Reflections of the Feminist Movement on the Rejection of JILF: “Who Do We Work With?”

Intan Paramaditha and Trend Asia have simultaneously announced their withdrawal from organizing the 2024 Jakarta International Literary Festival (JILF). JILF is considered not taking a firm stance against pro-genocide sponsors in Gaza, Palestine.

The 2024 Jakarta International Literary Festival (JILF) was held November 27 – December 1, 2024 brought green narrative theme. Along the event, several parties withdrew and stopped cooperating with the organization of the literary event.

JIFL, which this year aims to promote literature and culture as well as environmental sustainability, is considered not transparent by the organizers. They are also not assertive about the sponsors behind the event, who considered to be pro-genocide in Palestine.

The pro-genocide sponsors in question: Frankfurter Buchmesse and the German Federal Foreign Officer.

The author of ‘Sihir Perempuan’, Intan Paramaditha, who was invited to the JIFL event and was present, expressed her disappointment. She also talked about the chronology and reflection of this event on the feminist movement. She mentioned about the shackles of colonialism, capitalism, and patriarchy that are intertwined in literacy conversations around climate justice.

At the beginning of her statement, Intan emphasized her position that she supports Palestinian independence and opposes the genocide committed by Israel. Intan sees the Frankfurt Book Fair (FBF) as an institution that, like other cultural institution in Germany, is a state apparatus with pro-zionist policies. There have been calls from publishers for the FBF to take a clear stance on Palestine, but the German state took action with gave prejudice of Jews.

‘I apologize to colleague who were disappointed by my presence at JIFL,” Intan wrote in a statement on IG Sihir Perempuan quoted by Konde.co, Saturday (30/11).

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The lecturer of Media and Film Studies at Macquarie University, Sydney, recounted the beginning of his acceptance as a speaker at JILF, until in the end, she declined her participation.

In 2019, Intan attended the inaugural edition of JILF for the first time. at that time, JIFL presented Palestinian writer Adania Shibli. Although there was ‘tension’ with the organizers, Intan considered that there was still an intention from the organizers to apologize and make improvements.

According to him, JILF at that time was also driven by writers and cultural activists who didn’t belong to corporate and still have hope and trust in cultural values. as a writer, she feels the need to nurture literacy or cultural spaces in Indonesia, which are actually quite limited.

“based on this consideration of maintaining literary networks and spaces, when I was asked to be a speaker by The Jakarta Arts Council/ JIFL committee, I welcomed it,” she said.

Intan then learned that the festival was organized by partnering with Jaktent. She asked how the partnership worked because Jaktent was partnering with the Frankfurt Book Fair and in 2023 the FBF canceled the award ceremony for Adania Shibli and gave speaking space for Israeli writers.

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JILF states that they are independent; the concept, design, and selection of authors and themes are entirely done by JILF. They needed to work with Jaktent because of the need for additional hands, especially in the field of management. The JILF committee was also able to convince Intan that the funds for the speakers come from the Indonesiana Fund and independent of FBF’s intervention.

A week before the festival, Intan was surprised to see John McGlynn’s name included as one of the curators. Although she knew McGlynn had never made a statement in favor of Israel or anything like that, she disagreed with McGlynn’s colonial-paternalistic practices and public statement towards Indonesian literature. This can be seen in Tiffani Tsoain Electric Literature’s article.

On the other hand, Intan also found that the publicity materials greatly emphasized the role of Jaktent and the presence of the FBF Vice President at the press conference. She concluded that there was cooperation that slowly occurred before the event took place.

JILF’s collaboration with Jaktent began with a lack of financial and labor resources. She saw that this fragility led to a number of adjustments. This led to compromises that seemed to lose their way, despite HILF’s pro-Palestinian stance. It was ironic because FBF who would get benefit as their Vice President would appears at press conference, despite of the need of human resources.

“In the JILF panel, I mentioned that imperial capitalism feeds on nature and cheap labor. With heavy heart, I have to say that based on what I am witnessing here,” she said.

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There is a gap between work-who is the labor force, how much work is expended, the independence expected from work- and who accumulates the most cultural capital. Work is a big issue behind the scenes, but it is not reflected in the committee’s statement “I cant help but see that power relations are at play here,” she continues.

She regretted that the JILF committee did not prepare enough strategies to protect the space that should belong to ‘us’. We are writers, readers, art communities and the environment, people involved in art and culture who have anti-oppression principles.

“I put my trust in JILF, but since last week I feel like I’ve been deprived of a safe space in my own home. I am angry, including at myself, because I was late in processing it,” she said.

Reflections on the Feminist movement: Who do we work with?

From the JIFL event, Intan reflected that working in the name of love (‘labor of love’) is not enough. We need to move together and need more strategies.

“In the JILF panel, I shared an important question for the feminist movement: who are we working with?” she asked.

According to her, the answer to this question must continue to be pondered for cultural work that favors social justice. This question is also her critique. It should be used as a space to think critically and start identifying allies in common movement.

“De-linking,” the process of breaking away from the colonial structures that hold us in terms of knowledge, culture, social practices, is a very difficult process,” she mentioned. Financial dependence makes cultural institutions and communities vulnerable to oppression.

“I witnessed the great work of the festival organizers in the field and appreciated their efforts to create a safe space to talk about literature and the environment. And I was disappointed to see that I believe was a safe space turned out to be vulnerable to intervention and takeover. I even more disappointed to see the way JILF handled the crisis and made this kind of statement,” she said.

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The next homework, according to her, is how this “de-linked” process is carried out together in a solid together. The protest against JILF-Jaktent is a first step, but then we need continue the work and be more observant of other relationships. How will the Indonesiana Fund given to Jaktent be accounted for if the organization does not end its partnership with FBF? Will we be involved as speakers, spectators, organizers with German institutions other than FBF?

“This incident must be noted that art and cultural activism can no longer move without a strategy. Where is the line of negotiation? Is it independence if we slowly surrender our authority, then finally there is nothing we can defend? where do we think reparatively and seek dialog? Without strategy, we will only allow our critical spaces to be infiltrated and then seized by colonial-paternalistic power,” said the writer who is active in the Women’s school of Thought Collective.

No Climate Justice and Humanity in Colonized Lands

The protest against JIFL was also carried out by Trend Asia (TA). TA officially withdrew from JILF (@jilf.indo) and apologize to the public for its previous involvement as a funder, resource person, discussion guide, and exhibition collaborator.

“As of November 30, 2024, Trend Asia’s booth, which originally featured stories of struggle against the deprivation of living space, has now changed its function to become a space for protest against anyone who supports genocide,” wrote TA on their Instagram.

Initially, TA’s booth displayed photos of stories of community resistance from across the archipelago to the deprivation of their living space by extractive regimes. But after declaring its withdrawal, TA’s booth was closed and turned into a protest space against anyone who supports genocide.

TA also considers that JILF’s public statements do not sufficiently demonstrate that it reject genocide and does not take a firm stance against pro-genocide sponsors Frankfurter Buchmesse and the German Federal Foreign Officer and continue to cooperate on the grounds that it is a consequence of previous cooperation.

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They regret the attitude of the JILF committee which is an enabler of genocide even though they know that millions of people have become victims by involving two genocide-supporting institutions, namely the Frankfurter Buchmesse and the German Federal Foreign Officer as one of the funders of the activity.

TA not only stopped activities at the Trend Asia booth in the JILF event but also withdrew from involvement as a resource person in the Writer’s Talk Discussion: The Layers of Nature and Relentless Battle held at JILF on Saturday, November 30, 2024, and cancelled the discussion and launching of the book Pergulatan Transisi Energi: Satu Isu Beragam Dilema.

“TA maintains that the genocidal acts committed by Israel are condemnable and must be stopped,” they said

Before the resignation of Intan Paramitha, Tren Asia and various other parties for their involvement with JIFL, the organizers of JILF and Jaktent did issue a statement. In the statement, they stated that they consistently support the voices of marginalized communities, especially those of Palestinian writers and artists.

“Every human being in this world, including the Palestinian people, has the right to live as an independent nation. Apart from the oppression or control of other nations. Therefore, we encourage the voice of the aspirations of Palestinian writers on the literary and literary stage, as happened in JIFL x Jaktent this time and before,” they said on the JIFL and Jaktent Instagram on November 30, 2024.

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Regarding the presence of the Frankfurt Book Fair (FBF) logo on the JILF x JakTent 2024 agenda, according to them it is a consequence of the cooperation that has been established between Jakten and FBF since 2020. Nevertheless, all agendas designed by JILF x Jaktent 2024 have never been intervened by any sponsor, including FBF. Starting from the theme, discussion sessions, and choice of speakers are the result of independent curation from the curator and committee.

“We emphatically state that the JILF x Jaktent agenda is a safe space for all parties to speak out about literature and its relation to our lives,” they claim

However, the statement is considered by individuals and institutions that have retreated to be not firm enough to declare rejection of genocide in Palestine.

Photo resource: X Trend Asia

Translator: Theresia Pratiwi Elingsetyo Sanubari

Nurul Nur Azizah

Redaktur Pelaksana Konde.co
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