Turn left or right, stop or go, the answer of a question, the unexpected effects of a question, say, do you want to go some where,... now? Tick tock tick tock
Being swept away by the charismatic combination of life, emotions, the simplest things that pops into my mind every now and then, meanings behind everything that become objects in our life, rediscover my world, my reality, my dreams, all collide into one big messy bowl of a melancholy attack. It happens quite frequently, leaving you paralyze, knowing the bigger picture of all things that goes on. All you can do is just feel and hope that time goes easy on you while you stand still and everything else move forwards. Sounds like what you will experienced if you consume drugs or ganja? I think my brain just behave that way naturally, maybe because when I was three I fell and got stitches on my scalp, and thus something in my brain just go short circuited. Don’t be fooled by calm surfaces, people!
Things do happen in an expected way, pick a juncture from your past and you know it will lead you to another one. Like juxtaposed picture, we all are a product of somebody else’s action. What? You asked, what happen to free will? We all just a product of somebody else’s free will? Thus my free will effects you, direct or indirectly. Somebody else’s free will to go to see the National Monument had made me take that old beaten up lift, hold my breath and when we reach 137 meters above the ground, I say,“ Hallelujah, thanks for your free will, that made me come up here”
The National Monument was one of those things you ignore just because you have live in Jakarta for such along time, a part of the scenery you see frequently, a part of your memory, a part of the history that your teacher teaches you in school, it was there all the time, a part of Soekarno’s plan to build the rightfully Indonesian character through monumental landmarks. A treasure to be admire, but mostly a reminder of a specific time that proposed a specific idea of a nation.
Quoted from Virtual Tourist site Its construction began under Soekarno’s regime in the beginning of the 60’s but completed during the Soeharto’s regime on 1975. It stands for the people's determination to achieve freedom and the crowning of their efforts in the Proclamation of Independence in August 1945. The 137-meter tall marble obelisk is topped with a flame coated with 35 kg of gold. The base houses a historical museum and a hall for meditations.
The National Monument was only a short walk away from the National Museum, in which I regularly visit for inspiration, so to finally walk in the square park, and rediscover this landmark after so many years of ignoring it, was a bit overwhelming. As a citizen of the city, all of the sudden being reminded of a certain kind of form nationalism from the past. A time which freedom still taste blood, tears and glory.
On early November, the three of us, I, your narrator, my niece who recently had her master on biology, and a new friend from India who lives in Singapore went to the Medan Merdeka Area, an old area in Jakarta that most of the government ministries reside. The Indian had a 9.00 p.m flight, so he and my niece decide to go for some quick tour. I wasn’t planning to come, because one have to go to work at Monday, you know. I had this important meeting at one, in which my entire carrier depended on. The Indian asked me if I want to join them, and I raised my eyebrow ‘ Do I not look like a person who had a job, so as to accompany you at Monday will be all right?’ oh, okay, so I wore jeans to work, that kind of give an idea of unemployment, I guess.
Fifteen minutes later the big boss canceled the meeting, and pusponed it to tomorrow. I felt like a warrior with my bamboo assault weapon, who is already standing by in my position and waiting for Bung Tomo’s speech about replacing the Dutch’s flag with a red and white flag in the year of 1945. I want Blood on my hands! I spent a week without sleep and drink to much caffein for this! ‘ Oh , well, having this already pumped up adrenalin in my body made me offer my self as the unofficial guide, because the Indian is, well he lived in Singapore, and my niece lived in Bandung. So, the free will of people around me forced me to take an action. I can still called it my own free will, since I chose to go to the Center of Jakarta rather then go back to my rented room at the South Jakarta and go extremely hyperactive because I drank to much coffee.
The Park that surrounds the National Monument was Jakarta’s version of New York’s central park. We should have more of these Public Parks, and not convert every available land as a shopping center with palm trees. At that moment, as I stare into the greens, and has this conversation about the River Ganges, most of the Hindu India still believes that no matter how dirty the river is, it is perceived sacred, holly and clean. Evan some of them wants their body to rest there when they die. Imagine dead people floating around on the same river that the living people washes their body with.
What was in the back of the people’s mind back then, when the monument first finally erected? Proud, astonished, full of hopes for the future of the republic, blind optimism, during those years of building the monument from the early 1960’s to the mid 1970’s, through another bloody clashes. CIA finally opened their classified file on Indonesia during those years.
Soekarno’s political decision of NASAKOM, Abbreviation of Nasional-Agama-Komunis ( Nationalist-Religion-Communist) trying to put those ideology together in one Nation, made a lot of people in and out of the country worried, that Indonesia would fall to the dark side ( Communist) with China and The Soviet Union. So, something must be done, said the hands that played the political game. Hence, the Communist Party in Indonesia started a movement the Indonesian historian agree on calling it Gerakan 30 September ( The September 30th Movement), It movement included killing all the top Generals that refused to join the group. The next day, the country declared the state of emergency, And guess who is in charge of stabilizing the situation? Soeharto. A few years later, Soekarno gave a mandatory to Soeharto to take over the Presidency position with a letter that till now became a controversy because of its legitimation.
In my history books, it was never written that after the state declared that the Communist party was a dangerous group, many people’s life were tragically ended. The state captured all of the accused people without a trial and put them in exile, mostly in Buru Island, where Pramudya Ananta Toer, one of Indonesia’s great author, lives for years. My parents were in their adolescent years when it happens, they witnessed, how people kill other people because the assumption that they are communist. That was not in my history book. Civilian acts in their own judgement, ending people lives just like that, no trials, just because they assume the victims are related to someone that someone said was related to a member of the communist party. That was not in my history books, of course it was not, he who have the power, controls the history.
Many innocent people years later had to be secluded and taken away their rights as a citizen, They are marked targets, because even in their identity card, the state gave them sign that they are communist. It’s similar to when the Nazi gave the Jew the triangle. They cannot get a good education, good jobs, cannot vote, the stigma. The state always indoctrinated us with “ Beware the hidden danger of Communist” even when corruption has become more dangerous and threatening then the ideology we still sing along with that cunning mantra.
“ Beware of the vivid danger of Corruption”
At the bottom of the Monument resides the National Heritage Museum that allow us to here the first President of Indonesia giving one of his powerful speeches. “ Jangan pernah meninggalkan sejarah ...” “ Never ever desert your history “ I Think Soeharto knows his people pretty well, we are a nation that tend to always suffer from history amnesia. The lesson was never taken,because we failed to learn from past mistakes.
Indonesia, Jakarta, up on this landmark, another melancholy attack, The south, east, west and north, it makes sense seeing it as a whole, not as a separate area. This metropolitan of ours, dusty, broken down, and yet an optimism arise, amidst the traffic jams? amidst the lousy city plan? Up here, I just felt like, maybe it is not to late to change Jakarta, make it more human, make it more livable, somehow, someway. Maybe we can still take this ship wreck and make it to the shore.
A long time ago, when I had my first trip to the monument, I was 10 years old, my first field trip, so many differences, are we moving forward or are we moving backwards? Will my children in the future will have the same emotion as I had? Or this legacy will not have the same respected atmosphere, because in the future the history will all be rewritten? Freedom take for granted.
