The Jakarta Post, March 27, 2007
Do we truly embrace unity in diversity?
Evi Mariani, Amsterdam
I never thought I would experience it on a street in Amsterdam; that all-too-familiar
taunt Cina, pronounced like the English China. But it did happen to me and a Dutch
friend as we walked down a street through the center of this multicultural city. The two
of us do look like we come from China, as the name-caller thought. We both have
Chinese backgrounds: I am a Chinese-Indonesian whereas she is Dutch with parents
who came from Hong Kong to the Netherlands decades ago.
I was surprised by the incident but I also found it hilarious, due to the low -- at least, I
thought -- likelihood of experiencing name-calling not on a street in Bandung or
Jakarta but somewhere in West Europe.
Unlike me, who laughed at the incident, my friend did not see the funny side of it.
She, who was born and raised in Holland, told me she hated such name-calling,
which she had apparently experienced many times.
"In big cities like Amsterdam, the name-callers are usually not Dutch (she means
white Dutch). But in Maastricht (a small city where she grew up) most of them are
(white) Dutch farmers, we call them farmers although they are not really farmers," she
told me.
Later, I realized that if the same thing happened to me in Indonesia, my reaction
would be more or less the same as hers. I would take it seriously and be slightly hurt,
because if it happened in Indonesia, the experience would not be a one-time funny
incident in a foreign country, in other words, not something you would share with your
friends, laughing over it while sipping coffee or knocking back beers. Like her, I think I
would be presented with something like a lifetime problem -- a commitment instead of
a one-night stand.
This incident made me think more about migration and ethnic negotiation between
migrants and their "hosts" around the world, well, at least in the Netherlands and in
Indonesia. How different the negotiation process is and how similarly painful is the
struggle, especially on the migrant side with the exception of a few cases like the
American and Australian continents.
One thing I found out in the Netherlands is that the negotiation process between
migrants and their hosts is no easier than anywhere else in the world. In Holland there
are ethnic groups that are considered "problematic" like the Turks and the Moroccans
and there are those who are "invisible", like Asians.
This invisibility misleads the public to think that Asians have no identity or citizenship
problem in Holland. When the Dutch public talk about migrants, or, in Dutch,
allochtone, they are mostly referring to Turks, Moroccans and Surinamese.
Dismissing the Asian group as a non-issue, I think, is a mistake. There is the notion
that so long as the allochtone keep out of trouble, as most Asians do, there will be no
serious problems, no discrimination, no conflicts. This suggests the "problematic"
ethnic groups should stop making problems -- like maintaining their relatively low-level
of education, asking for a mosque, or being poorer than the rest of the population -- if
they want to be welcomed with open arms that is.
Indeed, compared to the "problematic" ethnic groups, Asians are well-off, fare better in
education, contribute less to crime statistics and hardly ever ask for a particular
worship place. However, still, not all members of the host society appreciate this
low-profile approach.
"Sometimes Dutch people say ni hao (how are you in Chinese) to me on the street.
They say it's a polite greeting. But I know better, it's mocking," my friend once told
me.
This is only one example of how Chinese people feel they are not really welcome in
the Netherlands. There are other problems like the glass ceiling issue in some
workplaces where it is difficult for Asians, like other allochtone, to reach the top.
This is not to say the hosts are the bad guys and the allochtone the innocent victims.
On the other hand, this story also says the host society is no welcoming angel and
the allochtone are not exactly having a picnic. Both sides have to work to achieve an
ideal multicultural society.
However, I have noticed one good thing about Holland; there are efforts to address the
problems that come with a multicultural society. The murders of Pim Fortuyn and
Theo van Gogh pushed the Dutch people to see they have problems; the murders led
to hostile reactions from many Dutch people but, on the other hand, this hostility
caused the Dutch to question the sincerity of their tolerance and subsequently paved
the way for dialog and efforts to make the multicultural society really work. Their first
step is to admit that both sides, host and migrants, have contributed to the problem. I
see this first step as crucial in setting out on the path to a genuine multicultural
society.
I have not seen this first step taken collectively in Indonesia, which people and
national figures always say is a "tolerant nation", "open to differences" and "Bhinneka
Tunggal Ika (Unity in Diversity) works well". The anti-Chinese riots in 1998? Blame
them on a conspiracy theory, and anyway, Chinese-Indonesians are aloof, an attitude
tolerant people cannot tolerate.
Religious conflict in Maluku? Blame it on political interests and, again, think up
another conspiracy theory. Before the "provocateurs" incited the conflict, Christians
and Muslims there lived side-by-side, without any prejudice or fear of each other.
Once again, Indonesians are tolerant; conflict arises only when their tolerance is
pushed to the limit -- like the Dayak people's tolerance and openness being pushed to
the limit by years of exposure to the coarseness and the exclusive economic circle of
the Madurese in Borneo.
I'm getting tired of hearing this widely believed notion of tolerance and openness, the
I'm-kind-as-long-as-you-please-me tolerance and
I-won't-bother-you-as-long-as-you-are-not-demanding openness. Why don't we admit
it, just be honest. We are not tolerant. We fear differences.
We don't like it when the members of our religious congregation are influenced by the
followers of other religions. We don't like seeing our hometown being invaded by
strangers who become, day by day, more prosperous than ourselves. We are
annoyed by the gospel singing from the house next door or by the adzan from the
loud speaker of the mosque behind our house.
Let's just say it: To Chinese-Indonesians, Christians, Papuans, Hindus, those who
have communist grandparents, and other minority groups, we apologize, but don't ever
run for presidential office. It would be useless and would never happen -- at least not in
our lifetimes.
I will take the initiative: I have such problems. And I think you do, too. We are all
guilty as charged. Now, let's sit and talk and act. I have the strong feeling that we, as
a nation, can overcome these problems, together.
The writer is a journalist with The Jakarta Post who is pursuing a master degree in
Urban Studies at Universiteit van Amsterdam
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