to mention the growing
economic divide between the wealthy minority of the country's
population of 220 million people and the impoverished majority.

Should we be cynical about this apparent failure of the French
multicultural experiment? Or should we despair because the
chances of solving our own problems with multiculturalism look
more remote now that we see that even a developed country can
fail to solve these sort of problems? Such a pessimistic approach
would definitely not be the right way to look at the rioting in
France.

On the contrary, we should look forward to the possibility of
sharing our respective experiences on the issue, especially as
multiculturalism is rapidly becoming commonplace in many
countries now that people are freer to move from one place to
another.

We are acutely aware that it is not enough to simply have the
goodwill to say we want a multicultural society. A lot of work
has to follow, and it should come from both the government and
the people. Unfortunately, there is no universal recipe as to how
to deal with the perils of multiculturalism as the conditions
pertaining in each society at each time will be different.

For Indonesia, and we believe it applies to France as well, a
pledge for tolerance from societal groups alone will not work.
There should be mutual respect between them and a readiness by
one group to defend another, be it ethnic or religious, that
happens to be discriminated against.

Although such words as these are easy to say, it does not mean
that we have succeeded in implementing them. Their implementation
will require perseverance and strong political will on the part
of the government.

We also need to learn that cultural uniformity will not work.
For 30 years, Soeharto tried to wipe out Chinese culture but it
did not work. Culture can never be eliminated. Every culture must
be given a place to grow. Assimilation does not work, integration
is more plausible.

Accepting different cultures may be the hardest part of
integration in the French context as the country has a proud
culture and traditions.

For the immigrants in France, they have to do their part also
because, unlike in Indonesia where the different ethnic groups
had always been present since before independence, the immigrants
in France are relative newcomers.

The French government has to make sure that it has good
communications with the immigrants. It has to familiarize itself
about the their resentment in various sectors like housing,
education and job opportunities.

They should be able to say one day that they are proud French
men and women, not second-class citizens. Otherwise, like in
Indonesia, pent-up anger will once again explode.