How Has Reformasi Affected Family Life? The Views Of Women In Jakarta, Indonesia

When Suharto’s New Order government fell in 1998, it ended more than 30 years of the highly intrusive Pancasila ideology that shaped the policies of the New Order. This conservative doctrine, in which conformity was a key element, had profound impact on everyday life including marriage and the family especially the participation of women in society. The end of the New Order was preceded and precipitated by the Asian economic crises. Indonesian GDP for 1998 shrank by14.3% and the value of the currency plummeted from 2,909 rupiah per USD in 1997 to 10,014 in 1998. Since then there have been a number of political developments such as a decentralization of government, democratic elections, an anti-corruption drive. Reformasi also saw a rapid expansion of the media and reports on the visible Islamization of Indonesian society.

Based on qualitative interviews of 100 women in Jakarta that will be conducted in the latter half of 2013, we will examine how the changes brought about by the Reformasi movement have affected family life. We are interested in if and how radical social changes affect family life, or does family life remain stable in times of turmoil? We are focusing on Jakarta because it is a microcosm of Indonesia with people from the different ethnic and regional groups represented in the city. Also, the impact of the policies of the New Order and its subsequent demise would be strongest in the capital city. We are interested in the views of women because their social roles were previous constrained under the New Order. Women who are at least 30 years old will be selected to ensure that they have some memory of life before and during Reformasi.