Kang Benny

In 1998, a cadre of idealistic and committed activists took to the streets of Jakarta to overthrow the corrupt and decadent regime of President Suharto. Many of them were part of the budding NGO movement that was so vital to Indonesia's democratization who also tried their hands at the nucleus of the nation's now vibrant, independent media.

Nearly 11-years onward, the youth who helped bring Suharto down aren't young anymore. The revolutionary ardour has cooled down for large swathes of them, to be replaced by more mundane concerns like earning a living. Quite a few have even made their peace with the establishment, joining citadels of power like the Election Commission branches in the various provinces and districts.

Not so for one activist in Bandung, Indonesia's four-million strong answer to Berkeley. Fitri Albashir or 'Kang' (Sundanese for 'brother') Benny is a DJ for Radio Maraghita, a local FM station. He strikes a familiar, respected figure in Bandung's robust and lively community of activists.

Bandung is definitely one of the most socio-politically vibrant cities in Indonesia (hence the comparison to Berkeley). Its booming public life is further boosted by its sizeable middle class and its many universities (including the prestigious Institut Teknologi Bandung or ITB) not to mention the increasingly vibrant creative industries based in the city.

Now in his mid-forties, 'Kang' Benny has certainly earned his street cred. Starting out in day-time radio in 1991 before graduating to prime time in 1994, his thrice-weekly morning talk show was instrumental (and still is) in airing listeners' grievances about local events and poor government services.

You could put this down to youthful rebelliousness but his activism is rather surprising considering his privileged background- his uncle was successively a General, Governor of West Java and Interior Minister- but Benny has never capitalized on his family ties. This has come with a price- he may need to sell his house to pay for sending his son to the ITB, but his passion for the causes he fights for is undiminished as it was a decade ago.

Inspired by the slogan of Semua Bisa! ('Everything's Possible'- was Obama listening back then?) Benny and his colleagues plunged into advocacy – collaborating on labour issues, the environment and education.

The great Asian Financial Crisis of 1997 shot-up audiences and soon Benny found himself as one of the spokesmen of the Reformasi movement. He covered everything from politics to police corruption.

Nowadays, radio talk-shows like Benny are a dime-a-dozen. But back in the day, such defiance to the compliant norms set by the New Order was something bold and quite dangerous indeed: "I guess it was quite brave of us at the time but we did it in a non-confrontational way. We always stressed public service and focused on issues like electricity, supplies of drinking water and rubbish collection. The newspapers also covered the same issues but because we were on-the-air and live – we were able to avoid being censored".

Benny admits that he often felt paranoid, especially as the New Order fought back brutally against the tide of its own people. Many radio stations were silenced but Radio Mara fought on and miraculously survived without retaliations to see the fall of Suharto.

Nevertheless, the eager young men and women who carried the banner of Reformasi were in for a rude shock when the Suharto's party, Golkar staged a comeback in the 1999 elections. Furthermore, the NGO movement was beset by opportunists who sought to jump on the bandwagon not for ideological reasons but for their own self-aggrandisement through the opportunities patronage that was thrown open.

This threw the activists into an existential crisis of sorts. Should the NGO community remain outside and shouting or should they try to get a place at the main table by contesting for power?

For Benny, the choice was clear. He drafted one of his friends – a fellow activist to stand as an independent candidate in Bandung's Mayoral contest and sought to gain the 50,000 signatures necessary to run. This was another disappointment: his network only managed to secure 20,000- a sign that the movement was less influential and effective than he'd thought:

Nevertheless, Benny is undeterred, unwilling to become a 'golput' (golongan puteh, a derisive term for those who abstain from politics): "We shouldn't be shouting on the outside. We need to get involved to provide a balance against those who are only driven by religion and politics. Besides the political process is dynamic and disappointments are only to be expected". Indeed, his independent political activism is on the comeback: he was recently able to get a colleague elected as Mayor of Garut, a smallish town to the east of Bandung.

It's hard not to feel inspired, even a little humbled by a man like "Kang Benny". He has made his choices in life and is sticking by them, even finding a measure of fulfilment. Benny has, of course been let down time-and-time again by the politicians, but he still believes in the process.

Malaysia would be very lucky to have committed activists like him.