Respectful
judges, committees, and all fellow participants of English Contest 2017. My
name is Thariq Muhammad Ridho and I am speaking as the delegate of MA Husnul
Khotimah.
Before
beginning my speech, I would like to thank all of the audiences here,
especially the committees, for giving me the opportunity to speak. On this
grateful occasion, I would like to talk about “Adaptation : a new concept in
preserving the national cultures of Indonesia.”
Ladies
and gentlemen,
First
of all, I would like to talk about the significance of preserving the national
cultures. To begin with,
our father of
education, Ki Hajar
Dewantara, in a
simple word, proposed that the national cultures of Indonesia are the
characteristics of the nation itself. Therefore, preserving national cultures
means preserving ‘the existence’ of the nation, since the characteristics of a
nation makes the nation broadly acknowledged.
Then,
this issue has become far more pressing and significant as there are over 30
national cultures of Indonesia that have been claimed by other countries, “30”
ladies and gentlemen, 30 national cultures. Let’s take examples! Batik, Kuda
Lumping, Gamelan and many more were claimed by Malaysia. Kopi Gayo and Bengawan
Solo song were claimed by Netherland. But, on the other hand, modernity has
been assumed as the best culture across the globe. Modernity is part of our
life. Nobody and no nation can withdraw himself from modernity.
Ladies
and gentlemen,
Overcoming
this problem, by all means, is the responsibility of all elements of the
society in this country. So, let’s talk about what we, as students, could
possibly do regarding this issue.
Let
me begin by saying, to me, there is a solution which in many circumstances that
has been barely discussed. It is a concept that we know as ‘ADAPTATION’.
Well,
many have said, and I’m trying to agree, that in order to preserve our culture,
we have to learn more about the culture itself, and then practically
participate in it. But what I’m saying now is more than that. People often
think that cultures are something old, something out of date. Because of that
mindset, then what we also should do is INTEGRATION. We make the cultures ADAPT
the condition.
Examples
of this concept have actually emerged recently. Today, we see batik in football
shirts, promotion of batik by holding Batik Festivals, also promoting modern
designs of batik in Indonesia Fashion Week and many more.
The
thing is, to make it possible, we need those who understand both the cultures
and the condition of today’s
world at the
same time. And
I believe, those
are the young generation, and obviously, including
the students.
Indeed,
it is important to make our culture remain unchanged, yet I believe, it is
still more important to
preserve the positive
values of our
culture. As the
world around us changes, the core of positive values of
our culture remains there.
This
concept has already happened in Cirebon, West Java. Who doesn’t know Batik
Trusmi? I believe everybody inside this hall knows it. Therefore, we should be
proud and should have learned from what Sally Giovani, the owner of Batik
Trusmi, has done. Her idea to adapt culture with today’s condition has made her
a young billionaire. She proved that batik, an example of a culture is not
something old anymore, or something bad to wear.
What
she did was actually simple. She learned about the demand of the present world
and tried to suit it with the culture of Indonesia especially batik. Then, in
order to be different from others, she tried to make something far beyond of
what people generally think. As an example, she made an awesome gown with batik
designs and motif which makes it extraordinary and suitable for any woman from
various ages to wear. In the end, she used her creativities and links to
promote and endorse her creations which finally brought her to the highest
level of success.
Brothers
and sisters,
Nothing
will be changed until someone changes something! As Mahatma Gandhi said, “Be the change you
wish to see in the world!”
So,
learn more about our cultures, love our cultures, preserve the positive values
of our cultures, and be proud of our cultures! Let the world know Indonesia as
a place where culture breeds innovation.
Ladies
and gentlemen,
Indonesia has
more than 150
million young-productive students
from total 250 million citizens. If Soekarno said that
he could ‘shake’ the world with 10 youth who have truthful love to their
nation, so what on earth we cannot do with 150 million of those? Don’t wait for
Indonesia, because Indonesia has been waiting for you!
Thank
you very much.
Wassalamu’alaikum warahmatullahi wabarokaatuh.
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