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flag-raising ceremony is usually the norm to commemorate the historical moment when a group of Indonesian youths proclaimed three ideals '€” one motherland, one nation and one language '€” on Oct. 28, 1928, now known as Youth Pledge Day.

However, youngsters may instead find themselves rocking out to local tunes in Taman Menteng in Central Jakarta on Sunday, as part of a campaign by the Seperlima group to promote sex education.

The five organizations that constitute Seperlima '€” youth group Pamflet, the Indonesian Family Planning Association (PKBI), the Center for Education and Information on Islam and Women'€™s Rights Issues (Rahima), Dutch NGO Hivos and the University of Indonesia'€™s Gender and Sexuality Research Center '€” are holding the third Festival Seperlima with the theme '€œBeda Itu Biasa'€ (Different is Normal) in commemoration of Youth Pledge Day.

Pamflet coordinator Afra Suci Ramadhan told The Jakarta Post that the campaign'€™s main objective was to promote the importance of sex education for youths, using the music and film event as a way of reaching out to young people in a relatable way.

'€œWe chose this theme in honor of the Youth Pledge. We want to encourage pluralism and unity among young Indonesians, and sex education is one way of doing so. People learn how to respect themselves and each other when they are given sex education and that is also a key principle of the Youth Pledge,'€ she said.

Last year, campaign events were held in October at 365 Eco Bar in Kemang, South Jakarta, and in April at the National Museum in Central Jakarta.

However, Afra said, Seperlima wanted to hold the Oct. 26 event in a free open space so that it would be more accessible to the public.

'€œIt'€™s a free event and we want everyone to come. We want as many young people to receive our message as possible,'€ she said, adding that the campaign was hoping for between 700 and 1,000 visitors.  

Afra said that the musical acts chosen to play all supported Seperlima'€™s belief in the importance of sex education.

She added that the films had been chosen because they all touched on themes of identity and sexuality.

Separately, Kartika '€œTika'€ Jahja of local band Tika & The Dissidents said that many of their songs had underlying themes relating to homophobia and women'€™s right to their own bodies.

'€œSo even without any dialogue, we hope that young Indonesians can understand the message that we are all trying to spread during this event. Everyone needs to understand that being different is normal,'€ she said.

Festival Seperlima will host a number of activities throughout the day, including music performances and film screenings.

The music performances will run from 3:15 p.m. until 10:35 p.m., featuring local acts such as Tika & The Dissidents, Sore, Dialog Dini Hari, Risky Summerbee & The Honeythief, Witches, Polkawars, Harlan Luky Annash, Zeke Khaseli, Folkagogo and Angsa & Serigala.  

Four movies will be shown in between the musical performances, starting at 6:30 p.m. and ending at 9:50 p.m., followed by discussions with the movie directors and schoolteachers after each screening.

The movie Masa Sih? (Really?) by young film director Chairun Nissa will be shown to public audiences for the first time.

Visitors will also be able to browse stands and booths run by a number of organizations for more information on sex education. (fss)