Equality for Women

KOMPAS/M PASCHALIA JUDITH J

Chairperson of the steering committee of the Pancasila Ideology Development Agency (BPIP) Megawati Soekarnoputri speaks in a national seminar with the theme "Great Women for Advanced Indonesia", held by the BPIP in Jakarta on Sunday (22/12/2019).

The commemoration of Mother’s Day on 22 December reminds us all that women’s equality in society is guaranteed in the 1945 Constitution.

Our Constitution does not differentiate between roles and positions of men and women as citizens. Women, for instance, have enjoyed suffrage since Indonesia’s independence – same as men.

Mother’s Day that we commemorate every year reflects our appreciation of women’s political struggle in holding the First Women’s Congress on Dec. 22, 1928. The Kowani, as the congress is abbreviated, was held on the heels of the Youth Congress that discussed preparations for an independent Indonesia on Oct. 28, 1928.

Despite the Constitution guaranteeing equal rights and obligations for women, former Indonesian president Megawati Soekarnoputri said at a Mother’s Day event in Jakarta on Sunday (22/12/2019) that social constructs and culture persist that hinder women from making progress. Such obstacles must be tackled together through education at home that does not differentiate between sons and daughters.

KOMPAS/ADITYA PUTRA PERDANA

The wife of Vice President Ma\'ruf Amin, Wury Estu Handayani (second right), and Women\'s Empowerment and Child Protection Minister (second left) Gusti Ayu Bintang Darmawanti take a photo with a recipient of an award at the commemoration of the 91st Mother\'s Day, in the Old City area of Semarang, Central Java, Sunday (22/12/2019). Three village heads, representing western, central and eastern Indonesia, received awards for their gender-responsive village budgets (APBDes).

President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo through his Instagram account said the face of today’s and tomorrow’s Indonesia would also be shaped by mothers and women with wide opportunities and access to various kinds of services in the country.

We have to link this statement with the Indonesia Gold 2045 dream, which envisions Indonesia as a wealthy country. One of the requirements for this is the availability of innovative and competitive human resources.

Women must be physically healthy from before the day they are born and socially, politically and economically empowered as adults to achieve a progressive Indonesia.

Women have an important role in producing human resources due to their nature for pregnancy and breastfeeding. The mother’s genes, according to research, play a huge role in passing intelligence on to children. Women must be physically healthy from before the day they are born and socially, politically and economically empowered as adults to achieve a progressive Indonesia.

KOMPAS/ADITYA PUTRA PERDANA

A number of Semarangan dancers perform a dress rehearsal for the 91st Mother\'s Day celebration, in the Old Town area of Semarang, Central Java, Sunday (22/12/2019). The celebration, which was attended by a number of Indonesia Onward Cabinet ministers, was held with the theme "Empowered Women, Advanced Indonesia".

Indonesia needs to reform its patriarchal culture that differentiates women from men in terms of rights, opportunities and access to social resources such as education and health, economic resources in the job market and political resources in decision-making.

Despite progress on various fronts, Indonesian women still face various problems. Women still face violence in many forms: physical, psychological, economic and sexual. The gender pay gap persists. Women are prone to trafficking. Protection of female migrant workers remains poor. Female members of customary communities have a weak position in mining investments.

KOMPAS/FERGANATA INDRA RIATMOKO

Women hug their mothers at an event to celebrate Mother\'s Day in Tanjung village, Nguter, Sukoharjo, Central Java, Friday (20/12/2019). The activity was held as a form of gratitude for the services of the mothers in the family.

Women account for half of the nation’s population. Providing equal access, protection and opportunities for women will lead to sustainable progress of the whole nation.