Cempaka Culture and Tourism: Indonesian Migrant Life Goes to the Big Screen

"The Recalibration of Awareness – Apr 20/21, 2012 (Kryon channeled by Lee Carroll) (Subjects: Old Energy, Recalibration Lectures, God / Creator, Religions/Spiritual systems (Catholic Church, Priests/Nun’s, Worship, John Paul Pope, Women in the Church otherwise church will go, Current Pope won’t do it), Middle East, Jews, Governments will change (Internet, Media, Democracies, Dictators, North Korea, Nations voted at once), Integrity (Businesses, Tobacco Companies, Bankers/ Financial Institutes, Pharmaceutical company to collapse), Illuminati (Started in Greece, with Shipping, Financial markets, Stock markets, Pharmaceutical money (fund to build Africa, to develop)), Shift of Human Consciousness, (Old) Souls, Women, Masters to/already come back, Global Unity.... etc.) - (Text version)

“… The Shift in Human Nature

You're starting to see integrity change. Awareness recalibrates integrity, and the Human Being who would sit there and take advantage of another Human Being in an old energy would never do it in a new energy. The reason? It will become intuitive, so this is a shift in Human Nature as well, for in the past you have assumed that people take advantage of people first and integrity comes later. That's just ordinary Human nature.

In the past, Human nature expressed within governments worked like this: If you were stronger than the other one, you simply conquered them. If you were strong, it was an invitation to conquer. If you were weak, it was an invitation to be conquered. No one even thought about it. It was the way of things. The bigger you could have your armies, the better they would do when you sent them out to conquer. That's not how you think today. Did you notice?

Any country that thinks this way today will not survive, for humanity has discovered that the world goes far better by putting things together instead of tearing them apart. The new energy puts the weak and strong together in ways that make sense and that have integrity. Take a look at what happened to some of the businesses in this great land (USA). Up to 30 years ago, when you started realizing some of them didn't have integrity, you eliminated them. What happened to the tobacco companies when you realized they were knowingly addicting your children? Today, they still sell their products to less-aware countries, but that will also change.

What did you do a few years ago when you realized that your bankers were actually selling you homes that they knew you couldn't pay for later? They were walking away, smiling greedily, not thinking about the heartbreak that was to follow when a life's dream would be lost. Dear American, you are in a recession. However, this is like when you prune a tree and cut back the branches. When the tree grows back, you've got control and the branches will grow bigger and stronger than they were before, without the greed factor. Then, if you don't like the way it grows back, you'll prune it again! I tell you this because awareness is now in control of big money. It's right before your eyes, what you're doing. But fear often rules. …”

Sunday, January 10, 2010

Indonesian Migrant Life Goes to the Big Screen

Jakarta Globe, Dalih Sembiring

‘Minggu Pagi di Victoria Park’ is a new film focusing on the lives of Indonesian migrant workers living in Hong Kong. (Photo courtesy of PickLock Productions and lolaamaria.blogdetik.com)

While most would agree that problems faced by Indonesian migrant workers revolve around abuse by employees, an Indonesian feature film promises a different approach to detailing their struggles in Hong Kong.

The film introduces us to a young woman named Sekar. She has been earning money for herself and her East Javanese family as an Indonesian female migrant worker, or Tenaga Kerja Wanita (TKW), in Hong Kong, one of the world’s leading financial hubs.

When her family stop receiving news and cash from Sekar, her family becomes alarmed. They send Mayang, her older sister, try to find out about Sekar’s whereabouts. The catch? Mayang can only afford to go to Hong Kong as a migrant worker.

Reluctant to leave her hometown, Mayang is in for a shock when she discovers the truth about working as a domestic helper in Hong Kong: It is hard, it is strict, it can be sad, and yet it can also be rewarding.

Sitting in the director’s chair for the movie “Minggu Pagi di Victoria Park” (“Sunday Morning in Victoria Park”) is Lola Amaria, who also plays the role of Mayang.

“After I portrayed a migrant worker in a Taiwan film called ‘Detours to Paradise,’ I thought there had to be so many interesting things surrounding the lives of our migrant workers abroad,” said Lola, who also acted in her 2006 directorial debut “Betina” (“Female”). “I was curious as to why no one had made a feature film about them.”

She revealed her intentions to Dewi Umaya Rachman, co-producer of a 2007 film about the Bali bombings, “Long Road to Heaven,” and both women started work on the project in July 2008.

They interviewed hundreds of migrant workers, including those in training, obtained data from and the support of the Ministry of Manpower and Transmigration, and acquired local assistance in the special administrative region of the People’s Republic of China before they began filming in October 2009.

“Hong Kong is probably where our migrant workers face the least problems compared to any of the other TKW destinations in the world,” Lola said.

However, the TKW struggle to adjust to the differences in culture, especially Hong Kong’s notoriously fast-paced lifestyle.

Lola and Dewi said they wanted to focus on female migrant workers in order to provide a different perspective.

“As much as it is stressful working for extremely strict employers, the biggest burden comes from back home, where the families expect them [TKW] to return as successful people, bringing home a lot of money,” Lola said. “Unfortunately, this burden often leads to suicide.”

“In Hong Kong, our workers actually feel empowered by their situation,” Dewi said. “It is because of them that their employers’ careers can develop. It would be impossible for Hong Kong to be such an advanced economy without the help of the TKW. There is a demand for 1,000 Indonesian migrant workers in Hong Kong each month.”

The two behind the film have also come across those who regard the TKW as traitors to their own country. This argument is based on the fact that instead of working in their own country, the TKW are helping another country progress.

“In Indonesia, many still dismiss domestic work as a lowly profession worthy of meager pay,” Dewi said.

“Many do not appreciate their jobs, which explains why there is such a large number of illegal agencies that send untrained workers abroad. This results in employers who become abusive and unhappy with their performance.”

She added that such occurrences are rare in Hong Kong because of the strict rules concerning TKW.

“And if we want to talk about nationalism, no one beats those TKW,” Dewi added. “In Victoria Park, where they normally hang out on Saturdays and Sundays, they practice traditional dances. They have introduced Indonesian dishes to local vendors who now sell them around the area. At the employers’ homes, they teach the children Indonesian language.

“They even help develop their home villages by saving money for their families to open small businesses that employ the locals.”

For moviegoers who wonder whether they’ll enjoy a film with such a serious message, Lola said that scriptwriter Titin Watimena, who has produced screenplays for romantic films like “Tentang Dia” (“About Her”) and “LOVE,” has managed to incorporate a love story into the movie’s structure. The movie is in its final stages of editing and will be released on April 21, 2010, in Jakarta and May 1, 2010, in Surabaya, East Java.