The Fight for Gender Equality

The author of the trilogy under review isWardiman Djojonegoro, a professor in engineering educated at itb, Aachen, and Delft. He was Indonesia’s twenti eth Minister of Education (1993–1998) and later became active in endorsing Kartini’s letters as world heritage to unesco. He is one of the few Indone sians still alive who were educated in and actively use the Dutch language. This allowed him to translate Kartini’s letters directly from Dutch to Indonesian. His motivation to write the trilogy was to disseminate the less evident historical facts of the late 1800s, to understand the historical context surrounding the thoughts and expectations of a Javanese girl in the colonial era of the early 1900s, and to inspire gender equality activists, ngos, and Indonesian youth as they anticipate the “golden generation” of 2045. The fact that he is not an expert in history or sociology arguably makes him more relatable to the average Indonesian reader. Moreover, Wardiman Djojonegoro is a man who advocates for gender equality.

This trilogy has become the thirtieth book published about Kartini’s letters. The earliest was Door duisternis tot licht: Gedachten over en voor het Javaansche volk (Through Darkness to Light: Thoughts about and for the Javanese People; henceforth ddtl), first published in 1911. It was prepared by Jacques Abend anon, a former director of Native Education in the Dutch East Indies whose wife appears to have been the main recipient of Kartini’s writings. The book consists of a collection of 105 edited letters (or letter extracts) written by Kartini to eleven recipients between 1899 and 1904. Its release was part of a fundraising effort to build “Kartini schools”. In 1987, F.G.P. Jaquet published Kartini: Brieven aan mevrouw R.M. Abendanon en haar echtgenoot and listed twenty-four earlier books based on ddtl. Later, Joost Coté published three additional books, fol lowed by Pramoedya Ananta Toer’s Panggil aku Kartini saja, and finally by this trilogy. The three books situate Kartini in her historical context through her let ters and biography while inspiring a vision for the future of gender equality in Indonesia.

The first volume of the trilogy contains the complete letters of ddtl—105 unabridged letters—and 74 other letters that were not included in the ddtl. The total number of 179 letters are published as they are, allowing readers to form their own interpretations without any guidance from the author. Accord ing to Wardiman, Sitisoemandari Soeroto (1977) has written the most complete Kartini biography, even though it was only based on the ddtl. The recipients of Kartini’s 179 retrieved letters were sixteen like-minded Europeans. Some of them were important players in the progressive movement within the Dutch metropolitan and colonial society, who supported policies of colonial reform. The missing letters, importantly, are those addressed to educated Javanese men and to her brother, Sosrokartono.

For me, the most impactful words from the first volume came from Kartini’s childhood, when a friend asked what she aspired to be as an adult. The ques tion left a deep impression on her, and she could not stop thinking about it. Her older brother replied that her aspiration should be to become a Raden Ayu, a title reserved for married women of the noble class. Later, when she learned about the lives of these women, a spirit of rebellion awakened in her heart against both the role of a Raden Ayu and the rigid, long-standing rule that girls were destined for marriage and bound to belong to a man. Perhaps this was the most pivotal moment in her life, the moment she was first compelled to reflect on the fate of women.

The second volume, the biography, can be used as a framework to read and understand the complete letters of volume one. It provides a historical context surrounding the thoughts and expectations of a Javanese girl in the colonial era of the early 1900s. Kartini was born on 21 April 1879, into the well-known,modern, Western-educated Condronegoro family. She was the fifth child of the Javanese regent (bupati) Raden Mas Adipati Ario Samingun Sosroningrat, Regent of Jepara from 1880 to 1905, and the second-eldest daughter born to his secondary wife (selir), whom he had married before marrying his official con sort (padmi), a woman of aristocratic birth. As a member of the Javanese nobil ity, he held a prominent position in the Javanese administration supervised by the Dutch colonial bureaucracy. A special emphasis is given to Kartini’s rela tionship with her father and her two younger sisters.With the latter, she formed a triad, Tiga Saudara (The Tree Sisters), who always worked together. While the regent’s children all received basic European education, the girls were dis criminated against through the cultural practice of pingitan (seclusion) after reaching puberty, forcing them to stay at home awaiting marriage. Wardiman compellingly describes the highlights of her life, her contemplations, and her ambitions. Her misery during her seclusion (1892–1896) was well-documented. In her youthful understanding, Kartini questioned the injustice faced by aristo cratic women. She initially believed that seclusion was meant to protect them, but she soon realized that, in reality, they were being punished without hav ing committed any crime. She was also highly critical of the strict feudalistic traditions within her regental household.

The results of Kartini’s work have been extremely impressive. Besides herletters, these include five published short stories, three cultural writings, four ducation memos, and two long letters (vol. 1, pp. 739–891). Kartini used her correspondence as a means to improve her Dutch language and writing skills, as well as her ability to formulate ideas about her particular social and cul tural context. She seemed to have taken on a mission to educate and influence Europeans about the aspirations of the Javanese people. Kartini was clearly aware of the European perceptions of her people. They were amazed by her confident and forthright manner and her ability to use the Dutch language. In fact, they were taken aback by her readiness to criticize colonial policy, as expressed in her letters.

Kartini’s evolving thoughts are evident in her letter to the Dutch feminist Stella Zeehandelaar: “Before you wrote to me about it, I had never given any thought to the fact that, as you say, I am of high birth. Whether I am a prin cess? No more than you” […] “For me there are only two types of aristocracy: the aristocracy of the spirit and a moral aristocracy. I think there is nothing so ridiculous, nothing sillier, than people who allow themselves to be honoured on the basis of their so-called ‘high birth’” (translation by Coté 2014: 75). Clearly, Kartini attributed no value to aristocracy by birth alone, without meaningful work.

The third volume, on gender equality in Indonesia, is equally interesting. It includes a preface written by four prominent Indonesian women, implicitly modern figures who had achieved high status, including serving as ministers and ceos of government enterprises.

Kartini’s attitude towards the fate of women developed during her seclusion. She abhorred the prospect of a forced marriage without love, and preferred death. Having received a higher education, she felt it was her duty to challenge men’s egos and fight against the injustice faced by women. Her letter to Rosa Abendanon, dated October 7, 1900, showed her willingness to lead her own life: “… if I should succumb halfway, I should die happy because then the way would have been opened and I would have helped carve out the road which leads to freedom and emancipation of the Native woman. It would already be a great pleasurefor me if parents of other girlswho also want to be independent,would no longer have to say: there is no one amongst us who has done that” (transla tion by Coté 2014: 149).

Kartini not only read Western literature but also Javanese cultural books, giving her a balanced understanding of both scientific-based Western and Javanese cultural issues. This enabled her to observe the differences in mar ital relationships between her aristocratic Javanese family and Dutch families (particularly Marie Ovink’s). She was shocked to learn that her beloved father practiced a polygamous marriage, which made family life stressful. The rela tionships in her family strictly followed tradition, rather than communication. But Kartini also understood that monogamous marriage alone does not guar antee happiness if it is not supported by high moral standards. Later, a more mature Kartini wrote to Stella that the difference between an unhappyJavanese wife and an unhappy Dutch wife is that the Dutch woman follows her hus band by her own free will, while the Javanese wife follows him through a mar riage arranged by her family. The problem, she noted, was that the suffering of Javanese women was accepted. For this reason, she believed women should work together to achieve change.

After her two elder siblings left home, Kartini became the oldest child in the regental household. She asked her two younger sisters to move into her big room, freeing her younger siblings from the traditional protocols and reshap ing their relationship based on the French Revolution’s philosophy of liberté, égalité, fraternité.

Due to the continued insistence of the Assistant Resident and Marie Ovink, the regent of Jepara eventually released Kartini and her sisters from seclu sion in 1898. The three sisters went to Semarang to attend the celebrations of Queen Wilhelmina’s coronation. Afterwards, they visited several communities to study and better understand the common people.

In 1898, Kartini participated in the national exhibition of women’s work (Nationale Tentoonstelling van Vrouwenarbeid), which took place in The Hague. Her contribution attracted both the colonial and metropolitan media. Her entry into the metropolitan discourse was followed in 1899 with an article pub lished in this journal (bki, vol. 50, no. 3/4: 695–720), published three years after she wrote it, under her father’s name, R.M.A.A. Sosroningrat. Her first art icle was testament to her writing ability, not only because it was published in a scientific journal, but also because the author was a Javanese woman at a time when even Dutch women rarely published journal articles (see Coté 2014: 790).

Kartini’s letters can be viewed from multiple perspectives. One is the historical spect of colonial life, seen through the eyes of a regent’s daughter, during a period when colonialism was increasingly scrutinized, leading to the introduc tion of the “ethical” policy aimed at improving the lives of its subjects. At the same time, the colonial bureaucracy was very slow in implementing policies from the Netherlands.

From a feminist perspective, Kartini’s letters show her involvement in the first wave of feminism, as she read and discussed many feminist books with her sisters. Later, in letters to Stella Zeehandelaar, she displayed her feminist credentials, sharing her joy of reading Hilda van Suylenburg by Cécile de Jong van Beek en Donk, and comparing Cornélie Huygens’ Barthold Meryan with the conservative voice of Anne de Savornin Lohman. These readings inspired Kartini to take control of her life. She viewed polygamy as a fundamental attack on a woman’s honor and on the moral harmony of family life. Refusing to accept marriage as the ultimate goal for a woman, her ideal was to be educated instead. Kartini’s polygamous marriage attracted negative comments from her European friends.

However, Kartini explicitly mentioned in her letters to Stella and Rosa Abendanon that the polygamous marriage was a common practice in Javanese aristocratic circles. She lost her innocence through her marriage to a polygam ous husband, which tarnished her dignity. However, she made this sacrifice out of love for her father. Through writing, Kartini merged feminist ideas with her
original, critical analysis of Javanese traditions and colonialism. In her letters in 1902, she articulated an original Javanese version of feminism. Her accept ance of Javanese tradition is symbolized by her reconciliation with her mother and her embrace of agama Jawa, as expressed in her letter to Nellie van Kol, in which she reveals a comforting personal interpretation of Islam. In her later conceptualizations on education, she proposed an approach that incorporated Javanese traditions. These ideas were eventually adopted by the famous Taman Siswa school established by Ki Hajar Dewantara.

In1901, Kartini organized a small experimental school for girls in her regency. Her letters also reveal that she was actively promoting Javanese craft through the institution Oost en West, supporting the production and sale of Javanese woodcraft. A recurring theme was her desire to further her studies. A pivotal moment came when Henri van Kol, a member of the Netherlands Parliament, visited the colony in April 1902. He was very impressed with Kartini’s ambitions to study in the Netherlands and successfully petitioned for a Dutch government fellowship on her behalf. However, this plan was opposed by the colonial bur eaucracy and even her own friends, which led Kartini to accept Abendanon’s offer for teacher training in Batavia. In 1903, after all arrangements for her fur ther study were confirmed, Kartini suddenly received a marriage proposal from the regent of Rembang, Raden Mas Ario Djojo Adiningrat, a Dutch-educated widower with six children and several concubines. They married, and Kartini died in childbirth the next year.

Her famous 1903 petition,Geef de Javaan Opvoeding! (Give the Javanese Edu cation!), was not only a feminist statement but also the seed of the later nation alist education ideal, enabling Javanese women in particular to contribute to the nation’s emancipation (Coté 2014: 40). Kartini envisioned a connection between the educated Javanese—a youth group with interests distinct from those of the Europeans in the Indies—who could lead their people, commu nicate in their language, and discuss issues on an equal footing with other countries. During Kartini’s most prolific era (1899–1904), an articulation of a national identity and a change in colonial practices were beginning to take The trilogy’s third volume can be read as a fitting epilogue to Kartini’s struggle to improve the lives of half of the nation’s population and to advocate for Indonesia’s equality among other nations. She has become an icon and inspir ation for women’s emancipation and was officially recognized as a national heroine in 1964.

The analysis of Indonesia’s progress in gender equality is based on national and international indicators, presented through descriptive statistical data. It does not address gender inequality as the root cause of violence against women. National statistical data from 2021 revealed that one in four women aged 15–64 experienced violence from a partner or non-partner during her lifetime (Kementerian 2021). The national commission on violence against women reported 289,111 cases in 2023 (Komnas Perempuan 2023). A study by the International Forum on Indonesian Development (infid), the Gender Equality Barometer, found that over 57 percent of respondents had personally experi enced sexual violence but did not report the incidents due to fear or a lack of knowledge about where to report them. Hence, 57 percent of the cases were dropped altogether. Public awareness of sexual violence in Indonesia remains low, as evidenced by many stereotypes about women. Almost 70 percent of the respondents believed that women are sexually harassed because of their cloth ing, and more than 60 percent believed that women are inherently more likely to be victims of male violence (infid 2020).

To date, there is no available data on the knowledge, attitudes, and prac tices of gender equality among the general public, professionals, and decision makers in Indonesia. Also, the attitudes of leaders and bureaucrats often fail to exemplify equality. Indonesia remains rooted in values that uphold inequity based on status. The main challenge lies in addressing and preventing gender based violence amid the nation’s patriarchal culture.

The third volume also contains an insightful report from pekka (Women headed Family Empowerment), which began in 2001 as a program to improve gender equality, detailing its social actions (Aulia Firafiroh 2022). By 2023, pekka expanded to 27 out of 38 provinces, comprising almost ninety thousand women-headed families. According to pekka, one in every four households is led by a woman. Law no. 23 of 2006 on population administration provides a legal basis for the concept of women-headed family empowerment, even though the 2019 Revised Marriage Law 1974 still designates the husband as the head of the household (Republik Indonesia 2019).

In the ongoing fight against gender inequality, collaboration between the gov ernment, private sector, and civil society is essential. In this regard, the third volume could have been more compelling if it had included efforts by non government organizations to advance gender equality hape.

In the 1950s, many women’s organizations actively fought against illiteracy and poverty. They were socially engaged during Indonesia’s formative years as a newly independent country, striving to establish its national identity. Sukarno was a popular figure internationally and the Asia-Africa conference bolstered his image even further. The first Indonesian election in 1955 was highly parti cipatory, with the public eager and enthusiastic to build a strong, independ ent nation. However, by the 1970s, during the New Order regime, independ ent women’s organizations had ceased to exist and women were relegated to their traditional role as wives and mothers. Indeed, Saskia Eleonora Wieringa, a professor from the University of Amsterdam who conducted her doctoral research in Indonesia in the 1980s, has highlighted the stark differences in women’s organizations before and after the New Order. In the past, there was a strong, independent women’s organization, Gerwani (Wieringa 1995). The bottom line is clear: women’s organizations are crucial for advancing gender equality.

Ultimately, the three volumes offer new perspectives on Kartini as an In donesian heroine, providing a framework for understanding and contextual izing the most complete collection of her letters. As Kartini’s inspiration was the struggle for gender equality, this book raises a crucial question: why, after 120 years, does Indonesia still fall short of reaching that equality? The need for more concrete, holistic steps and regulatory practices—from households to public institutions—is essential for the comprehensive implementation of gender equality in Indonesia. I hope that Wardiman Djojonegoro’s Trilogi Kartini will result not only in increased public awareness of Kartini, but also the efforts of various stakeholders in the struggle for gender equality, ultimatelycontributing to the improvement of public welfare.