Surabaya names 10 best women achievers

JAKARTA (JP): Surabaya named its top 10 women achievers last week in conjunction with Kartini Day on April 21. The ranking, the first in the capital of East Java, was announced at the Celebrate Women Gala Dinner held by Hotel Garden Palace in cooperation with Satelindo, the Association of Indonesian Secretaries, the local Surya daily and Professional Training Service.

The following women made it into the top ten:

Syahadah Amilia Th. M: A portrait painter from Kureksan village, Sidoarjo. She staged her solo exhibition,Potret Tokoh Surabaya, at the Radisson Hotel.

She was commissioned by the Sultan of Brunei Darussalam to paint the Sultan's wife, the crown-prince and the Sultan's other family members. She was also invited to exhibit her works in Brunei. The 42 year old is the first Indonesian female painter to exhibit in the sultanate.

Despite her commitment to her painting, she only starts painting after she has finished her household chores.

Lieke Ichwan Radjamin: As chairperson of the Indonesian Women's Travel Organization, it is Lieke's dream to develop the cooperation system in the development of tourism in the country and Surabaya in particular.

The association she chairs is a branch of the International Federation of the Women's Travel Organization which was established in Scottsdale, Arizona.

Owner of Turtle homestay, she hopes that tourists visiting East Java, especially Surabaya, feel comfortable and at home.

She plans to launch a program, Surabaya Moon, at Taman Bungkul, where she will bring out the special Suroboyon ambience, including its food and dances.

Aside from her tourism venture, Lieke is also active in social organizations and is an executive of the Surabaya foundation for disabled children.

Sri Rahadjeng Harjono. For many people, 70 years old is an age to retire at. But not for Sri Rahadjeng. She is still involved in various humanitarian activities. Born in Banyuwangi in East Java, she has been active in social projects since she was a teenager. She obtained formal education during the Dutch colonial period. Since 1973, she has chaired the Karya Mulya Foundation, a non- profit foundation to help deaf children. She also chairs the Kartini Foundation which houses neglected babies and children. She has dedicated her life to support needy children. Married to noted scientist Harjono, the couple has three adult children -- Yetti, Netty and Lenny. In l982, Rahadjeng was named a model mother.

Lies Suprapti, is an industrial engineer who has been active in the promotion of food technology in East Java province and other regions as well. She currently heads the metal industry section at the East Java office of the ministry of industry. A graduate from the school of technology and management in the University of Tujuh Belas Agustus in Surabaya, Suprapti is widely recognized as a dedicated scientist and bureaucrat. She has written many scientific papers, books and publications on food technology.

The mother of two children pays special attention to supporting the development of food technology, handicrafts and home industries.

Aside from technology, Suprapti actively promotes tourism in the province.

Saminah Asmirawati: This mother of four children teaches all age groups: kindergarten, elementary, junior and high school students.

Saminah started teaching at a very young age in Cirebon, where she taught at the Gunungjati and Bhayangkari Resort 852 kindergartens.

Today, as a lecturer at the school of sociopolitical sciences and the school of education in Muhammadiyah University, she has not given up her commitment to elementary education and continues teaching at a state-owned elementary school.

She is also active in various organizations, including the Sidoarjo ICMI, where she dedicates herself to the development of women.

Hasdianah Has R.:

Born in Tanjung Karang on Aug. 28, 1953, Hasdianah graduated in 1982 from veterinarian school. She started working as a part- time teacher at the Veterinary School at Airlangga University (1982-1983) before she joined the research and development center of the ministry of agriculture. While maintaining her job as researcher, she also lecturers at Wijaya Kusuma University.

Hasdianah has earned local and international recognition for her work. She was award for her discovery of the kopcisvetpolicvalen vaccine for chickens which was launched by the director general of animal husbandry at the National Institute of Atomic Energy on Aug. 25, 1995. Her second big recognition came after she founded the EBL kit for the Enzootig B. Leucosis disease test for cattle.

Sunarmi G. Sutopo Van Eybergen is a devout housewife and mother whose campaign to promote family planning in East Java has placed her as a pioneer in the province. It has been hard to introduce the family planning programs to women in the province. Like other Indonesians, East Java residents were reluctant to participate in the program they considered against religious and social values. But, Sunarmi never gave up. She convinced residents the benefit of family planning.

Roem Soedoko: This is a lucky year for Prof. Soedoko, who was also declared one of the 10 Indonesian Development Women 1996.

The highly educated woman believes in informal education and lectures at various women's, religious and professional organizations.

Among her many national and international awards is winning the national storytelling contest. A mother of four, she is planning to publish a children's book of her own.

She is concerned about society and helps cancer patients get through their sufferings as well as financing their treatment at the Wisnuwardhana Cancer Foundation.

Sri Subekti Djoewaeni is popular among small-scale businesswomen in Surabaya and its surrounding areas. For more than a decade, Djoewaeni has been acting as a foster mother to small-scale garment producers, mostly women, operating in the area. Amid her tight business schedule, Djoewaeni teaches the women business strategies to improve their technical and management skills.

She frequently visits remote villages in East Jakarta to share her expertise and experience with women. Her main intention is to improve the quality of he female workforce in rural regions. In l990, she received the Upakarti Award for her distinguished achievement in the promotion of small-scale businesswomen in East Java.

Djoewani is also active in business. She is the chairperson of the East Java branch of the Indonesian Businesswomen Association, a term that ends in l998. Djoewani is also active in promoting education. She established a kindergarten for low-income children in Surabaya.

Ida Widyastuti Eddy Surohadi was born in April l962. She is a doctor at the Sidoardjo Hospital, East Java. Ida is a founder of the Tetada Kalimasada medical therapy, alternative medicine which exploits a persons inner power. She married Eddy Surohadi and has three children. Ida now chairs the International Tetada Kalimasada organization which has more than 50,000 members worldwide. (lem/raw)