early feminist consciousness and idea among muslim women in 1920s indonesia

7/23/2019 Early Feminist Consciousness and Idea Among Muslim Women in 1920s Indonesia

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Early Feminist Consciousness and Idea Among Muslim Women in

1920s Indonesia

Farid Muttaqin

Department of Antropology! "ingamton #ni$ersity %'()! 'e* (or+

A,stract

Colonial encounters were pivotal in the development of feminist consciousness and the womens

liberation movement among women and men in colonized countries like Indonesia. However, theinfluences of the colonial encounter on the foundation of feminist consciousness were not

developed by passive recipients of colonial ideas. The initial idea of Islamic education for

uslim girls showed the crucial influence and contribution of Islam and uslim women to earlyfeminist ideas in Indonesia. Islamic education for uslim girls was intended to answer the

specific problem of womens lack of empowerment within family and social life. The idea of

education for womens empowerment transformed into part of the nationalist movement againstcolonialism when in the end it led to the foundation of uslim womens organizations that

brought Islam as a critical tool. !oundation of uslim womens organizations was a critical

internal effort against patriarchal values and structures in the Islamic conte"t. I argue that these

feminist agendas, such as Islamic education for girls and uslim womens organizations, wereintegral to the Islamic reform movement.

Introduction

#n encounter with colonial rulers is often viewed as the main, even the only, factor in the

development of feminist consciousness among women $and men% in some colonized countries.

!or e"ample, &asim #mins $'()*+ '-(% inspiring reflection on womens rights in gypt,

documented in his books,Al-Marah Al-Jadidah$The /ew 0omen% and Tahrir Al-Marah

$0omens 1iberation%, e"hibits the significant influences of 2ritish perspectives of womens

liberation as a result of his interaction with the foreigners. His ideas of womens liberation do not

emerge solely from his views on the situation of gyptian women. His intensive intellectual

mingling with his 2ritish colleague, 1ord Cromer, and his e"periences while studying in !rance,

'


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awakened his concern about womens seclusion. He was inspired with idea of womens

education to follow 0estern civilizations view of womens liberation $#hmed, '34 '55%. #

similar case is found in Indonesia. The idea of womens emancipation through educating girls,

voiced by 6artini $'(7+'-8% in the late '(--s, was often viewed as resulting from her

intensive interaction with her 9utch colleague, :osita #bendanon+andri $;oebadio, '7%.

Colonial encounters were pivotal in the development of feminist consciousness and the

womens liberation movement among women and men in colonized countries. However, in my

view, the influences of the colonial encounter on the foundation of feminist consciousness were

not developed by passive recipients of colonial ideas. The social and personal interaction

between the


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leaders and clerics (ulama)and their self+reflection about specific conditions of Indonesian

uslim women.

In many countries, including gypt, ?apan $;ievers, '(*%, and Indonesia, education for

women appeared to be one of the most powerful agenda items of ual access to and participation in education for women dominated construction of the

idea of schools for girls and women. This situation developed a notion that education for women

was a global feminist agenda with the 0est as the only source of womens liberation and

feminist movement.

Islamic schools for uslim girls and women in an Indonesian historical conte"t showed

that the idea of education for girls was conte"tual and local, which means some specifically local

conditions motivated these early activists. In other words, the idea of school for girls during the

colonial period did not always reflect a wish to


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Aarticipation of uslim womens organizations in the nationalist movement was not

meant only to fight against 9utch colonialism. It played a crucial role in challenging the male+

dominated nationalist movement that had decentralized womens voices and agendas in the

struggle for independence. 0omens organizations in the nationalist movement represented an

attempt to have a voice and to incorporate feminist agendas into the nationalist movement.

!urthermore, foundation of uslim womens organizations was a critical internal effort against

patriarchal values and structures in the Islamic conte"t. #s a conse>uence, it can be an argument

to prove that Islam and the uslim societies during the colonial period were not a singular

entityB rather, they were dynamic, heterogeneous and progressive, including in the conte"t of

gender and se"ual relations. Here I argue that these feminist agendas, such as Islamic education

for girls and uslim womens organizations, were integral to the Islamic reform movement.

In discussing the points I carry out in this paper, I specifically e"amine the life

e"periences of :ahmah #l+unusiyah $'-'+')% and 0alidah #hmad 9ahlan $'(73+'8)%,

two female uslim pioneers who significantly contributed to voicing the idea of Islamic schools

for girls and uslim womens organizations in Indonesian history. #l+unusiyah e"hibited a


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movements in Indonesia. In the historical conte"t of colonialism, the 9utch, with their policies

of


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elite family, 6artini had the opportunity to attend a 9utch school. 0ith the privileged ability of

speaking 9utch, she had access to reading books, magazines and newspapers and an opportunity

to communicate and interact with 9utch communities. Dnder this social situation, 6artini gained

an opportunity to know 0estern ideas of emancipation and liberation, including womens

emancipation $io!raph" of #aden Ad$en! %artini, 3-'8%.

6artini called for the erection of schools for girls. The opportunity of attending the 9utch

school and having an intensive interaction with the 9utch significantly shaped her idea of

schools for girls. However, she was greatly concerned about the social and political in@ustices in

?ava centered in the rulers abuse of power. In her '-* letter,


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ade>uately advance if women are e"cluded, if they are not given a role to play in this= $6artini,

'3%.

6artinis critical reflection against the social+political situation of living under


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social and political benefits from the 9utch colonial policy of providing schools for pribumi

$ues. ;ome wealthy families sent their children to largepesantrenin other

cities, such as Tebuireng and ontor in ast ?ava. #s in the case of 9ahlan, some families sent

their sons to study Islam in ecca and gypt. In this academic circumstance, 6auman produced

many Oulama $;uratmin, '8%. 0alidah was born and raised within this situation.

Her parents did not send her away topesantrenbecause she was a female. 6auman

society restricted their daughters to activities outside their homes $0ahyudi, 3--34 8*%. 0ith this

limitation, 0alidah still had the opportunity to develop her social+academic accomplishment.


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0alidahs father, her first teacher, taught her basic Islamic knowledge such as reading the

&uran and te"tbooks on Islam written in the local ?avanese language with the #rabic alphabet

$0ahyudi, 8*%. He also gave her a chance to teach younger female students in her parents house

$;uratmin, '%. Nn the one hand, this e"perience helped 0alidah develop the capacity for public

communication and, on the other, played an important role in opening her mind about the needs

of providing public education for girls. ;he realized that there was a huge problem of illiteracy

among uslim girls in her hometown. Nccasionally her father asked her to lead a larger

pen!a$ian, which contributed further to strengthening her leadership skills $;uratmin, 3'%.

0alidah married 9ahlan when she was still very young, in an arranged marriage that was

common within 6auman society at that time. The arranged marriage had a significant impact on

0alidah, calling her attention to the conditions of uslim women and she began working her

ideas of emancipation of uslim women after her marriage $0ahyudi, 57%. ;he often

accompanied 9ahlan when he gave public lectures andpen!a$ianin many uslim communities

$Auar, '(4 )-%.

The e"perience of being the wife of the leader of the Islamic movement contributed to

0alidahs awareness of the primary problem of Indonesian uslims ++ illiteracy and lack of

access to educational services. ;he understood that the uhammadiyah her husband founded did

not really pay attention to the specific problem of illiteracy among uslim women. 0alidah

taught women who worked in the local garment factory a skill of reading the &uran and writing

using #rabic alphabets.

0hen the uhammadiyah was first founded, 0alidah was 9ahlans only help in

operating the organization $;uratmin, *-%. ven though 9ahlan and the uhammadiyah did not

really pay attention to womens empowerment agendas, he inspired 0alidah to create and work

'-


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build more schools for girls and financial support (studie fonds)for girls from the lower class

with e"cellent academic potentialB $3% marriage registration that would give wives legal

protectionB $*% financial support for widows and orphans ofpribumi government officialsB $8%

building an organization that focused on combating illiteracy among girls, reducing under+age

marriages, and providing short courses on health issues for girls, and $5% founding a union of

Indonesian womens organizations to consolidate womens nationalist movements $2lackburn,

3--(%.

0alidahs ideas and efforts of empowering women I describe above show the significant

contribution of uslim women in both feminist and the nationalist movements in Indonesia.

0alidah developed her ideas of womens liberation through her marital life with #hmad 9ahlanB

this situation demonstrates that marital and domestic life can play a crucial role in the

development of progressive ideas of womens liberation among uslim women in '3-s

Indonesia.

;uch terms as


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older brother, Qainuddin 1abay al+unusy in '') as part of his Islamic reform pro@ect through

the formalization of Islamic education $Hamka, '*%. /ine months since the establishment of the

school, Qainuddin passed away and :ahmah continued this idea and brought this into the

important position as academic institution that supported uslim womens empowerment. The

first groups of her students included 7' women who were mainly young mothers. These students

foundedPersatuan Murid-murid Dini"ah chool $the Dnion of the 9iniyah ;chool ;tudent%

$/ata, 3--'4 33)%.

#l+unusiyah was born in '-8 during the golden period of the rise of Islamic reform

movement in inangkabau, 0est ;umatera. In the age of '), #l+unusiyah married 2ahauddin

1atif, the son of a prominent uslim cleric, #bdul 1atif. 2ahauddin had to move to other town

when he was involved in a conflict against his father due to the different religious understanding.

#l+unusiyah remained in inangkabau as she wanted to continue her education in an Islamic

school there. #fter si" years in the marital relationship, in '33, #l+unusiyah divorced

2ahauddin. ;he did not want that 2ahauddins involvement in political movement will ruin her

dream and distract her focus of building an Islamic school for girls. ;he was even reluctant when

some of her colleagues had the idea of remarriage. ;he wanted to focus on her Islamic school for

uslim girls $:asyad, ;alim, and ;aleh, ''4 *+8'%.

;he broke the domination of uslim male scholars. ;he was among the 3- greatest

uslim scholars of 0est ;umatra that is dominated by male Oulama $unawaroh, 3--34 *'%.

;ince her childhood, #l+unusiyah was engaged in many academic activities of seeking Islamic

knowledge from prominent male ulama including her old brother, Qainuddin, and #bdul 6arim

#mrullah $:asyad, ;alim, and ;aleh, *(%.

'*


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The Islamic school for uslim girls she founded challenged the public views about the

traditional gender role of women strongly alive within the inbangkabau society at that time.

:ahmah had to face public cynicisms. Nften times, #l+unusiyah and her students heard their

neighbors mocking,


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unusiyahs Islamic schools for girls inspired ;heikh #bdurrahman Tad@, the Aresident of #l+

#zhar Dniversity to transform this idea to the university. #l+#zhar Dniversity also awarded #l+

unusiyahshai&hah$female master in Islamic knowledge%, the highest honorary scholar title. #l+

unusiyah was the first women to receive the award $hazali, ''4 3*(%. This award was not

only a recognition of her contribution to Islamic education for uslim girlsB more than that this

was an acknowledgment of her great accomplishment as a reformist uslim scholar and her

authoritative position in Islamic knowledgeB theshai&hhonorary title was usually only for male

scholars $hazali, 3*%.

In the conte"t of living under colonialism, #l+unusiyahs intellectual network with

uslim scholars from #l+#zhar Dniversity played an important role in shaping feminist

movement in Indonesian history. Dnlike 6artini who gained significant influences from her

9utch colleagues, the connection with uslim scholars in gypt contributed to the

acknowledgement of #l+unusiyahs contribution and authority in the field of Islamic reform

movement in her hometownB inangkabau society were among the most religious uslims in

Indonesia. #s a result, her pro@ect of Islamic education for uslim girls gained popularity and

public support. It is very important to specifically study whether #l+unusiyah had the

opportunity to build intellectual connection with or encountered with feminist ideas of a number

of the early 3-thCentury gyptian feminists, such as &asim #min, alak Hifni /assef $'(()+

''(%, Huda ;haarawi $'(7+'87%, 9oria ;hafik $'-(+'75%, and ai Qiyada $'(()+'8'%.

#l+unusiyah made an important step to design a collaboration between the Islamic

school she founded and #l+#zhar Dniversity. This collaboration provided scholarships for the

alumni of her school to study in #l+#zhar Dniversity. The first delegation to study in the

university included ( alumni in '5( $unawaroh, 3%. Nne of them earned a prestigious

'5


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accomplishment and was asked by the university to teach in the 9epartment of 1etters. The

government of 6uwait also awarded scholarships for the alumni of #l+unusiyahs school to

study in some universities there $unawaroh, 3%.

The collaboration of #l+unusiyahs Islamic school for girls and some universities in the

iddle ast, especially gypt demonstrated her contribution to Islamic reform movement in the

region with the inclusion of


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school for girls, uslim girls had a greater opportunity to engage in seeking Islamic knowledge.

#l+unusiyas idea of Islamic education for girls inspired manypesantrenin ?ava, the basis of

pesantreneducational system, to build special learning programs for girls and even build

pesantrenfor girls (pesantren puteri)$unawaroh, **%.

Dnlike 6artini who had a close social and personal relation with and gained significant

influences from her 9utch colleagues, #l+unusiyah was consistently independent from the

9utch colonial ruler. In the early '--s, the 9utch administration applied a policy to intervene

with Islamic education by restricting courses viewed to contribute to the development of critical

tradition among uslim students and led them toward the rebellion $Hamka, (%. #l+unusiyah

received an offer of financial subsidy from the 9utch colonial government to improve her

Islamic school. ;he re@ected the offer in order to maintain the independence of her school from

the intervention of the 9utch colonial interests. In '-5, the 9utch administration issued a

regulation that obliged!uru a!ama$teacher of Islamic knowledge% to re>uest approval from and

to report their learning process to local ruler $achnun Husein, '(*4 5+)%. #l+unusiyah

initiated establishing%omite Penola&an rdonansi e&olah Liar$the Committee to :e@ect the

:egulation of Dnregistered ;chools% to oppose the 9utch policy that controlled unregistered

schools $unawaroh, 3*%.

#l+unusiyah also e"pressed a critical challenge against the intervention of male uslim

scholars. 0hen the uhammadiyah was first introduced in inangkabau, some of the male

initiators approached #l+unusiyah to affiliate her Islamic school with the uhammadiyahs

education program. ;he re@ected this idea because she wanted to maintain her school free from

the influences of any organizations that, in the conte"t of nationalist movement, often involved in

political movement. 0hen ahmud unus, a prominent male uslim scholar issued the idea to

'7


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reform the Islamic educational system in Indonesia through the establishment ofPanitia *shlah

al-Madaris al-*slami"ah$The Committee of Islamic ;chools Dnification% and the fusion of

Islamic schools into one learning system in order to improve the >uality of the educational

system $unawaroh, 3--34 3'+33%. #l+unusiyah opposed the idea coming from unus, a very

important male uslim figure and a distinguished Oulama. ;he had her own thinking that it was

easier to manage Islamic schools if the management of the learning system was held by each

school.

#l+unusiyah wanted to increase the number of uslim women teachers in Islamic

schools (!uru a!ama)to teach uslim women and girls as her agenda of womens emancipation

from the isolation and marginalization in any social fields. #l+unusiyah viewed that this

mission can only be achieved if Islamic schools consistently focused on teaching and learning

activities and were not intervened by non+academic related interests, including politics

$unawaroh, '*%.

#l+unusiyahs idea of increasing the >uantity of female!uru a!amabetrayed the policy

of the 9utch colonial government that emphasized the education for girls to develop womens

attitudes of being good mothers. The 9utch policy of gender segregation in education was

formulated based on the perspective that women were supposed to be good mothers and they had

obligation to care their families and their children. ;ince many of their children went to 9utch

schools, their mothers had to learn 9utch in order to be able to communicate with their children.

In the letter, the 9utch ruler mentioned that education for women for academic+intellectual goals,

such as to produce female teachers, was unnecessary $;. 1. van der0al, ')-4 3*+35%.

#l+unusiyah did not restrict uslim women to participate in political movements. ;he

understood that education was a medium to empower womens capacity so they can enter into

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social lives with knowledge in their hands and compete against men. ;he did not suggest uslim

girls to be involved deeper in political activities that would destroy their orientation and

motivation to accomplish maturity in academic matters. ;he developed theoretical foundation of

female students political ways which was


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Conclusion

uslim women have contributed significantly to the development of the feminist

movement in Indonesian history. 9espite 6artinis idea of school for girls that developed from

her intense interaction with her 9utch colleague becoming the main inspiration, these uslim

womens idea of Islamic education for uslim girls prove that feminist awareness in the colonial

historical conte"t was not @ust the result of colonial encounters. The feminist consciousness was

also developed through self+reflection of the conditions of uslim women and a personal, social,

and academic interaction within uslim communities in local, national and trans+national

conte"ts. The contribution of uslim women also appeared in the active involvement of uslim

womens organizations in the nationalist movement that challenged both the colonialism and the

male+dominated nationalist movement. !inally, the contribution of uslim women to the

development of feminist consciousness and awareness in the Indonesian historical conte"t

showed that the Islamic feminist agenda cannot be separated from the Islamic reform movement.

This also reflected the progressive dimension of Islam and the uslim communities in Indonesia

during the colonial period.

"i,liograpy

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early feminist consciousness and idea among muslim women in 1920s indonesia

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