The collapse of Indonesian education – are we desensetized to the plight of underprivileged children?

The photo above is of a school in Bandung, West Java. Thirty-eight years old and falling apart, its roof finally gave in to its dilapidating conditions and collapsed. Calls to renovate fell on deaf ears. This article is about conditions of schools nationwide in Indonesia. Many are falling apart, and students have to resort to be in “temporary buildings with no walls, dirt floors, and bamboo poles supporting the roof” – hardly a conducive environment to educate one’s self in.

Let’s contrast the image above and linked article, to photos in Jakarta (photos courtesy of jakartadaily.com ):

The Senayan City Mall:

One entrance at Pondok Indah Mal II:

Inside Plaza Senayan:

And more malls are being built! Upon a visit in 2005 (the second I have made since coming here in 88), I saw five new mall constructions in Jakarta alone! And these are not ordinary shopping strips but huge mega-malls with over two floors. Granted, constructing the building upwards is due to constraint of space in Jakarta’s ever crowded area, but are over 20 malls, mega and mini-mega, in Jakarta alone necessary? And for what?

The contrasts and divide in Jakarta, and ultimately all of Indonesia, are deepening and widening at an alarming rate as the rich get richer and the poor get poorer.

How can the have-nots get themselves out of poverty if they can’t even have a decent place to get an education?

Of what benefit are new mega-construction of malls to the haves, when there are already 5 available in each district of Jakarta?

Have Indonesians, and especially Jakartans, become desensitized to blatant disparities in their environment, to abject poverty they pass by every day? Since they see it every day, it becomes an unimportant matter as it comprises a part of their normalcy? a part of their routine?

And have we, who live outside of Indonesia, been too caught up in the hectic-ness of our own lives to remember the sufferings endured by our brothers and sisters back home?

An elder in the community here in DC once remarked how fired up and passionate a few of us were after a visit to Indonesia. We wanted to do something, make a change, right then and there. After a few months, the passion and fire dissipated to a nonchalant, indifferent perception of what goes on outside of our secure, privileged bubble. And no matter how much we deem our lives to suck, we are all living in a secure, privileged bubble.

If you can afford Starbucks, a laptop to type on, a clothing salary of more than five dollars a day, a food habit that finds you restaurant and bar hopping every now and then, a leisure budget that allows you to go to the movies, concerts, and shopping trips, then buddy, you are not deprived, your lives do not suck, you are just spoiled and bratty. (This, I also direct to myself). We all need to be reminded, not every now and then, but perhaps every day, of how privileged we truly are, especially if you live here, and most especially if you are born here or can call yourself a citizen or even permanent resident.

To a certain extent, we do over-exaggerate our woes. Why? Because we live in a bubble. And in that bubble, we see other bubble people who have more, and we want what they have. We always look up. Our necks hurt, but we don’t care.

Perhaps it is due to our ability, however limited, to obtain what we want, thus we never reconcile ourselves to accept what we already have. Instead, we always push for more.

Children who cannot even have a school with walls, a school with a dirt floor and without even a ceiling fan to cool themselves off on a hot, Indonesian day, do not have the luxury of even dreaming of life’s excesses as their focus is on obtaining life’s basics. Thus, they do have to accept it, accept it and move on. Life is more important than thinking about what someone else has. There needs to be food on the table – how can we get it there with our limited income of less than 50 dollars a month? School books are a luxury, so treasure it. Phone time is expensive, so spare your minutes on important subjects. Paper is expensive, so don’t waste it.

And then here we are, crumpling paper with ease, throwing our books around, talking about nonsense on the phone, and shoving half-eaten plates into the garbage pail. We are wasteful, we are spendthrifts, we, I believe, are the ultimate losers in the game of life. Life has become to us a superficial journey of consumerism, materialism, and wasteful-ism (my word, don’t bash it). And on our path, we step and trample over any thing or any one that stands in our way, be it Mother Nature or our brothers and sisters. We don’t care, as long as we can be on top, we can get the better things, we can be praised and applauded.

And when Mother Nature and the downtrodden fights back, we cry foul. What silly beings we are. We can’t have our cake and eat it too, we can’t close our eyes or hearts to the conditions plaguing our fellow man and woman–and especially Mother Nature.

Indonesia’s children do not need more Malls or Shopping Centers, they do not need more encouragement to be spendthrifts, wasteful beings. They need schools, they need an education, they need enlightenment to awaken their inner hearts to care, not just of themselves, but also of others. And not just for a moment or two, but for every day, for every moment.