Wednesday, February 9, 2011

Revisiting #IndonesiaUnite: What You Can Do

If you look back on Indonesia's headlines of 2010, you'd see natural disasters, political upheaval, corruption, pollution, and so many bad things - and you'd think the country is going down the drain. The government, whether it be the central government, is clueless and corrupt, and it seems the country will burst at the seams.

Yet, Indonesia's economy reached the highest growth in six years. 2010 was also the year that Indonesia's impact on the social web - Twitter, Facebook, Foursquare - was a force to be reckoned with, and foreign investment is starting to pour in. So what does this mean?

Business, mostly the private sector, went ahead and moved on while the government was busy with itself. If this continues, it will become a good trend - the Indonesian economy will be healthy regardless of who sits in office. As long as we keep working properly, with focused goals.

Many people have asked themselves, myself included, on what they can do to alleviate the sad state of affairs in this country. The fact stated previously alone should tell you (and myself) what you want to hear: keep doing what you're good at, wherever you are.

Many of us are not politicians, we're not religious leaders, but many of us are office workers, students, freelancers, housewives, teachers, and so on. We should stop wasting time on unnecessary stuff and progress onwards - and our country will grow. If you are sad or angry about the violence in Cikeusik or Temanggung, focus that anger into your work; to make sure that future generations don't fall into that trap.

To put it into another perspective: Indonesia's economy is growing despite the current turmoil. Let's make sure that the growth spreads evenly and benefits all of us, not just the few.

We cannot rely on the government to get its act together right now, so we might as well do it ourselves. To replace the government would be a revolution with unforeseen consequences, but to work better as we are now, ignoring the government when we can, can probably empower the nation better than the politicians can.

If everybody works diligently with a focus for a better nation and the welfare of all, I think we can get there, and I guarantee things will get better.

So whether or not #indonesiaunite is seen as a movement or not, it should be a reminder to all of us that the future of this nation is in our collective hands. So let's make it!

 

PS: so if you're worrying about what you can do about cases like Alanda Kariza's Mom, voice your support, help increase the awareness, and get back to work! :D

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