ACEH. A
SOBERING REMINDER FOR MALAYSIANS
On May 25
Aceh banned female dance performance in public. The irony is that Acehenese are
proud of their own famous traditional dances like the Ranub Lampuan, Saman and
Seudati. In all these dances the female dancers are properly attired and there
are no gyrating or hip grinding movements.
However,
the Islamist government in this autonomous region of Indonesia, believes that
dances performed by adult females even if it were cultural dances when
performed in front of an audience which includes males could cause
uncontrollable surge in sexual desires. Body movements of a female dancer
according to the authorities in Aceh can conjure eroticism and cause a surge to
the men’s libido. So prevention is better than cure. Henceforth ( until another religious dictate)
only under-aged girls are allowed to perform in public.
Not too
long ago in January, Aceh created a world first when the authorities banned
women from straddling when riding pillion on motorcycles on the ground that
women sitting astride (read- parting their legs) on a motorcycle and with their
chests pressed onto the back of a male rider can set off wild sexual
imagination in men and uncontrollable sexual urge. Thus, female pillion riders
must sit sideways, never mind that riding posture pose a greater danger to the
women pillion rider.
In is
only a matter of time when a dictate will be pronounced to ban women to be seen
in public altogether or only permitted outdoor if she wears the Taliban
compliant garb.
Aceh is a
classic case and a lesson to all as to what happens when Islamist with
misplaced priority take charge. For these Islamist, the priority is never and
never will be on developing the country, improving the standard of education
and human capital, reducing poverty, reducing infant mortality or creating job
opportunities. All these are secondary
for a simple reason – they are simply clueless about nation building. Just watch the mess the Islamist are creating
in Egypt. Instead, their focus and priority is the preoccupation for afterlife
and after creating hell on earth. Their fixation and preoccupation is on women
who are seen as a scourge and cause of all evils. Thus the necessity for moral
police officers patrolling the streets rounding up women wearing jeans or riding motorcycle astride or
apprehending teenagers with nonconformist hairstyles. Not nation building.
What a
shame. After decades of conflict, a peace accord was signed on August 15, 2005
between the Indonesian central government and Gabungan Aceh Merdeka which
granted Aceh self autonomy. Aceh is a region rich in natural resources
including oil, natural gas, minerals and timber, income from which can be used
to develop Aceh. Add to that, under the peace accord Aceh is entitled to retain
70% of its natural resources revenue.
Despite all these, Aceh still
remains as one of the poorest region in Indonesia and very much beholden to the central government
for development aid and government spending to fuel its economy.
The
government in Aceh hardly has a development vision or a comprehensive strategy
for nation building. They can even hardly attract foreign investment and the
international investors still perceive Aceh a risky place to do business or
plough their investment. So, chilly farming remains the biggest industry in
Aceh. In fact, some say that the only time when there was an economic boom
under the Islamist was when foreign aid poured into Aceh in the aftermath of
the devastating 9.3 magnitude earth quake which unleashed a tsunami which
killed some 170,000 people.
Aceh (and
Egypt) must be a sobering reminder that we cannot gamble our country’s future
or even allow a toehold for political misfits whose focus is on the afterlife.
Norman
Fernandez
normanfernandez7168@gmail.com
