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ne group knits, another sings songs. Next to them, a few women chat while others just sit and enjoy the night, but all with one aim: They want society to understand that women can own the night.

Three women initiated an event called Reclaim the Night on Friday evening at the Hotel Indonesia traffic circle in Central Jakarta, in defiance of bylaws introduced in certain areas forbidding women from going out in the evening.

They lamented the fact that many in society were unaware that some women had no option but to be out at night and urged the authorities to safeguard them while they were out.

Dhyta Carutani, one of the initiators, said that allowing only men the freedom to go out at night was
discriminatory.

“If the reason is security, then the government should ensure that it is safe for us to go out. They should not forbid us because that is not fair,” she told The Jakarta Post during the event on Friday, which was held to mark International Women’s Day.

“Many women work late shifts. How do you think a woman feels when she gets home from work and neighbors label her a ‘bad person’?” she added.

Dhyta said the Reclaim the Night action was a first step in urging the government to maintain nighttime security, and she also called on people to change their mind-sets about women going out at nights.

Besides showing their opposition to the discriminatory bylaws, the women also staged the event as part of a campaign to prevent violence against women, especially at night.

Around 50 women, and some men, participated in the event.

They believe that many women do not feel safe if they go out at night due to the high number of crimes and sexual assaults.

The people attending this event were the ones who organized the One Billion Rising Indonesia gathering at the National Monument (Monas) in Central Jakarta in February.

Shera Rindra, another of the event initiators, said their aim was simple: to support women to stand up to people’s judgments.

“We want to raise social awareness; women deserve the right to go out at night. This is urgent,” she said. “Crimes against women will automatically decrease if people are made aware.

“When people come to realize that nights are not only for men, they will not harm women,” Shera added.

Ryan, one of the few men participating in the event, said it was fine for women to go out at night, but they had to take care of themselves. “Our culture believes that it is taboo for women to go out alone at night. It will take a lot of effort to instill a new mind-set in people,” he said. (fzm)