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Jakarta Post

Outspoken youth demand to be heard

Earlier this week, young people from across the country hunkered down in South Jakarta for four days, cooking up something that has the potential to change the country’s future

Fitria Sofyani (The Jakarta Post)
Jakarta
Sun, July 11, 2010

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Outspoken youth demand to be heard

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arlier this week, young people from across the country hunkered down in South Jakarta for four days, cooking up something that has the potential to change the country’s future.

The youth was taking part in the Indonesian Youth Conference, a program designed to bring the country’s young people together in a forum where they can voice their concerns, exchange ideas, raise awareness about several problems and by the end of the program, came up with a resolution that they expect could be heard by those in the establishment.

Ideas for the program came from an organization called Cure for Tomorrow,  a community action project initiated by Alanda Kariza, an Indonesian representative at the Global Change Makers, a British Council program set up to support young entrepreneurs and community activists around the world.

 The 19-year-old Alanda, who grew concerned by the unrealized potential of the country’s youth, designed the conference so that it could be a vehicle for young people to make their aspirations heard.

“I felt devastated by the fact that there are more than 62 million young people in Indonesia, yet they have no access to a platform on which they can speak up about their opinions about the government and society,” Alanda told The Jakarta Post.

“I believe that youth should be given the opportunity to express their opinions on a wide range of issues to policymakers. We have a dream to establish  a council for the youth, but before it materializes, we thought     it would be better if we started a conference first. Through this conference, we will be able to create an impact,” she added.

 The conference started with a forum in which 33 representatives from all over Indonesia took part in seminars and trainings on leadership, teamwork, project management, project finance and problem solving.

One of requirements for young people to take part in the conference is that they must be between 15 years and 20 years old, and must be actively involved in their communities and determined to make projects that  will improve lives in their communities.

Nancy Setiawati Silalahi, a representative from Jakarta, said she joined the conference because of her love for Jakarta, where she was born and grew up, and Indonesia in general.

“I dream of a very bright future for this country. But I know it will never happen if we make no changes here. I want to be the agent of change for this country,” she told the Post.

Hendrik Bera, who came all the way from Kupang, East Nusa Tenggara, said he dreamed of becoming the country’s leader, but first he wanted to make changes in his hometown.

“This event gives me knowledge on how to nurture my skills so that I can realize my dream to make significant contribution for the development of East Nusa Tenggara,” he said.

In a session, where participants were given the opportunity to make a presentation on their current projects, Hendrik gave talk about his re-greening project for sandal- wood trees.

“East Nusa Tenggara used to be known for its cendana [sandal-wood], but not many of them left now. I want to invite people in Kupang to re-plant this tree,” the 16-year-old said.

Concerned with how waste is treated in Jakarta, Nancy made a proposal to create a new system for the disposal, transporting and processing of the waste. The project is called the Green Advocate Project,” said Nancy.

After three days of indoor activities, the congress wrapped up with a bang at the Salihara Theater in Pasar Minggu, South Jakarta.

The public was invited to join various activities from seminars, discussions and live performances.

Many topics from the environment and education to diplomatic relations, corruption, culture, film, music, photography, pluralism, the economy and entrepreneurship were discussed in the seminar.

Four hundred people turned up at the festival, prompting the festival organizer to call the event a success. Organizers invited prominent figures such as presidential spokesman Dino Patti Djalal, journalists Desi Anwar and Najwa Shihab and film director Mira Lesmana as speakers at the discussion.

On the final day, the critically acclaimed indie rock band Efek Rumah Kaca staged a gig that drew a huge crowd.

Intania Noor Fitriani, a law student of Padjajaran University in Bandung, said she was excited about the festival.

“Most issues they covered in this seminar are also my concerns. I believe this event could serve as a means for young people to achieve their aspirations,” said Intan.

She decided to spend the weekend in Jakarta only to to attend this festival.

Nadia Ratna, a high school student from SMA 68 Jakarta, expected there would be more events like this.

“This is very interesting and I hope there will be many events like this in the future. It is as entertaining as it is informative,” she said.

Palestinian Ambassador to Indonesia, Fariz Al Mehdawi, one of speakers in the forum said that he was proud of the Indonesian youth

“You don’t have to follow people from other countries. You should do things the way Indonesians do,” he said.

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