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Yunus 'Joen' Erlangga: His Toilet Talk Cartoons
Full support: Malang-based cartoonist Yunus Erlangga supports World Toilet Day through his drawings
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Full support: Malang-based cartoonist Yunus Erlangga supports World Toilet Day through his drawings.
The issue of sanitation may not be an interesting one but presenting it through cartoons can highlight the important relationship between sanitation and health.
The United Nations declared Nov. 19 as World Toilet Day (WTD) and appointed cartoonists, including Indonesian artist Yunus Erlangga, to join in the global campaign to raise awareness of the importance of sanitation.
'Through cartoons, people can view something from a different perspective,' says Yunus, who was named one of the official artists for the WTD campaign.
''I've been listed as the only cartoonist from Indonesia,' he notes.
Three cartoonists from other countries will also support the illustrated campaign.
Some 2.4 billion people around the world still do not have access to decent toilets and more than a billion are forced to defecate out in the open. It is the job of Yunus and his fellow cartoonists to bring attention to the issue.
The lack of adequate sanitation facilities is one of the main causes of death for children due to disease. These deaths could be prevented by improved water supply and sanitation.
Yunus, who uses the pen name 'Joen', says that through his work, he can intrigue, inspire and tease his readers and ultimately develop a logical viewpoint that shines a spotlight on issues in the world.
He says his involvement in the campaign exceeded his expectations.
'I submitted an application with a number of cartoons in 2014 but I missed the deadline. But it turned out that they kept my name and pictures,' Yunus says.
In his cartoons, the man, who studied at the Indonesian Arts Institute (ISI) in Yogyakarta, illustrates the importance of toilets in daily life.
In 'We Can't Wait', Yunus draws a hand moving a toilet-shaped chess piece. In 'Flush Properly', he pictures the process of flushing through a tablet. In 'Think-Care-Action', he illustrates three toilets with tanks shaped like a brain, heart and hand.
'The sanitation campaign can be successful by contributing ideas, showing concern and taking action,' he says.
His messages are delivered in simple drawings without excessive intricacy.
'My cartoons have no standard pattern. I focus more on the messages to be delivered so that they can be interpreted by the readers themselves,' says Yunus, who idolizes the cartoonists Prijanto Sunarto and Datuk Mohammad Nor Khalid.
He hopes that his audience will not just smile or feel amused but grasp and understand the ideas that he is trying to deliver.
He says his experiences living in Yogyakarta motivated him to the join the campaign. While staying in the city for an exhibition, he lived in a lodging house on the Code River bank.
'Most of the residents there preferred to defecate in the river even though the regional administration had, for around 20 odd years, provided them with a public latrine,' says the 45-year-old.
He noted that one of the residents living next to the latrine used it for bathing and washing but still used the river as a toilet. 'The reason is that using the river has been the habit of the local people since childhood, despite the availability of the free latrine.' Yunus says.
Yunus believes that childhood education is the key to changing a community's behavior. However, there is no way to introduce instant change.
'The government should work to change habits, not only by building public latrines but also by getting people familiar with the proper use of the facility and campaigning for sanitation in a well-directed manner.'
Yunus' work has earned him recognition in the international cartoon scene.
One of his works, titled 'Milky Weapon' ' highlighting the problem of child soldiers ' was exhibited in Norway in October 2015. It was even published by a daily newspaper in London.
Sometimes his pictures are hyperbolic, surrealist and a bit cynical. For instance, 'Boat People, Where Are They Supposed To Go?' depicts refugees seeking shelter as far out as outer space.
Another work, 'Awaiting the Birth', depicts a doctor and a nurse with anti-riot gear helping a mother deliver her 'freedom of speech' baby.
The father of two, who joined the studio of the late Tino Sidin, a famous painter and teacher back in 1980s, is also an active member of cartoonmovement.com, an international cartoon community based in the Netherlands.
'To my knowledge, only two Indonesians are a part of the community,' he says.
He is also an active representative of the Good Humor Party in Poland and United Sketch for Freedom group in France. His work has appeared in various media outlets including Boston Magazine in the US, Toonpool in Germany and Brazilcartoon in Brazil.
Yunus has also won awards from China, Germany and Mexico. He is currently working on a comic series centered on Sukarno based on the book Sukarno File by Antonie CA Duke.
His illustrations have also been included in the Ayden Dogan International Cartoon Competition in Turkey.
'I haven't won yet, but I'm proud of my participation in the event because the panel of judges comprises cartoonists from international dailies,' he says.
Since 1989, Yunus has been regularly holding cartoon exhibitions and Yunus is determined to highlight important issues in the world ' from health and peace to environmental issues ' in his future work. 'As long as it makes life better and makes people care more, why not?'
' Photos by Nedi Putra AW
