More Than Just a Stupid Word

(published by The Jakarta Post on 27 Apr 2010. Click here)

The riot that erupted at PT Drydocks World Graha’s shipyard in Batam on April 22 did not need to happen. Of course an improper remark was made calling all Indonesians stupid. We are offended by such a statement, but how our brothers at the shipyard answered the haphazard statement with violation was deplorable. Perhaps the story would be different if the remark came from fellow Indonesians. Some Indonesian superiors also often say “stupid” to their employees, right?

Ah, the “stupid” word is common here. But why did the Indian manager of the Drydock shipyard who upset his team by saying “all Indonesians are stupid” trigger a backlash? Pieces of information collected by some mass media tells us that such a racist remark was not the first time the same Indian manager uttered those words.
He once would have been assaulted by the local workers after harshly slamming his team with the same remark but fortunately was prevented by satpam (security officer). But still, the reason was not too strong to ignite anger because most Indonesian workers usually prefer to ensure their job than fight.

When I previously worked for a prominent private bank in Jakarta, my boss was an Indian national. I dealt with many Indian vendors and my boss even asked me to manage special teams which comprised of outsourced Indian expatriates for some projects. They were fine to work with, their knowledge in some particular areas were even better than Indonesians.

Maybe I was lucky because my Indian boss was very professional, rational and logical. She gave me the authority to make decisions in my job even (if necessary) to terminate Indian experts from the outsourcing company which she was recommended to hire. In this regards, the termination was based on performance. Once when a senior fellow Indian ended its working contract, my boss asked me to decide whether to extend or terminate the contract. As a local worker, I won her trust.

We are living in a global world today where many giant investors create projects in Indonesia and create jobs as well. Indian people spread out across the globe leaving their very dense homeland to seek jobs, too. It will be the same as China and Indonesia as the countries, with huge populations, have respective governments unable to provide sufficient job opportunities. Now our world becomes the world of competition.

Many private companies in Indonesia today hire Indian expatriates to head high level managerial positions. Those who head top position will always want to strengthen their organization by taking their trustworthy fellows into the structure. This phenomenon is normal. Let’s go back to professionalism and please don’t let us to be trapped in race sentiment.

In the Drydock incident, it’s not just about a stupid word, although we deplore the Indian manager’s attitude. Some media notes there was a sentiment accumulation between local workers and expatriates workers because of different treatment. It will be easy to understand if the different treatment was merely based on performance, but it is a fatal error if race or ethnicity became consideration in treating workers differently.

Apart from this, we should also check the education level of 10,000 local workers compare to the 200 foreign workers at Drydock. Learning the proportion, there should be less Indonesians with adequate qualification and education to stand at the same level as the expatriates.

The “stupid” word is everywhere including in the working place. I often hear that word, too. Are we Indonesians stupid? Let’s take a mirror and look at our face.

***
Serpong, 24 April 2010
Titus J.

The Wonderful Artalyta

(published by The Jakarta Post on 15 Apr 2010. Click here)

Artalyta Suryani is wonderful. She is not only a wealthy person, but also widely known as a successful businesswoman who has a close relationship to the influencing figures. In this context, she is a brilliant lobbyist. We don’t need to be doubtful about this. If we listened to the tapped conversation between her and high-profile state officials from the Attorney General’s Office, Urip Tri Gunawan in March 2008 — prior to his arrest — it confirmed everything.

Artalyta was wonderful. Urip Tri Gunawan was disdainful. No matter what! How could have he rejected the USD$660,000? It might make him tremble, but a bunch of dollars has swept his conscience, though. A friend of mine said that he would have mocked him crazy if he did not taken the dollars. As a senior prosecutor, he was also a normal human being, living a normal life in Indonesia and being a state official where money was not a temptation anymore.

After the Corruption Court sentenced Artalyta to five years in jail, the public has forgotten her story. Although many people, especially anticorruption activists, considered the punishment was too lenient, that’s not bad because our court eventually dared to sentence such a caliber briber and sent her to jail. Then, suddenly the media broadcasted shocking news in January 2010 about her luxury jail in Pondok Bambu Penitentiary, East Jakarta. The cell was equipped with a television set, spacious bed, tape player, air condition and karaoke lounge. Great!

Please don’t be too surprised because she was known as bountiful. Her life “behind the bar” never stopped her being generous to others. Being generous is good, right? Do you believe Artalyta did not act generously to the wardens of the penitentiary to get such facilities?

When the Justice and Human Rights Ministry questioned several prisoners including Artalyta regarding the presence of luxury facilities in their cells, they admitted paying wardens to allow them to take in their luxury facilities. They argued the prison was in poor condition.
How hard to shackle Artalyta. Jail for her is nothing because she will be happy wherever she stays. If necessary, she can even transform the jail into a palace.

Last week, the Supreme Court “rewarded” her with six month imprisonment reduction. Great again!

One of five justices who sentenced the reduction, Justice Hatta Ali said: “Five years is maximum punishment for her case, and her role in the case was not serious enough for her to face maximum penalty.” Please make a note that Justice Ali underlined that “her role was not serious enough”. Another reason why the justices granted the reduction was “humanitarian”, because Artalyta has many employees who rely on her companies for their livelihoods.

Humanitarian is a noble word, so touching. However, the five justices except Justice Krisna Harahap apparently forgot that bribery committed by Artalyta has injured humanity. Bribery has corrupted the moral values and today we are at the lowest point of moral degradation because of corruption. We realize that corruption is a cruel beast because it has no compassion, is barbaric and is inhuman because it destroys human sense. It is corruption that disgraces our nation’s dignity in the international community and we are walking to moral bankruptcy as a nation. Now we see the Supreme Court justices concerned with the humanitarian wellbeing of the one who has acted against humanity.

Chief of Judicial Commission (KY) Busyro Muqoddas expressed his disappointment after learning the fact: “I’m deeply saddened. We should be concerned with freeing oppressed people including freeing them from the impact of corruption. Humanitarian issues should be pro-people instead of pro-corrupt officials, but I am not surprised with this. The phenomenon is rampant to the regions level and will continue unless a revolution of thought begins at the Supreme Court.”

Artalyta is wonderful. When I remember Ibu Minah who was initially charged with 45 days jail from the local court in Purwokerto for stealing three cacao pods from a plantation company, I realized that it’s not about Artalyta, but Minah. Why are you poor in this country? (Siapa suruh jadi orang miskin di negeri ini?).

***
Serpong, 12 Apr 2010
Titus J.