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Last year, I visited mainland China for the first time
in my life. No, it was not to the glittering cities of Beijing, Shanghai or
even Shenzhen, but to a fairly unknown province (for most Indonesians)
called Guizhou.
By invitation
of the Chinese government, I was asked to present a paper based on my
second book, Portraits of Inspiring Chinese-Indonesian Women at the
China-ASEAN symposium at Guizhou University.
Delighted at
the opportunity to finally visit my ancestral land, after conducting years
of research on Chinese-Indonesian culture and identity, I googled “Guizhou”
at once and emailed a Chinese graduate student who is doing his PhD from
Cornell, my alma mater, whether he could offer any pertinent information on
Guizhou.
My Google hits
showed me that Guizhou is close to the scenic province of Yunnan. The
graduate student told me that Guizhou is beautiful but rather
underdeveloped when compared to the rest of China.
I was intrigued
and amused. Is there a place left in China that is still underdeveloped? I
was determined to find out more about Guizhou on my visit.
Two weeks
later, I arrived at Guangzhou Airport and marveled at the sleek, enormous
and high-tech building. I quickly made my way through the vast distance
connecting the international and domestic terminals, passing by numerous
high-end boutiques that cater to the increasingly discerning tastes of
affluent Chinese.
Having finished
my reading materials on the plane, I looked for a bookstore to find an
English-language magazine or novel.
When I entered
a bookstore, a salesgirl approached me. I asked her in my limited Mandarin
where the English-language material was. She gave me an amused look and
said that everything in the bookstore was in Chinese.
Then she asked
me, “Why can’t you pick one of these magazines instead?” When I told her
that I could not read Chinese, she gasped and said, “Aren’t you Chinese?”
I decided not
to go into a lengthy lecture to explain that I am part of the Indonesian
generation born between 1965 and 1998 (also called the New Order era), who
grew up during the time when everything to do with Chinese culture and
language was banned.
As a
consequence of these restrictions, all Chinese-medium schools were closed
and the public celebration of Chinese New Year was forbidden. Therefore,
most Chinese children who were born during the New Order period could only
read and write in Indonesian, along with English as a second language
(taught in secondary school).
The same
comment, “I thought you were Chinese!” came up throughout the conference at
Guizhou University. I had to explain many times that I am an Indonesian of
Chinese descent but use an Indonesian name due to a government policy in
1966 which encouraged Chinese-Indonesians to change their Chinese names to
Indonesian ones. This confusion over my name did not surprise me as I often
fielded questions on my identity whenever I went abroad to present my work
at seminars or conferences.
When I
presented my paper at the China-ASEAN symposium, mainland Chinese members
of my audience were also perplexed when I told them that the connecting
thread among the inspiring Chinese-Indonesian women in my book was that
they all regarded themselves as Indonesian first and Chinese second.
Women such as
Mari Elka Pangestu, Indonesia’s tourism and creative economy minister, and
Susi Susanti, arguably Indonesia’s finest female badminton player, firmly
asserted this viewpoint during my interviews with them.
During the
horrendous May 1998 riots, for example, Susi recalled that she was in Hong
Kong, leading the women’s badminton team in the prestigious Uber Cup
competition. In a live interview on CNN, Susi was asked about the riots and
whether she feared for the lives of her family and relatives.
She admitted
that she was deeply shaken by the images of a burning Jakarta that the
reporter showed and was incredibly worried about the fate of her family.
Despite her
worries, she resolutely answered that she would continue to compete for
Indonesia because it was her country. This immense pride in being
Indonesian is reflected in the Chinese-Indonesian women’s life stories
captured in my book.
Hailing from
diverse backgrounds, these women have achieved the pinnacle of their
careers such as a respected pianist and music educator Dr. Kuei Pin Yeo,
renowned sociologist Dr. Mely G. Tan, and a cultural preservationist who
ensured Indonesia’s unique of cloth-making processes became an official
element of our country’s national heritage, Obin, otherwise known as
Josephine Komara.
The reason why
I chose to highlight women from a wide spectrum of professions was also to
debunk the stereotype that the most successful Chinese-Indonesians are
those who are only involved in business. The success of these women also
serves as a reminder of the development of women’s empowerment in Indonesia.
In the early
20th century, the social position of Chinese-Indonesian woman was measured
in relation to her father, oldest brother, husband and son. According to
Myra Sidharta, in The Making of the Chinese-Indonesian Woman, the ideal
Chinese-Indonesian woman during this period was “obedient, timid, reticent
and adaptable. Three rules of obedience shape her life: As an unmarried
girl, she should obey her father and eldest brother, when married, she
should obey her husband, and when widowed, her son”.
Thankfully, in
contemporary Indonesia, as education opportunities have become readily
available to Chinese-Indonesian women, numerous avenues have opened for
them to excel as academics and subsequent career paths.
Visiting China
for the first time and talking about issues involving Chinese-Indonesian
women reminded me that Indonesia is my home and anyone can achieve their
dreams through hard work, tenacity and determination.
In the words of
Mari Elka Pangestu; “Indonesians are very capable. It is our duty to raise
our country’s name internationally using our capabilities.”
Through the
women’s stories, I hope to inspire the younger generation of Indonesians —
women and men alike — to rise above all sorts of challenges, including
those connected with their ethnicity, so that they can do their best for
their country. ●
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