Soviet Woman, 31 Mei 1964: 'Our Visit to Indonesia' (Ludmila Balakhovskaya)

=== [PDF page 1] === O U R V IS IT TO INDONESIA Gavkhar Khaidarova, deputy to the Supreme Soviet of the Uzbek S.S.R., with a group of Indonesian women in Bandung LUDMILA When we returned home from Indonesia we were often asked whether it was really as beautiful as all the travelogues and geography books would have us believe. "Yes, it is!” we invariably replied. But besides the breath taking beauty of the country, we have also retained in our hearts and our memories the many people we met. These were women working in the fields, attending meetings, working in factories, children on their way to school in their bright school uniforms and white shirts, men at work at con struction sites and in the port. BALAKHOVSKAYA is an attractive two-storeyed building with a large conference hall, a wellstocked library, and study rooms. The cornerstone was laid by Dr. Soekarno, President of the Republic of Indonesia, and the building itself was erected by soldiers and officers stationed in the province of Western Java, in gratitude to the women of Bandung for their help during the years of fighting for and strengthening national independence. What can you see and learn of a country in the space of.two weeks? Quite a lot if you are accompanied by friends who want to show you all that is new, all that has been won in the course of a long struggle, as well as the difficulties still to be overcome. A delegation from the Soviet Women's Committee spent two weeks in Indonesia at the invitation of Hurustiati Subandrio, President of the Congress of Indonesian Women, arriving there to take part in the Mother's Day festiv ities. This day is celebrated throughout Indonesia on the 22nd of December, to commemorate the first All-Indonesia Women's Congress, held 35 years ago. This was the first time that the women of the country had met together, united by their desire to throw off the yoke of Dutch colonialism. "One language, one nation, one Motherland!" was their motto. The Congress of Indonesian Women, uniting all the large women's organizations of the country, was born of this first meeting. We were invited to the Women's Club (Gedung Wanita) in Bandung. This A rice field in Western Java The women of Indonesia may well be proud of the trust and respect ac corded them. Of the three hundred members of parliament thirty are women. There is evidence of the women's concern for their country everywhere you go. W ith each passing year the number of working mothers increases. The women's organizations have taken an active hand in setting up new creches and kindergartens. They seek out suitable premises, fit them up and have been very ingenious at raising money for the upkeep of these establish ments. The government provides funds towards equipment and teachers' sal aries. Each women's organization has many such establishments in its care. The Gerwani national organization is in charge of 1,400 kindergartens with an enrollment of not less than fifty children in each. Its plans for the future call for kindergartens in each village. The women of Djakarta have set up a playground for children who have no one to care for them during the day. Many dark shadows of the past have vanished forever from the lives of the younger generation. Free six-year education has been introduced, and