Demonstration Today



The Demonstration nowadays consists of:


Farah Quinn
A group of anarchy





















If you've been watching tv lately, you already knew that government would increase the fuel's price at the the end of this month. The incumbent has agreed to do so because it is the global effect of fuel's price that is significantly climbing the chart. But seeing this phenomenon, i don't think government handle this issue nicely. Government is government, i saw them being interviewed on national channels but none of them were throwing supportive and satisfying answers that can make the labours, farmers, and those who are not affluent pat their chest. It is not the first time but the price hike will always have impact on everything. People who are dependant to use motorized vehicles will be strangled. Seeing the effect, almost everyone will be having difficulties to save up some money in their wallet. Thats why i think talking BBM issues is quite influential and it always takes place in people's mind. Especially Mahasiswa one.

I wont talk about the pros and cons happened around BBM price hike in early 2012, i bet you are bored to death having this kind debate. But still it is so hard not being judgemental if it comes with government. I have the bad sentiments with politics and (corrupted) government, practically and theoritically. Eventhough i studied political science and had good marks, the only interesting part of politics is that the theories are awesomely thought. 

Back to the topic, i just wanna share my shallow perspective and a simple experience about the price hike that goverment intends to do in early April.

I myself have experienced two times on bbm price hike and the first, if i was not mistaken, in 2007. The international price for fuel was up to 90 dollar/barrel so the incumbent had to increase the fuel price. At the time, i was a freshman in college. Being student in faculty of social and political sciences had forced my mind to critically fit realities and theories. I was enthusiastically experiencing  the intelectual world i was about to enter but as the freshman, my peers hailed different things. They were attracted to new activity such organization things, events, and other social-to-exist things.Thats why when one of my senior asked me and several friends to join a demonstration, i prefered refusal nevertheless the rest said yes.

My remembrance of demo was awake while seeing a lot of demonstrations happened in various city today such as jakarta, makassar, surabaya, and bandung. after seeing them on tv, i just realized what i would have become if i managed to continue joining demostration like that. I have two logic reasons that i would still throw until now if someone asks me to join demonstration (which is some friends still   texted me this morning to join their 'struggle'). 

First, their action was not essential. I myself was really proud of being Mahasiswa and being entitled to this one of intelectual title in country, could just blow my nose off. Being agent of change is other holler i used to heard. They (read: mahasiswa) staged a demonstration everytimes they think the government has acted disappointedly. They thought that they proudly represented people's interest. But not mine for sure. In their action, some wires were burnt and they blocked a highly functional main street that caused a lot of traffic jam. To me, they look like a digusting anarchical group who just wanted to win the fight no matter how big the collateral damage was. i am aware that demonstration that still gives me goosebumps is the demonstration led to the reformation of/in 1998. It made me think that mahasiswa is real agent of change. Soeharto regime was eroding people and had them drink sleeping pills. But mahasiswa had made him down. It was really an achievement being mahasiswa, at that time.

Compared to that, today demonstartion was nothing. In Surabaya, the government vehicles had to make their plate numbers black (government's plate numbers vehicle was colored red). They did such a thing because mahasiswa in previous demonstration has gone berserk. So to avoid antother damage, the local goverment in surabaya did so. In Makasar, the local inhabitants backed up by police had to confront with the demosntran consisted of mahasiswa at junction of Jalan Andi Pangerang Petta Rani and Jalan Sultan Alauddin, and in other city a local convenience store was spolied up because of the massive panic caused my the demo. I dont really sure what they actually have in mind, this appears to me as the only thing makes sense in their mind is, " the more rampage they unleash, the more ague government feels". Following their logic, more damage will simply lead to more government attention. We have claimed domcracy that put aside violence and uncivilized actions. I never get it why mahasiswa is so careless about this thing. If there a shadowy party enacts behind the scene that may push mahasiswa in the face, they  should have been smarter about the spoiled effects that could emerge such as the blockade of traffic and privat damages which those are obviously vexing to all logic living creatures. Conversely, thinking with my logic, i have submitted my mind not to stage a demonstration to deliver my ideas.


Second, demonstration is not just my thing. I subjectively hate violence and molestation. Deducting from recent events, nowadays demo has been mixed up with violence and anarchical acts. It just pukes my heart out. Since the age of Socrates, war is the only violence to gain victory. It is also clear and stated decades ago in Jenewa Convention so the war if can be conducted fairly. But violence in demo is irrelevant. As an intelectual, mahasiwa should really see this thing clearly and thoroughly. And beside, i have bad personal effects about joing demo. I have a really simple experience as an example. I had once joined a demo (and i swear to God, it'll be the one and only) in the early of 2008. first, my close friend asked me to come up with him and second, i was really curious about their actual intentions. It was inevitable that if we would join demo, we should meet the 'leader' first and our demo-mates later. So in several briefings we talked about how the demo could contain all interests or how the plan should go. Meeting these demo-mates could just take my breath away. I found out that some of them were last-year students that've never been worried with academic stuffs mainly with their thesis. And when one of them eavesdropped me rustling to my friend, "hei, should we go back to class? Ani (hypothetical name) texted there'll be a quiz!". The eavesdropping one intterupted abruptly, "Chill, this one (demo) is far bigger and important just than an annoying quiz".

At that time, i dropped my mouth and also my respect. I was amused by their ignorance, in a bad way. I had to manage working part-time and still had to maintain my GPA above than 3.5 because of the scholarship, not mention my parents had to work their ass off all night and day, all to support my study which is really important to me. And he just said like that. Thats the time when disrespect grew over my body. My conscience felt awful and i kept saying sorry in my heart to my parents for doing this shamefull act. And because of the demo preparation that took several days, after the demo finished, i really had to rebound with my missing shifts. And what, the BBM price was still going up. It's like i lost two things. The chance to make more money to deal with the price hike and the lost to restrain government from hiking up the fuel price. Thats the time i realized, i had better working my ass off much harder than joining demo.

After all, if price hikes up, i prefer working much harder to handle life. Not come with anger like a whiny bitch got cheated.

After all, i just take Pramoedya advice about politics, "If we want to be healthy and wealthy, live in a small town and stay away from politics."

So, after all, which one do you prefer?  Demo from Mahasiswa or Demo from Farah Quinn ? 

Comments

  1. gw sebetulnya tipikal orang yang pemikir, pengkritisi bukan yang suka terjun ke lapangan semacam demo.
    kalo menurut gw dip, sesuai dengan judul tulisan ini, agak kurang sesuai memperbandingkan demo Farah quinn sama demo mahasiswa 27 maret 2012 karena yang satu menonton farah quinn lagi masak sambil ngeces mupeng, yang satu berada sebagai pelaku di lapangan, kecuali kita yang melakukan demo masak (yang gw tangkep sih gitu). kalo harus milih sih mending masak karena salah satu hobi gw. lol. maklum bukan aktivis mahasiswa dulunya. yang jelas menurut gw, sebelum demo ya perlu dipikirkan masak2 lagi esensi dari demo itu sendiri. harga bbm itu emang harusnya dari dulu udah dinaikin, ga harus ditahan2 demi kebijakan populer, sehingga rakyat ga manja. bandingkan dengan harga bbm di negara2 lain, ga usah liat negara lain, di luar pulau Jawa deh liat harga bbm disana. terbukti sekarang semacam pemerintah kelabakan harus menaikkan harga bbm karena memang itu harus dilakukan. orang2 udah kaya kok masih disubsidi. sekarang tugas pemerintah adalah mengendalikan harga sembako dan angkutan umum agar tidak melambung tinggi tak terkendali sehingga merugikan rakyat. dan tugas kita sekarang adalah bekerja lebih keras lagi agar bisa survive, berhemat, memikirkan alternatif baru untuk meningkatkan penghasilan dan mnurunkan pengeluaran sehari2, syukur2 gaji juga bisa naik. hehe. back to the topic, gw ga bisa memilih antara demo Farah quinn atau demo mahasiswa 27 Maret 2012 karena ga bisa dibandingkan dari segi harfiah yang gw tangkep. koreksi jika gw salah.

    - sahabat pena dari jakarta -

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  2. eh setelah gw baca2 lagi ternyata gw yang salah nangkep deh deep, hahaha. kalo gitu gw milih demo dari Farah quinn.. mending liat masakan (walau ga bisa dimakan, setidaknya resepnya bisa ditiru) ketimbang ngeliat tindakan anarkis seperti kemaren. kasian aparat keamanan, di satu sisi mereka juga orang yang terkena dampak harga BBM naik disisi lain mereka harus bersiap2 mengahdapi risiko ditimpuk demonstran karena itulah kerjaan mereka, mengamankan massa..

    -sahabat pena dari jakarta-

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