Ending Indonesia’s culture war
For the past decade, Indonesia has been fighting its own culture war. And just like any war, its consequences are dire. Lives are being lost, kids separated from their parents, men and women are languishing in jail, while politicians look for the cheapest and easiest way to exploit the situation.
Last week brought the latest battle, when thousands of people took to the streets demanding that those across the cultural divide acknowledge their values and ways of life – or face prison. Former Jakarta governor Basuki Tjahaja “Ahok” Purnama is now paying the price of the culture war, as are minority groups like lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transgenders, who have fled persecution because their ways of life were not considered mainstream culture.
What looks like a recent trend has roots in the country’s unfinished nationalist project. Current tensions are a byproduct of the debate between the country’s founding fathers over whether to choose secular nationalism that champions pluralism, or religion as basic national principles. The nationalist camp won the debate but the idea that the country should be founded on religious principles, with Islam being the main inspiration, has continued to hold sway.
Post-New Order political liberalisation has allowed the dormant force to rise again. The advent of the Internet and social media has accelerated the distribution of conservative ideas. As we can observe from the 212 Movement, the present cultural clash is about controlling the narrative, and with the effective use of social media, the battle is being waged on many fronts.
The timing of the 100th instalment of the long-running Indonesian Cultural Congress could not be better. The ongoing centennial congress is tackling the problem of resurgent sectarianism head on. One of the objectives of the congress is to formulate strategies to open more room for diverse cultural expressions.
The congress is also expected to find more ways to help preserve and develop local cultures, which have existed in the country for millennia and form the foundation of a national culture of diversity. These ways entail local governments submitting a proposal to get funding for the development of local art, literary and music scenes.
And more than just preserving traditional culture, the Education and Culture Ministry also pledged it would help bring local cultures into the Internet age. “We want to make sure that local traditions can thrive in this modern and digital age,” the ministry’s culture director general Hilmar Farid said.
Democracy can work in a society that respects diversity, and the ongoing work at the Cultural Congress is good news for those who worry about the ongoing “war”.