JAKARTA - Students are an important element in the national movement. Class 66 student, Soe Hok Gie understands this very well. For him, students must be sensitive to all the problems of people's lives. Not even busy scrambling to enter parliament. Therefore, the best students are those who oppose the unjust leaders.
The release of Indonesia from the shackles of colonialism is the most decisive moment. As a new nation, Indonesia will soon clean up many things. In the midst of these reforms, Indonesia's economic and political conditions are far from good. Politically, Indonesia is already independent. However, economically, dependence on foreign companies is an endless problem.
This condition was further exacerbated by Sukarno's attitude, which began to fall asleep in power. Bung Karno even declared himself the great leader of the revolution and president for life. He built many lighthouse projects, agitated and propaganda against Malaysia, nationalized foreign companies, and purchased combat equipment. Soekarno's extravagance became even more evident when he had more than one wife. People no longer sympathize with him. Because people cannot live from mere rhetoric.
“He (Soekarno) also has ambitions to build a new world that is better, more just, and free from oppression. This can be seen from his speech at the UN General Assembly entitled To Build the World a New. Unfortunately, his own country continues to fall into poverty. I think it's hard to build or change the world with just the rhetoric of struggle."
“Many say that the rhetoric of nekolim (neo colonialism and imperialism) and building a new world is only a distraction from the people's difficulties at home. His speeches and ideas are indeed good and pleasant to hear, but unfortunately they are more of a rhetoric,” said student of class 66, Firman Lubis in the book Jakarta 1950-1970 (2018).
The economic crisis in the 1960s was another story that worsened Bung Karno's image. Prices are getting higher and higher, the capitalists are eating voraciously eating the people's share, until the New Rich People (OKB) are increasingly acting up. General Hoegeng Imam Santoso felt the rancid behavior of OKB children. This experience was obtained by Hoegeng when he served as Head of the Immigration Service Office in 1960.
OKB, who is a businessman on a daily basis, is Bung Karno's golden child. He came to see Hoegeng for a diplomatic passport. A passport which has certain immunity under international law.
Hoegeng flatly refused. Hoegeng's righteous attitude is reasonable. Diplomatic passports are only issued to limited circles such as diplomats. Moreover, diplomatic passports must be requested through the recommendation of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and not directly to the Immigration Office. The businessman laughed instead and tried to offer a number as a bribe. Hoegeng was furious.
"You see that's the door. So you just have to choose: get out well or I'll kick out the door! To hell with your money!” Hoegeng asserted as written by Abrar Yusra and Ramadhan KH in the book Hoegeng: Ideal Police and Reality (1993).
Against the unjust leader
A series of policies of the Old Order government made many Indonesians miserable. Especially the actions of the political elites. They only think about the fat personal account alone. In the end, the people are the victims. This condition made Sok Hok Gie return to remembering the importance of the role of students as agents of change.
At every opportunity, Gie always reminds his friends that it is the duty of students to always be sensitive to the suffering of the people. Because, the best life as a student are those who dare to oppose the unjust leaders.
Like Bung Karno who made politics the commander in chief. So, Gie hopes that students must make their ideals as commanders. Therefore, naturally, students are not only critical of matters of state governance or the policies of the ruling government regime.
But students have to crisis on themselves. In a sense, when they see oppression and injustice in front of their eyes, if the body does not act then they can be angry with themselves. To his soul, to his conscience, and to his friends.
“Intellectuals who continue to live in a state of urgency have worn away all their humanity. (Take an example) When Hitler started to rage the Inge School group said no. they (the German youths) have the courage to say no."
“They, though young, have dared to stand up to the leaders of the rogue gangs, the all-identical Nazi regime. That they died doesn't matter to me. They have fulfilled the call of a thinker. There is no beauty (in a romantic sense) in their punishment, but what is more poetic than speaking the truth,” explained Soe Hok Gie in his book Notes of a Demonstrator (2015).
Students, said Gie, can do many things. Including eradicating the old generation that messed up. Students can be judges over those who commit abuse of office. More broadly, students can prosper Indonesia.
However, it's a different story if critical students only use their idealism only to end up fighting to enter parliament and then scrambling to get Holden's car loan. That mentality certainly does not show students as intelligent people. Instead, it brought Indonesia back to hundreds of years ago. Where Indonesia is still a colonized nation.
Therefore, Gie had sent a number of packages containing lipstick, pupur, and a bra to his friends who are members of parliament. The package becomes a form of criticism to those who are empty of power and ignore their struggle. He wrote the words: Use this to look more beautiful in parliament.
“His (Gie) commitment is total to modernization and democracy. His reckless honesty and complete absence of self-awareness in waging his struggles made it possible for him to overcome certain traditional objections to him that many people have because he is of Chinese descent.”
“For me, he is an example of a new type or kind of Indonesian, of a true Indonesian. I think this message was contained in his short life,” recalls the figure of the Indonesian Socialist Party (PSI), Soedjatmoko in his book Becoming an Educated Nation According to Soedjatmoko (2010).
*Read other information about HISTORY or read other interesting articles from Detha Arya Tifada.
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