This is my research about how oppression is institutionalized.
I post it due to (prolly) there are some people especially for new commers who just found a new community (world). My suggetion is... take the substance of the topic. Just make it Easy On yourself lads! enjoy!
I. INTRODUCTION
This essay discuses about institutionalized oppression. First of all, I will explain about oppression in Indonesia. As a post-colonialism country, oppression in Indonesia is already in people’s blood. Based on historical fact, Dutch has colonized Indonesia for 350 year (1595-1945). In this term Dutch acted as the oppressor and people of Indonesia as the oppressed. They did the oppression in all way until Indonesian people were really suffered, depraved mentally, physically and psychologically. One of the inherited cultures from the colonialist is hierarchical culture, where people with power demand to be respected from people with no power. As a result, oppression has become a culture in social life, from a small group family to a big group government.
For generations, the oppression is maintained in Indonesia, particularly in many institutions, such as government, military and education institutions. University is one of education institutions which are vulnerable to oppression. Examples of oppressions in universities are lecturers to students, students to cleaning service, and senior students to junior students. In this essay, I focus on the last one, senior student(s) to junior student(s).
Along Indonesia education history during 1960s, hazing activities was known as MAPRAM. There are many victims at that time. Then, the 1971 Ministry of Education and Culture Decree was constituted as a response to eliminate MAPRAM and change it by Pekan Orientasi Studi (POS). Despite the decree, the oppression was still continued. Once again, POS was changed to Orientasi Siswa (OS) and later in 1990s there’s a new name called Orientasi Siswa dan Pengenalan Kampus (OSPEK) until now (Forum UI, August 4th 2007 ).
Senior students (oppressor) conduct the oppression to new students (oppressed) through hazing activities. Senior student group makes programs such as Orientasi Kampus (OK) which held by each faculty and Pengenalan kampus (PEKA) which held by each department. There are many ways in doing the oppression - assigning new student to do physical activity such as push up, slapping new student when they make mistakes are included to physical oppression, yelling in high tone with sarcastic language is included to psychological oppression.
This essay focuses on how oppression is institutionalized in universities. The machine engineering department UPI is chosen as the object of research because they have a strong tradition in oppression and are known as the hardest among other department in UPI in conducting hazing activities. A small scale survey has been conducted to gain data from the students about the issue.
In order to gain data, a close-ended questionnaire, consists of 10 questions and has been distributed to 20 students of machine engineering department. The questions are utilized to ask their opinion about hazing activities in their department. The respondents were students from the class of 2003, 2004, 2005 because they have experienced hazing activities both as seniors and new students.
II. LITERARY REVIEW
Since there various definitions of oppression and institutionalized in different context, there has to be a limitation concerning to the terms of “oppression” and “institutionalized”. According to Sherover-Marcuse (2000),
“Oppression is the systematic and insidious mistreatment of individuals on the basis of their membership in various groups, which are disadvantaged by the institutionalized imbalances in social power in a particular society”
Oppression happens in a community/ group because there’s a superior side and inferior side. Superior side is a group who has more power to control than others. While inferior side is a group who has less power than superior group. There are two types of power, first is tangible power, usually in physic such as money, machine, vehicle, etc. Second is intangible power, usually in soft skill, such as interpersonal skill, adaptation skill, organizational skill, etc. Superior side is the oppressor and inferior side is the oppressed. Oppressor and oppressed can be individual (personal) or groups (more than 2 person). In this case seniors act as Oppressor and new students act as oppressed (victim).
Moreover, the systematic and insidious mistreatment is the same as with the hazing activities that contains belittling, denial, or disgraces the new students’ value as humans. Such dehumanization can be in form of physical mistreatment, e.g. assigning new student to do physical activity such as push up, slapping new student when they make mistakes are included to physical oppression. Yelling in high tone with sarcastic language is included to psychological oppression. Thus, such physical and mental mistreatment can be categorized as oppression.
The main focus of this essay is how oppression is institutionalized. According to WordWeb dictionary, Institutionalized is: Given a character of an institution or incorporated into a structured and usually well-established system. If we talk about a variable institutionalized as a conditions, it means some conditions when a community/ group try to make a perpetual condition in for a long period, in the other words is tradition, without any significant changes from the community/group and unopposed by people who are the targeted group.
Hence, in order to maintain the tradition, the oppression must be inherited to the next successor, that is, the target group that has been socialized with oppression. Consequently, oppression has become institutionalized and is difficult to be eliminated from universities.
In relation to the method above, Machiavelli (1513) states that:
“WHENEVER those states which have been acquired as stated have been accustomed to live under their own laws and in freedom, there are three courses for those who wish to hold them: the first is to ruin them, the next is to reside there in person, the third is to permit them to live under their own laws, drawing a tribute, and establishing within it an oligarchy which will keep it friendly to you. Because such a government, being created by the prince, knows that it cannot stand without his friendship and interest, and does its utmost to support him; and therefore he who would keep a city accustomed to freedom will hold it more easily by the means of its own citizens than in any other way.”
Furthermore, Machiavelli’s theory also say:
“Princedoms are either hereditary, in which the sovereignty is derived through an ancient line of ancestor, or they are new.”
Obviously, new students in this context it’s totally different from citizens pointed out by Machiavelli. But a new student can be considered as a new state or community. According to Fairchild, community is stated as
“Sub group many of the characteristics of society, but on smaller scale, and with less existence and coordinated common interest. The community has more limited self- sufficiency than society but within those limits has closer relation and deeper sympathy.”
According to this statement, a senior student also have same characteristic with citizen in Machiavelli is approach. Thus, this theory is applicable to the process of application of power hierarchy to a new student in university which considered as “new state”.
III. FINDINGS
As has been mentioned in previous section, Twenty student of Machine Engineering Department has been selected, Indonesia University if Education from class of 2003, 2004, 2005 as the selected respondents because they experienced both as seniors (oppressor) and new students (oppressed). We choose Machine Engineering because the department has a strong tradition in oppression and is known as the hardest among other department in UPI in conducting hazing activities.
Based on the answer, most of them (80%), as new students, at first they were skeptic or negative to hazing activities because they don’t want to be oppress, since there are many people victimize by the hazing activities especially in Universities.
The new student has changed their perception to positive after they participate in hazing activities. Majority of the respondents (80%) answered that the hazing gave positive impact on their mental building as organization members.
Despite the hazing in machine engineering can be categorized cruel, a half of the respondents (50%) answered that they feel no problem at all. Thus, Machiavelli theory concerning to state conquer is true. The method of hazing by first is to give the new students a shock therapy, next is to set them as inferior group, the third to receive them as a part of community under oligarchy. Therefore, the majority of the positive responses clarify that the oppression is an effective method to build their character as the seniors intended to.
Then, to strengthen the assumption that oppression is institutionalized by tradition, the respondents were asked whether they intend change the given tradition, 60% of respondents answered that it doesn’t need to be changed since it is effective in acquiring respect from the new students, its in line with another Machiavelli theory that a ruler and his successors can maintain their throne in a state, which states that Princedom is inherited, in which a power to rule a state is derived from an ancestor to successors.
Based their answers, we consider harsh hazing activities a best way to create a new cadre in their organization.
IV. CONCLUSION
The result shows that hazing new student harshly as a form of oppression in universities, particularly in Machine Engineering department, Indonesia University of Education, is a succeed way to acquire respect from the new student. So it’s clear a Machiavelli theory about the three steps concerning to state conquer is true in a way to form a new students to be what seniors want to be.
Moreover, instituting hazing activity as tradition is an effective method to set oppression institutionalized. In accordance to Machiavelli theory that Princedom and his successor can maintain their power in a state and inherit it from ancient line of ancestor to successor and pass to the next successor. In this context a new students is a successors that being oppressed and they will pass to the next new student. With such harsh hazing activities which are continually perpetuated, the oppression is institutionalized in Machine Engineering department, UPI and it hard to be reduced.
V. COMMENT
Harsh hazing activities have become old fashioned today because of their negative excess to student. The new students tend to blow their revenge when they have turned to be seniors. The seniors tend to exploit their power over new students to bully them. Whereas, if we see more consciously, the negative excess in harsh hazing activities (oppression) has become a part of our daily reality, from ideology level to pragmatic level. As a matter of fact, unconsciously, oppression has become Indonesian culture related with power and passion to get or maintain the power.
Considering the above fact, the researcher believes that harsh hazing is unnecessary because it is not the only way to be better individual. It would be better to change it into soft, such as make a training concerning to self development and tour around the campus for new students.
REFRENCES
1. Milliardo. 2003. Ospek Ajang Ekspresi Impulsi Kekerasan, Jati Diri Praksis Pendidikan. Accesed on June 28th 2007. Available at: http://cdc.eng.ui.ac.id/index.php/article/articleview/1115/1/26
2. Sherover-Marcuse, Ricky. 2000. Liberation Theory: A Working Framework. Accessed on June 3rd 2007. Available at: http://www.unlearningracism.org/writings/lib_theory.htm
3. The World’s Great Classics: Niccolo Machiavelli, The Prince, New York: Grolier
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