Where's the Love? - On Bombing and Indonesia Unite

www.dreamstime.comSounds a bit new-agey? Probably, but bear with me for 5 minutes. It will not take longer.

This is by far the most difficult posting i've ever written. I took the event far too personal. When I heard the news about Jakarta bombing last weekend, like many other Indonesians, my first reaction was angry.. "again??" I can not help it that my memory was flying back to that day when the second Bali bomb blasted in 2005.

I can not forget that day. Somebody called to deliver the bad news. A close friend of mine was on the spot having dinner with her family when the bomb blasted in Jimbaran, Bali. She and her husband were injured, but her parents who were having holiday to visit her to Bali could not be saved. I remember I was in my living room when I received the call and after hearing the news I quickly went to my room laying down. My head spin. I felt lots of things at once that I could not describe, but after 5 minutes I felt so suffocated I quickly ran to my car and drove away.

I did not know where to go I just followed my instinct to go to a house of somebody I know pretty well whom I sometimes visit to have some talk about Qur'an and Islam. He is an ustadz, or say, an islamic spiritual teacher. He and his lovely wife patiently listened to my rant and then responded with some soothing words. As the Bali bombing attackers was said to be from an islamic extremist group, as a moslem myself, what I needed to hear at that time was islam is all about loving, and that was exactly what I received from the lovely couple. So after couple of hours, I felt content enough and went home. But still, I could not yet get rid of the anger inside.

It emerged again when I heard the latest bomb news. I've grown at least 4 years older now I should have been wiser too, but still the anger hit me big time. And I'm not the only one. If I access twitter, blogs and facebook, everybody's too! Many are of course angry at the terrorist.. but many also are angry at Indonesian's government, some people think they have not done enough to prevent the attack.

I think sometime ago I posted a quote from somebody whose story of life I really adore. Her name is Tenzin Palmo, a british woman who became a buddhist nun and spent 13 years of her life meditating solo in Himalaya. I took the following quote from her book, A Cave in the Snow.

"Of course you can raise your voice but first you have to check your motivation. Is it out of love (for others) and their needs or out of anger? If we're speaking out of negative emotions the result will only be worse.. On the other hand we don't have to be simpering"
- Tenzin Palmo

If we take a step back, whoever the terrorist is, if it is true that they were doing it for what they believe in, that means they have something to fight for. To fight against something that they think is injustice. To give that somebody who did the wrongdoings a lesson to learn, because their wrongdoings hurt. And this activism based on anger results into murders of many innocent people. For them, it is justified because it is to straighten the wrongdoings. For others, it is violence.

If we responded their actions with another type of anger, imagine then where will that lead to? One of scenarios: it will lead to mass paranoia; where one can not feel and live at peace at all anymore. I fully believe with Tenzin Palmo and Karma Yoga concept to do activism based on love and compassion; and I believe it can be done.

In a more practical level, we can start it to watch out and take care the closest one, ie. our own neighbourhood or just anything that is not beyond our reach. Today I blogwalked and I stumbled upon this suggestion from mr.contradictive mind. The writer of the blog suggests us firstly to watch out for anything suspicious around us. Is there anything different in our neighbourhood? Are there some strangers with suspicious activity? I think these are great ideas. He also had list of suggestion what one can do, some simple steps that can make a difference. Here is the link. Make sure you open it! :D

I know it is very tempting to vent off and even more, to rant about the failure of government and post it in internet. But honestly speaking, will that help?

Indonesia Unite

I'm far away from where the bombing happened, so the only way I can fllow its aftermath is from internet via news, facebook, and mainly, twitter. So yes, I'm very familiar with Indonesia Unite movement.

Although many bloggers are very skeptical about the movement, up to this second, I'm very very supportive. I truly think it is great! Living outside the country and having had to travel to at least 30 countries for business and personal reason, I know from the bottom of my heart how it feels like to travel and get "extra" treatment from officials just because of my indonesian passport. Thanks to terrorists who blew up my country and to mainstream media who blew it up even more, I sometimes feel like the world is seeing Indonesia as one big country with 250 million people and all are criminals. I can not accept that, but I slowly learn not to always fight against the world.

The Indonesia Unite movement will hopefully be able to create a counter attack marketing to that perception about Indonesia. It is our own way of saying: "We're not criminals. Just like you people, we CONDEMN the criminals' act." Some skeptical Indonesians criticize the movement as an unfit patriotism who will not do any good to catch the terrorist. Maybe they are right, it will not. But it will definitely help for others to see what Indonesians really are. And we all know how important image is. And if you think no one outside Indonesia will notice, you are very wrong. Last night through a twitter buddy I found a tweet from Joel Madden.

RT @JoelMadden: Posting this for #indonesiaunite seriously my favorite place in the world http://bit.ly/Eyhqq got to support

See! It is read.. It is heard.. It is noticed by somebody on the other part of the world! So who knows, probably on the next level, the unity as a result of this movement can be used to make real action.

!!Message for fellow Indonesia Unite Tweeps!!

One thing to keep in mind, we Indonesians have to make sure to keep the post content relevant to Indonesia Unite theme. I see a growing irrelevance in #indonesiaunite posts. As you see, somebody from thousands of kilometres away (ie. Joel Madden) read our tweets. If we post irrelevant subject, no one will know what we are trying to say, and they will think that this movement is a joke. Please think of others who can benefit from your postings, so do it sincerely... And keep spreading the love! :)

"So powerful is the light of unity, that it will illuminate the whole earth" - Bah·'u'll·h