As we commemorate Mother\'s Day on December 22nd, the situation is much different from that of the Indonesian Women\'s Congress of 1928.
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Kompas/Ferganata Indra Riatmoko
Female workers carry sugarcane setts on Wednesday (6/12) for planting a new crop in Balecatur village, Gamping, Sleman, Yogyakarta.
As we commemorate Mother\'s Day on December 22nd, the situation is much different from that of the Indonesian Women\'s Congress of 1928.
The origin of the commemoration of Mother’s Day was the implementation of the Indonesian Women’s Congress in 1928 in Yogyakarta. The congress voiced a determination to improve the position of women in the areas of education, health and the economy, as well as the eradication of household violence, including opposition to child marriage.
Nearly 90 years have past since the first congress, but only a portion of the ideals of the congress has been realized. In terms of education, the number of women who attend school up to university is no different from men. However, in many sectors women still require temporary special measures to catch up.
In terms of employment, the number of working women is less than men, and most work in the informal sector with a high level of uncertainty. In the political field, the number of women in legislative institutions has not been able to reach the desired number of 30 percent.
Most worrying is the continued prevalence of child marriage. Efforts to raise the marriage age limit for women in Law No. 1 of 1974 from 16 years to 18 years ended in failure at the Constitutional Court. Early marriage brings harm to women and society because it eliminates the opportunity for women to get a higher education and pursue self-development, while also threatening the health and life of women and their babies who they give birth to at a young age.
The Women Empowerment and Child Protection Ministry has chosen the theme “Empowered Women, Great Indonesia” to commemorate Mother’s Day in 2017. The commemoration is centered in Raja Ampat regency, West Papua. The choice was intended to enable women in the eastern part of Indonesia to learn from the progress achieved by women in other parts of Indonesia.
We expect much from women as figures who give birth and nurture life to participate in responding to present and future challenges. The growth of identity politics poses a threat to Indonesia as a unitary state. Women can play a central role in delivering a message of peace, harmony and tolerance, especially ahead of the regional elections in 2018.
Now, as we are faced with the digital revolution, which brings with it many changes to how we live, women must also be ready to master technology so as not to become passive consumers.
