Month: April 2008

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Matur Suwun Richard

ALI SYARIF

This is a tribute to Bapak Ali Syarif, his vision, his energy, his enthusiasm and his openness to and acceptance of other Peoples, other Cultures, other Religions and other points of view.

I have known Ali since my appointment as an Australian Business Volunteer for an assignment at Sekolah Menengah Atas (SMA) Mukti Mandiri in Cirebon from March to June in 2006. He is the quintessential Indonesian, the embodiment of all I find most attractive about Indonesian Adat-Istiadat and Culture. He is calm and patient and his friendliness, willingness to help and understand, and his openness to new People and new ideas exhibits the Indonesian Mind and World View at its best. As the Australian Business Volunteers’ Representative in Indonesia at the time of my appointment in Cirebon Ali was a Person I instinctively felt I could trust and rely on totally.

Ali is a person of high integrity and this is recognized by all those who know him well. He is a trusted Confidant of many Indonesians at the highest level of Politics, Business and Commerce, Education, the Armed Forces and other Sectors of Indonesian Life. He has a very sincere and very well-developed common touch and he has and makes time to listen to and help those who are striving for a better life, striving for a better/higher Education for themselves, striving for a place in the Indonesian sun, a place which is at present denied them by self-seeking and greedy richer echelons in Indonesian Society. He seeks to instil in all levels of Indonesian Society the ideals of service and sacrifice which were so evident in the Revolutionary Years when all Indonesians cooperated in striving to achieve a common goal.

Ali is an Idealist in the best sense of the word – always seeking practical measures to bring into reality his vision of Indonesian Society. This is evidenced by his wholehearted support for endeavours to ensure that ethics and ethical considerations inform all Indonesian Political Life, all sectors of Indonesian Society. This is evidenced by his emphasis on bringing into reality the deepest-felt aspirations of Indonesians – in his emphasis on HANURA – Hati Nurani Rakyat.

At a time when many Indonesians consider that the way forward can be achieved by the abandonment of Traditional Indonesian Values (a blog will follow on the projection of negative or anti- attitudes towards Traditional Indonesian Values by many Indonesians who perceive themselves as “movers and shakers”, in line with the disastrous environmental and economic policies of the West ( One could cite as an example members of various Yayasans), Ali stands out as a bastion, as an outstanding example, for those who are striving and yearning for a return to Traditional Indonesian Values. These values include the principles of the Pancasila (more honoured in the breach than in the observance), and of the 1945 Constitution, the traditional values of gotong-royong, musyawarah, the return to a willingness to sacrifice oneself for the good of the Nation and of one’s Fellow Citizens. This is the Spirit given life and brought into the reality of human affairs by those 8,000+ Heroes (including my Brother-in-Law) who are interred in Taman Pahlawan Kalibata, a Spirit belittled and dishonoured in public life by many who seek only to enrich themselves at the expense of others and of their sacred duty.

Ali is involved/the main driving force in a number of projects, the aim of which is to produce a better Indonesia for so many of its poorer disadvantaged Citizens, the wong cilik who have nothing and who have nothing to hope for, and whose welfare is completely ignored by many of those in power today and by definition in a position to take measures to relieve their suffering and sense of hopelessness. The reversal of this process is Ali’s principal objective which Insy’Allah will be achieved as more and more Indonesians, particularly those at the highest level, devote themselves to this noble cause.

Ali is the prototype of the Indonesian who will effect a recovery of the Indonesian National Spirit and Identity and will return Indonesia to being the envy of all other Nations for the strength power and authority of its National Character which will carry over into an intense desire and drive to create the “masyarakat adil dan makmur” aspired to by President Soekarno and all the Indonesian People but which has so far proved extremely elusive.

It is beyond comprehension why and how it happened that Ali was replaced as the Australian Business Volunteers’ Representative in Indonesia. Australian Business Volunteers deserves to be represented by People of the highest integrity and character, with a vision for the Indonesia of the future.

Richard J Whittington OAM

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Tanggung Jawab Pemimpin Kepada Generasi Penerusnya

100,000 Young People to Be Trained Overseas

A total of 100,000 young Koreans will go overseas for subsidized internships and training by 2013.

The Ministry of Labor said Tuesday said about 4 million won ($4,000) will be given to each person undertaking three to 12 months training.

Internships will be available for college graduates and university students who will also get airline tickets and daily stipends, it said.

The beneficiaries include 50,000 job trainees, 30,000 interns and 20,000 volunteers overseas.

Labor Minister Lee Young-hee said the program will motivate the young to get global experience as well as reduce the jobless rate.

However, the plan is yet to get an approved budget, and no jobs will be guaranteed for people on their return.

Kapan SBY punya tanggung jawab seperti Pemimpin Korea?! Tolong komentar anda bagaimana?

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Sleeping forum participant outrages President

The Jakarta Post ,
The most valuable lesson learned by regional leaders at a five-week workshop at the National Resilience Institute (Lemhannas) might not be on leadership at all, but how to withstand sleepiness.

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono was speaking before 86 participants of the forum consisting of mayors, regents and leaders of regional legislative councils on Tuesday when he spotted a participant falling asleep.

Yudhoyono paused his speech and told the attendants, while pointing to the participant: “Wake him up. Go outside if you want to sleep.”

“How could a leader fall asleep while I am talking about how to develop our nation? You should be ashamed of the people who have elected you their leader,” he said.

“Be serious with your responsibility. I’m ordering Lemhannas not to pass participants with bad attitudes even if they are highly intelligent.”

In the forum, Yudhoyono also told participants to improve their managerial skills and make the most of resources owned by each region.

“I want all leaders, from the highest level to the lowest, to have good management skills and (work to) build their characters. We should not be pessimistic about the condition of our nation, which has been through a lot of crises for years.”

The forum, which opened on March 4 and will conclude Wednesday, is titled “Regional Resilience in Supporting National Resilience and Development”.

Lemhannas Governor Muladi said afterwards the President’s rebuke would not cause the sleeping participant to fail the workshop.

“Being reprimanded by the President in public is already a social sanction against the person. But we see no reason for not passing him from this workshop,” Muladi said, adding he would still find out who the reprimanded official was.

He said all participants had been cautioned earlier for not interrupting, talking, sleeping and sending text messages using their mobile phones during the President’s speech.

“Maybe the person was tired after a five-week and all-day workshop with tight schedules. But I think the participants enjoyed the forum.”

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Kalau SBY Marah Marah

He..he.. Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono-Presiden RI kita, marah marah pada saat sedang memberikan pengarahan dihadapan para peserta Lemhamnas baru-baru ini di Jakarta. Pasalnya adalah, salah seorang dari peserta tersebut, kebetulan para pesertanya adalah para Bupati dan Walikota, kedapatan sedang tertidur. Ini kejadian yang luar biasa!. Analisanya bisa berbagai macam. Boleh juga kita katakan, bahwa ini adalah sebagai suatu penghinaan kepada yang terhormat Bapak Presiden kita. Bisa juga Bupati yang kedapatan tertidur saat Presiden kita sedang memberikan pengarahan itu, sebagai seseorang yang “tolol” sekali. Ini juga adalah perisitiwa yang humiliating bahkan disgusting!. Tapi menurut teori ilmu komunikasi, kalau komunikan (audience) tidak mengerti atau faham terhadapat pesan-pesan yang disampaikan oleh komunikatornya, atau komunikan tidak memberikan atensi kepada komunikatornya sehingga hingga tertidur, yang patut di salahkan adalah Komunikatornya.

Dalam teori rethorika (ilmu berbicara) ada pepatah seperti ini; “ que excendite sine labore excendite sine honore” artinya bila seseorang mau naik panggung untuk berpidato tanpa persiapan, maka ia akan turun tanpa kehormatan. Nabiyullah Muhammad SAW, juga bersabda; “ khotibunasu ala qudri uqulihim” artinya, khotbahilah manusia itu sesuai dengan kadar intelektualnya. Oleh karena itu adalah Lazim, bila seseorang yang akan menyampaikan sesuatu atau mau berpidato di hadapan audience tertentu, maka biasanya benaknya akan dipenuhi oleh berbagai idea/gagasan, seperti bagaimana memilih pesan-pesan yang menarik, bagaimana hal itu dapat disampaikan dengan impresif kepada audiencenya. Umpamnya, dipilihnya kata-kata yang dapat menarik dan dapat memberi pengaruh yang kuat kepada audiencenya atau memiliki word power, kemudian bagaimana memilih body languagenya, supaya kata-kata tadi berkesan dan melekat pada benak audience. Awalnya masuk pidato seperti apa kemudian ending bagaimana, termasuk didalamnya memilih pakaian yang baik. Karena inti dari keberhasilan seorang komunikator/orator adalah, bagaimana komunikan berubah perilaku dan sikapnya sesuai dengan harapan sikomunikatornya.

Tetapi kejadian diatas, malah salah seorang komunikannya tertidur. Ini artinya adalah awal dari kegagalan seorang pembicara. Bagaimana audience bisa berubah behavior and attitudenya, denger aja ngga!. Coba kita lihat, pada zamanya ketika KH Zainudin MZ, tampil sebagai si ustad yang sejuta umat itu. Mana ada audience yang tertidur. Walau harus berjam-jam menunggu kedatangan sang dai, mustaminya akan tetap tak beranjak dari tenpat duduknya, hingga ustadz idolanya tadi hadir nyampaikan alunan fatwa-fatwanya. SBY juga salah seorang pembicara yang banyak orang menyukainya, karena ia dikenal dengan tutur katanya yang runtut, santun, gaya bicaranya yang kalem dan badanya tinggi besar.

Kita percaya banget, kalau peristiwa tersebut bukan karena salah komunikatornya, karena kasusnya hanya terjadi kepada satu dari sekian peserta yang hadir saat itu. Boleh jadi Pak Bupati yang tertidur itu, terlalu capai, karena mungkin semalaman beliau kurang tidur, atau karena mungkin juga ia mengerjakan tugas-tugas PR ke Bupatiannya. Bisa jadi juga, mungkin, semalaman beliau wakuncar mungpung sedang berada di Jakarta, yang hampir tidak mungkin tidak ditemukan berbagai kesempatan itu di daerah dimana beliau memimpin. Tapi ini persoalan moralitas, sebagaimana SBY katakan juga dalam pidatonya. Pemimpin jangan bermain-main dengan tanggung jawab, demikian ungkap SBY dengan nada tegas. Diantara para peserta, bisa saja banyak yang pandai, tapi pandai saja tidak cukup untuk bisa lulus dari Lemhanas ini, lanjutnya. Peserta yang tidak punya moralitas yang baik, jangan sampai dilulusakan dari Lemhanas ini, tegasnya lagi. Nah lho..kacian deh!.