Alanda Kariza

Eliminating the Limits

Di Udara

January 26, 2008 by Alanda Kariza | 0 comments

Reading time: 2 – 4 minutes

“Human rights in the sense of human solidarity has created a new universal and equal language going beyond racial, gender, ethnic or religious boundaries. That is why we consider it a doorway to dialogue for people of all socio-cultural groups and all ideologies.” (Munir)
I was listening to one of Efek Rumah Kaca‘s (ERK) songs when I suddenly googled one of Indonesia’s modern-day heroes, Alm. Munir Said Thalib. ERK is an indie band which is really “happening” right now. At first, I listened to their song “Cinta Melulu”, which has hilarious/parody lyrics. Since I haven’t got the chance to buy their album, I went to their MySpace page and listened to a song “Di Udara”. Some media wrote that the song was dedicated to former activist, Munir, who was murdered on 2004.
The song was so… good. Listening to it makes you imagine how strong Munir’s struggle was. My heart was shaking so hard.
The lyric was like this: “Aku sering diancam, juga teror mencekam. Kerap kudisingkirkan, sampai di mana, kapan? Ku bisa tenggelam di lautan, aku bisa diracun di udara, aku bisa terbunuh di trotoar jalan… Tapi aku tak pernah mati, tak akan berhenti. Ku bisa dibuat menderita, aku bisa dibuat tak bernyawa, dikursilistrikkan ataupun ditikam. Tapi aku tak pernah mati, tak akan berhenti…”

He was the most famous Human Rights and anti-corruption activist, Wikipedia wrote. He founded KontraS (Komisi untuk Orang Hilang dan Korban Tindak Kekerasan) and was a member of many counsels and organizations (click here for the list). He received An Honourable Mention of the 2000 UNESCO Madanjeet Singh Prize for the Promotion of Tolerance and Non-Violence (Paris, November 2000) and The Right Livelihood Award (Alternative Nobel Prizes) for Human Rights and military control by civil society promotion, Stockholm (December 2000).

I think his name must have remained as a hero for human rights in Indonesia.

He once said,

“We all need to consider the possibilities of a united world based on the sense of humanity and solidarity. Crimes committed by a nation-state or in the name of progress and development will be reduced only if we are able to recognise ourselves as part of other humans’ destiny”.

Share

Leave a Reply

Required fields are marked *.

*