ENGLISH
“Untitled Selves”
(part 3 in the “Diary of a Questioning Girl” series)
An essay exploring our different identities and their relationships with God, family, and nation. Including the viral essay “Voice and Blood”.
First published by InterSastra in the Unrepressed series, 2019. “Voice and Blood” first appeared in bahasa Indonesia as “Aurat, Agama, dan Hubungan Darah” in the Magdalene, 2018.
“To Paradise or Not to Paradise”
(part 2 in the “Diary of a Questioning Girl” series)
Some people want to create paradise by excluding, repressing, or turning a blind eye to some people, those the dominant ones consider as ‘others’: a place without sinners, the poor, the Queer, those who are critical, those who are different, those who disagree…
We all seem to need a paradise of our own, but can your paradise ever be mine as well? Will I always be lonely in paradise?
First published in Story magazine, 2020.
“Between Languages Between Worlds”
A personal essay about how reading and writing in many languages have shaped the person and writer Eliza is today.
“My Javanese father gave me the Javanese name ‘Handayani’—he dislikes going out and likes to eat only Indonesian food; he believes that as a man it is his right and obligation to be the head of the family. My Madurese mother gave me the Western name ‘Eliza’—she likes traveling and trying cuisines from around the world; she believes in the values her parents taught her: obedience to husband, submission to God. Fate decided my middle name: I was born on Idul Fitri, but, horrified at the thought of her first-born named like every other baby girl born on that day, my mother swapped the F in ‘Fitri’ for a V. ‘Vitri’: fate tweaked by free will.”
First published in bahasa Indonesia in Sastra Digital, September 2013.
“Part of a series of essays in which leading writers and commentators from Indonesia and Australia each looking closely at their own society, cultures and political situations. Eliza contemplates on Indonesian identity through the themes of personal and national trauma, particularly the 1998 mass rapes.
Published by the Australia-Indonesia Centre, 2016.
“Ensuring Inclusivity: Learning fundraising, equal settings”, the Jakarta Post, 2019
“The people’s poet: 20 years after Indonesia’s famous poet disappeared”, Index on Censorship, September 2017
“Cementing dissatisfaction: Indonesians experimenting with creative forms of protest are grabbing attention and sparking new movements”, Index on Censorship, June 2017
“Muslim punks in mohawks attacked: Punks in Indonesia are persecuted but still manage to maintain a culture which stands up for difference”, Index on Censorship, January 2017
Censorship affect many aspects of life: school, family, how we relate to other groups in society, and our understanding of history and taboo subject matters.
Published in the Jakarta Post, 12 November 2016
“After 98: Censorship, resistance, and compromises”
Police interference with the Ubud Writers and Readers Festival’s program was the latest sign of paranoia about 1965-related events. Two sessions unrelated to 1965 were also cancelled at UWRF: a panel called ‘For Bali’ about large-scale water and mangrove reclamation plans, big businesses, and the environmental movement, Bali Tolak Reklamasi (Bali Says No to Reclamation); and the launch of my novel From Now On Everything Will Be Different.
Published in Inside Indonesia no. 123, Jan-Mar 2016.
“Not A ‘Good Girl’, but I Enjoy the Woman I Am”
I’m not rebelling just for the sake of rebelling. I sincerely believe that girls and women should be free and safe to be true to themselves, and to explore their interests, rather than having to follow some arbitrary rules.
Published in the Magdalene, 11 January 2016.
“A Bloody Past: On Censorship in Indonesia“
Since the fall of the New Order, Indonesia has taken steps to guarantee freedom of expression. Unfortunately, laws that contradict the above have also been passed. … Am I not afraid? I’m always afraid, that’s why I write. By writing I stop feeling afraid.
Published in Words Without Borders, 17 December 2015.
“Being a Young, Female Writer in Jakarta”
Life is messy, and we can’t always see the situation clearly. But we must always try. Because even though we have rejected the norms that we consider shallow or hypocritical, there is a whole entity that we cannot violate: Other people. On the other hand, to be responsible towards ourselves, we can start by being honest with ourselves and our partners: what we want or do not want, what we are able or not able to handle, and how we see the situation.
Published in the Magdalene, 16 September 2015.
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BAHASA INDONESIA
“Pakaian, Iman, dan Identitas” (ditulis bersama As-Salam Kolektif).
Kolektif As-Salam bertemu saat mengikuti diskusi bersama Ustadzah Musdah Mulia. Ketika ditanya kenapa tafsir Islam yang seksis dan diskriminatif bisa merebak dengan sangat luas dan populer, beliau menjawab, “Salah satunya karena kalian sendiri, anak-anak muda yang progresif tidak mau belajar agama.”
Kami merasa sangat tersentil. Di sana kami menyadari kami merasakan keresahan yang sama dan gairah menggebu untuk berbuat sesuatu. Lantas kami membentuk Kolektif As-Salam yang bertujuan mempelajari ulang Islam, kali ini dengan perspektif kesetaraan dan keadilan.
Terbit di antologi Queer etc. (Penerbit Mojok, 2021, ed. Hendri Yulius Wijaya).
“Di Antara Bahasa-bahasa & Dunia-dunia”
Sebuah esai personal tentang bagaimana membaca dan menulis dalam berbagai bahasa telah membentuk Eliza sebagai individu dan penulis.
Pertama terbit di Sastra Digital, September 2013.
“Delapan Belas Tahun Kemudian“
Tiap kali seseorang bertanya bagaimana aku tiba di Australia, aku bilang saja aku diadopsi dari Tiongkok. Cerita itu tak membuat seorang pun merasa tak enak. Cerita itu tak membuatku merasa dikasihani. Cerita itu tak membuatku tampak seperti korban.
Terbit di situsweb Pusat Indonesia-Australia.
Gagasan-gagasan untuk membuka percakapan tentang pencegahan dan penanggulangan pelecehan atau aniaya seksual.
Terbit di Magdalene, 2018
“Menjadi Perempuan Penulis Muda di Jakarta”
Menyelusuri ranah seksual di Jakarta nyaris seperti menjadi penjelajah waktu—kita bertemu orang-orang dari berbagai zaman. Ada yang mementingkan kesucian, malu, aib, kehormatan keluarga, pergaulan yang luas, ego, reputasi, atau mengenal seseorang secara seluruhnya—benak, jiwa, dan raga. Di luar dunia-dunia pribadi itu adalah kenyataan dunia yang kita bagi bersama.
Pertama terbit di Magdalene, September 2015.
Eliza Vitri Handayani 