Teens just want to have fun

Teens just want to have fun

They are not involved in student brawls and they do not take
drugs. They just want to hang out in shopping malls, eat at tent
cafes or watch movies. But parents should stay alert to make sure
their children walk on the right track, The Jakarta Post's Ida
Indawati Khouw reported.

JAKARTA (JP): As Saturday approaches, teenager Frans Hartanto
anticipates the weekend, when he can hang out in a nightspot
until late at night.

His favorite place is not far from his school: the Bulungan
area in South Jakarta where life goes on until after midnight.
Other sites include the tent cafes or restaurants scattered
around the city.

"I hang out at such places almost every weekend. It's time to
wind down after a whole week of school," said the SMUN 70
student.

On Saturday morning he makes plans with three or four mates,
making sure they don't miss the "happy hours".

But how do they enjoy the night? Frans said he does not like
going to discotheques. He does not take drugs, but some of his
school friends do. He swears he has never been involved in
student brawls, which have become a common sight on Jakarta's
streets. What he does to have fun is spend time chatting with his
friends and sometimes teasing passing girls while he eats a meal
or catches a movie.

"We have various issues to talk about, mostly girls. That's
why we zero in on a group of girls passing by. Yeah, teasing
girls comes natural. We are not ill-behaved," said 18-year-old
Frans.

Other teenagers prefer to hang out in malls. Teens can be seen
milling about in practically every mall in the city. Many of them
are dressed in the latest fashion.

"A mall is an ideal hangout where we can do anything under one
roof. What's more, we can follow fashion trends, a topic which
always pops up in our conversations," said Reni, a student at
SMUN 53 senior high school in East Jakarta.

Keeping up-to-date with fashion is important to her, even
though she does not wear the latest designs.

"Of course I can't afford to buy expensive things. I can only
buy things like that when I go shopping with my parents. What I
and my friends buy is usually something relatively cheap, like
hair accessories, imitation rings or a necklace at the most," she
said.

Her friend Indra agreed that knowing what was in fashion was
important, especially if she was able to purchase them. "Those
who don't follow the trends usually find it difficult to make
friends, or find it hard to follow our conversations," she said.

According to her, following fashion does not mean purchasing
expensive things because there is always a cheaper "edition" of
the latest fashion.

Both Reni and Indra said they wore their best casual clothes
on outings with friends. "We wear a uniform every school day,
weekends are our chance to dress up in our favorite clothes,"
Indra said.

"We usually start our activities after 10 a.m. on Sundays, a
day on which we can wake up quite late. We usually finish our fun
before 8 p.m. because we have to prepare for (school on) Monday,"
she added.

While many teenagers spend their weekends in malls, others,
like Silvia and her close friends from SMKN 45 in West Jakarta,
have made it a tradition to visit a friend's house every Sunday
just to chat, watch VCDs or share their problems.

"We always have interesting topics to chat about, like stories
about friends and their boyfriends, music, magazines," Silvia
said.

What all teenagers have in common is that they go out to meet
their friends.

A researcher of youth culture, Robby I. Chandra, said that in
a crowded city like Jakarta, parks and malls were the only places
which provide the space needed by people, especially teenagers,
to express themselves.

"Their basic need is friends who listen to and understand
their problems and show appreciation or listen to their opinions.
In this case, neither school nor home is the place where they can
fill the need because parents and teachers don't consider their
children as friends.

"Thus a mall is a neutral place which meets their needs. There
is also a choice of things to do in malls. A mall can be a place
to find new information," said the author of Budaya Kota, Kawula
Muda dan Media Modern (Urban Culture, Young People and Modern
Media).

Chandra said that teenage years were a period of transition.
At that stage of life, teenagers need quite a lot of attention,
and they often seek attention. Therefore, adults should play a
role to help them safely pass through the transition from teen to
adult.

To maintain a friendship, teenagers can also be enticed by
their peers into taking drugs. Or they might be torn between
friendship and sexual attraction, which could end up in
premarital sex.

"As for girls, they could become trapped in a sexual
relationship with an older citizen," he said.

Consumerism

Chandra said that malls as part of the urban culture had a
negative side as youths could be lured by consumerism.

Some of the students confirmed this.

"My mother once complained that I spend much more money
compared to my sister, now 28 years old, during her school years.
But these are different conditions in which we live. Everything
is much more expensive now," said teenager Indra.

Almost all of the students said they spent at least Rp 50,000
a month on entertainment.

Those from better-off families spend much more.

Agustine from SMUK 5 in East Jakarta said, "I need more than
Rp 250,000 per month for entertainment. My mother also has to
give me more money for my mobile phone card, clothes or shoes for
example.

"The amount I spend is not a lot. Some of my friends need more
than Rp 500,000 for entertainment," said the 18-year-old student,
whose favorite hangout is Taman Anggrek Mall in West Jakarta,
where she goes ice skating on weekends.

A coordinator of academic development at Al Izhar Islamic
school in South Jakarta, Henny Supolo Sitepu, said parents should
try hard to discourage consumerism in their children, saying
limiting their pocket money was one way.

She said there were many activities available for students
besides going to malls. "Children need to have information on
various activities based on their interests, besides going to
malls," she said.

However, the students also said they were not interested in
weekend activities organized by schools, claiming they weren't
fun.

Henny said activities organized by schools could attract
teenagers if they were based on the interests of teenagers, such
as music and cultural performances.