From: "Dede Oetomo" Subject: Indonesia: Gay election candidate underlines emerging political freedoms Date: Sat, 5 Jun 1999 06:54:11 +0700 SOURCE: South China Morning Post, June 1, 1999 Hong Kong (E-MAIL: jfenby@scmp.com ) ( http://www.scmp.com/news/ ) Indonesia Gay election candidate underlines emerging political freedoms JENNY GRANT in Surabaya. Dede Oetomo is not a typical Surabaya resident - he is an agnostic, gay, ethnic Chinese and a parliamentary candidate for the country's most radical democratic socialist party. As the East Java representative for the People's Democracy Party (PRD), Dr Oetomo exemplifies the new outspokenness of Indonesians in these elections. If he wins a seat in Parliament, Dr Oetomo says he will push for the rights of gays and lesbians, promote land reform for poor farmers and try to organise the city's thousands of sex workers. "We can wait 100 years until the sociological condition is ready, but by then I will be dead," said the 45-year-old, a doctor of sociology at Airlangga University. He said he drew inspiration from PRD members who were kidnapped last year and those, like party chairman Budiman Sudjatmiko, who were still in jail. "The small talk in the party is, 'What was your torture like?' It's weird, it's almost macabre, but it also strengthens us," he said, surrounded by an antique plate collection in his home. He believes the party can win 10 seats nationally, even though it has only 600 core cadres. Dr Oetomo opened the first Aids hotline in Indonesia back in the early 1990s when discussion of the disease was taboo. He set up the country's first public gay, lesbian and transgender network in Surabaya, which has a strong transvestite culture known as wariah. But his partner comes from a traditional Islamic background and supports a competing political party. Dr Oetomo is representing a party that only 18 months ago was branded a dangerous communist organisation. "We can show people it is safe to join radical parties like the PRD," he said. His latest election effort is giving voter education to sex workers in the city's brothel areas. Although Dr Oetomo's ideas are cutting edge for Indonesia, some of his greatest fans are conservative Muslim teachers. One of Java's most esteemed preachers, Kyai Wahid Zaini, was a doctoral student under him. The traditionalist Nahdlatul Ulama organisation has invited him to its national seminar later in the year to speak on sexuality. * To join list, E-mail: < grahamu@rainbow.net.au > with "join" in subject line. * To leave list, E-mail: < grahamu@rainbow.net.au > with "unsubscribe" in subject line. - Donations: If you have found this service useful, we hope that you will help us continue. If you can make any donations (however small), to help cover the costs involved in providing you with this service, they would be very welcome. Please address your check/money order to Graham Underhill, and mail it to: P O BOX 2214T GPO Melbourne, Victoria, 3001, Australia.