In
the Middle of the Unsolved Crisis (2001)
In the social system of Indonesia
with its strong patriarchal values, women bear the heaviest burden
in the existing condition. Women who constitute more than half of
the Indonesian population (50.1%) has to struggle hard in order
to face poverty, violence and injustice in their daily lives. The
problem of women is put at side in public discourse, because the
government and the community consider this problem an exclusively
female one, separated from the developing political context. Political
and economic discussions generally ignore women as political and
economic agents in the Indonesian system. As a result, improvement
of women's living conditions is relatively slow compared with that
of the other community members. Read more about the situation of
Indonesian women in this report prepared by the Center for Women's Resources
Development for the Social Watch site. View the document.
Women
and the nation (2001)
Nearly 85 political activists, including representatives
of the DPR, Indonesian political parties, the State Ministry for
Women's Empowerment, non-governmental organizations, labor unions,
the press and academics, came together in a Workshop on Women and
Politics. During the half-day forum, participants agreed to increase
the number of women representatives in the DPR and regional legislatures,
as well as within political parties. Read more from this news feature
from the online home of the Center for Legislative Development.
Women
Workers in Indonesia (2000)
Women's
Rights Situation in Indonesia (2000)
Under the Constitution,
women are equal to and have the same rights, obligations, and opportunities
as men. However, in practice, women face discrimination. For
instance, although some women have a high degree of economic and
social freedom and occupy important positions in both the public
and private sectors, most women do not have such status and they
constitute a disproportionately high percentage of the lower end
of the socioeconomic and political scale. Surveys have shown
that while more than one-third of civil servants are women, less
than 6 percent are in positions of authority. Read more from
this report from the US State Department.
Working
Women in Indonesia (2000)
In his speech during the Indonesian
Women Workers Conference in October 2000, U.S. Ambassador Robert
S. Gelbard acknowledged the role played by the Indonesian women
in the economy. He also paid tribute to two women workers who had
since become martyrs and symbols of women's workers rights.
Fighting
for Women's Rights in Indonesia (2000)
Reform
is for us too: Politics for Women, Women for Politics (1999)
While representation is low, women’s
organisations are active outside the formal corridors of power.
A loose coalition of organisations that had historically participated
in "opposing" the New Order, now have the opportunity
and even the responsibility to actually do so. However, many of
these non-governmental actors were more familiar with the politics
of protest and struggle than in the politics of democratic.
BAC
MAGGIE,
MEGA, or GRO? Women as National Leaders (1999)
With PDI-P leading at the polls
in the preliminary election count, the fact that Indonesia will
have a female president is a possibility. What does this imply for
women, but also for the people and the nation in general? What are
the characteristics of a woman leader, specifically as head of state?
View the document.
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Email
Empowerment in Indonesia (1999)
Gender
and politics under the Suharto regime 1996 - 1998
This paper describes the relationship between gender and politics
in Indonesia under the autocratic Suharto Regime. It provides an
historical context for a future study of gender relations under
the democratically elected Wahid government. The role of women in
politics and government during the Suharto years is elucidated,
as is the role of the national 'non-political' women's movement
in national development. Contradictions are highlighted in this
relationship, and links between scholarly and state planning discourses
about the relations between women and men and their proper roles
in national development are established. Methods by which women
resisted State ideologies within the movement and in the community
are described. The paper concludes that during the Suharto period
structural inequality existed between men and women in Indonesia.
Download the document
(Zipped file: 25kb).
Redefining
the role of women in Indonesia (1998)
The Indonesian woman is firstly
wife, then mother, then household economic supervisor. Only after
these three responsibilities have been discharged does she become
a member of society. Last and least, she is citizen of the state.
Find out why on this news article from the New Straits Times. View
the document.
Indonesia:
Working on the Front Lines (1998)
For the Indonesian Women's Association
for Justice, the struggle for human rights begins in the home-and
involves women gaining equality with men. Read more from this report.
View the document.
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Concluding
observations of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination
against Women: Indonesia
Based on the 1945 constitution,
as well as the Basic Guidelines of State Policy of 1978, women's
right to equality was explicitly guaranteed in Indonesia. However,
the de facto situation is that women remain unequal to men in terms
of rights and opportunities because of a combination of traditional
and cultural practices and certain laws that are contrary to the
spirit, if not the letter, of the principle of equality. The view
that the man is the head of the family and the woman the manager
of the household reflects this. Read more from this report.
Indonesia's
Reports to the Treaty Bodies (1998)
This is the summary of Indonesian
government's report to the Committee on the Elemination of Discrmination
Against Women. Read more from this report.
Fact
Sheet on Trafficking and Prostitution
Women
of Indonesia's Magetan Learn to Read
Other
relevant links
