Happy New Year 2014

This is my last piece for the year and it’s best that, for a change, I refrain from penning anything remotely political. It’s hard to touch on any subject without bringing some public elements to the issue, which then transforms the subject into a political one. But I will try.

I was thrilled to discover only last week that Indonesian movie producers and directors are producing excellent films that I thought only Hollywood and Bollywood were capable of. I watched two Indonesian blockbusters, Soekarno and Tenggelamnya Kapal van der Wijck.

Both films were expensive productions that took more than four years to produce, and both boasted well-known stars in their casts (though certainly not of the same scale as The Wolf of Wall Street produced by our Prime Minister’s stepson). These were the first Indonesian movies I watched and I must say I was impressed and had a thoroughly enjoyable experience.

Soekarno was about the great man himself and covered his youth up until his proudest moment: reading his country’s Proclamation of Independence on August 17, 1945. There were two poignant and memorable moments in the film.

One was when he had to tell his wife Inggit (played by the exquisitely beautiful Maudy Koesnaedi) that he had fallen in love with a young schoolgirl but wanted to remain married to her. The response from Inggit was classic. She told him she loved him and had given everything she possibly could give, both to the man and to the revolution, but she could never accept sharing him with another woman. There was only so much she was willing to sacrifice for him.

The other memorable scene was of his inspirational speech to a gathering of Indonesian nationalists and freedom fighters. These warriors of independence, made up of members from different groups, had assembled to deliberate on the principles and values that were to constitute the foundation of the new country called Indonesia.

Here Soekarno, using his charisma and powerful oratorical skills, was able to bring peace among the warring groups of religious organisations and multi-ethnic communities across Nusantara, including communists and democratic nationalists, to achieve consensus.

They all accepted and embraced his solution to be bound by the principles of Pancasila. To this day, Indonesia holds steadfast to this pact and it has become the national point of reference to its nation-building process. Indonesians are generally of one mind when it comes to the importance of these principles.

Even when they differ and deal with conflict, they never veer from the goals of Pancasila. They take pride in their diverse cultures and religious differences, and always seek to bring unity by accepting the diversity of the people. They accept the principles of live and let live!

When will we have a Soekarno? I believe our early leaders were of the same mould and had the same ideals for our country. But times have changed us. Today in our country, it’s no longer about accepting our differences but about emphasising them. We have rejected the values of diversity (except when it comes to our food) and we take pride in our idea of superiority, whether it involves religion or ethnicity.

It’s time we prayed for a new leader who shares the vision and spirit of compromise that was common during the formative years of our independence. We desperately need a leader who can persuade the warring factions in this country to accept the national traits of cultural and religious diversity, which we are clearly made of.

Happy New Year. – December 31, 2013.

* This is the personal opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of The Malaysian Insider.