The film “Mengejar Mbak Puan,” which highlights the struggles of Indonesian domestic workers, was shown at the Korea-Japan Conference on Southeast Asian Studies in August 2024.
The documentary chronicles the lives and struggles of Indonesian domestic workers, highlighting their unwavering perseverance over the past two decades to advocate for the legislation of the Domestic Workers Protection Act.
In January 2023, President Jokowi reaffirmed the need for the Domestic Workers Protection Act. Puan Maharani, Spokesperson of the Indonesian House of Representatives, also designated it as a legislative initiative of the House of Representatives in March 2023. However, it has not progressed since then. After the session of the Indonesian parliament ends in October 2024, the 20-year legislative effort has to start from scratch, and domestic workers are currently engaged in a desperate campaign. Every Wednesday, the Wednesday protest in front of parliament, which began in December 2022, has turned into a daily protest featuring towels, broomsticks, toilets, mops, symbols of domestic workers, and holding hunger strikes to attract public attention.
The short, 18-minute documentary devotes much of it to the photographs and videos the female workers themselves record. It follows the domestic workers' struggle to portray their pain, despair, disappointment, and perseverance in a shining light. It also contains women's courage and the hope that their stories will be passed down to the next generation so that their struggles will not be forgotten.
Please refer to the link below for the video trailer
Please contact Dian Septi Trisnanti at freshreborn@gmail.com for more details.
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