From the darkness of ignorance to the light of enlightenment

Raden Ajeng Kartini is a heroine. Born in 21 April 1879 in Jepara, Central Java she had similar childhood to other children of her time: roaming free in nature and lead a carefree life. Kartini was slightly lucky because she had a more liberal father. Her father allowed her to go to school and the school she went to was set apart for the Dutch and Javanese nobility. At this school, she had the chance to be acquainted with foreign friends and western ideals.

The Javanese tradition at that time required daughters to be at home after finishing primary education. Kartini poured out her despairs in letters to her friends in Holland. She saw no justice in reserving education to males of nobility. She believed that all Indonesians had to be educated to be liberated. She grieved for Indonesian women who, unlike the men, were not allowed to realize their calling.

The thoughts of Kartini were expressed through a series of correspondence she exchanged with her friends in Holland. She often mentioned about tradition being the bondage that keep Javanese (Indonesian) woman from having a better future. She expressed her discontentment of the tradition and culture where the woman was given lesser status, forced marriage where the Javanese woman had to love the man they don’t know and love.

She was critical of her own religion and its practices. She questioned the fact that the followers of the religion and its leader were more interested in memorizing the holy scripture yet paying lesser emphasize on its implementation and understanding. She once mentioned that the world will be better off, more peaceful, without religion since it is the wall that divides and become the reason for us to fight each other. Her views are still relevant today in the midst of terrorism and religious conflicts. Kartini also questioned the exploitation of religion to man’s advantage. She was strongly against the practice of polygamy and the “imprisonment” of woman’s rights.

She was very fortunate that her husband was supportive of her idea of women’s education. He supported Kartini’s efforts to opene the first primary school in Indonesia catering for indigenous people especially the girls. The school taught women to read and make handicrafts. Kartini’s school was a breakthrough in Indonesian education. It was the first egalitarian school open to Indonesians regardless of their status and gender. The school put moral education beside the intellectual education.

Ibu Kartini’s efforts did not go futile. She had shown and introduced new concept to break the captivity of traditions: the right to self-determination, reproductive freedom, and the absolute joy of knowing we don't have to be perfectly obedient and conforming, to be happy and accepted.

Besides showing her unhappiness with the polygamy practise within the Islamic religion, she also fighted for the well being of her people. She wrote letters to her correspondent in Holland about the poverty suffered by people and the sale of opium. She proudly mentioned her husband's effort to abolish opium, although the Hindian Government sucessfully go against his efforts. In her letter she wrote that "it is not the people who cannot stop to smoke opium, but the government. Hard as it is, the curse that the Dutch government brought upon the Javanese people."

Today, 21 April, is the day that we should pause and think about what we have taken for granted. This emancipation has enabled Indonesia to propel forward and be where it is today. We, as Indonesians, should defend this achievement against the creeping fundamentalism and 'stupidization' disease that's eating away our freedom.

Li Ka Shing is indeed true when he mentioned “Knowledge Change Destiny”.