Motherhood as Cultural Citizenship: Indonesian Women in Transnational Families

Abstract

This paper argues that motherhood as cultural citizenship is a useful concept in understanding citizenship issues for Indonesian women in transnational families, their experiences and subject positioning. Furthermore, in the face of discourses valuing Indonesian women's role foremost as mother and wife, narrating citizenship as motherhood can become central to legitimising a social performance of national identity. Four narratives of Indonesian women in transnational families are presented to illustrate political motherhood in combination with cultural citizenship. It is based on ethnographic research among Indonesian Australian families in Canberra, as well as communication with several members of international online communities, such as the lobby group KPC Melati. In July 2006, this group was successful in gaining restricted dual citizenship rights for children up to the age of 18 years of Indonesian mothers and non-Indonesian fathers. Previously, Indonesia citizenship had been based exclusively on paternal descent.

Keywords:

• Political Motherhood
• Cultural Citizenship
• Internet Community
• Lobby Group
• Transnational Families
• Subjectification
• Belonging
• National Identity

Acknowledgements

This paper is based on work as a research assistant on an ARC-funded Discovery Project DP0451491 (Interpersonal and Family Relations in Intercultural/Transnational Marriage) and research during the first year of the author's PhD. The author is grateful for the help of her supervisors Kathy Robinson and Ashley Carruthers, as well as advisors Greg Rawlings, Andrew Kipnis and Cleonicki Saroca. A special thank you goes to Ana Dragojlovic for ongoing support in research, discussions, presentations and editorial assistance.

Notes

1. In the Indonesian context, to have a valued role a woman has to attain the title of ‘ibu’. ‘Ibu’ has a connotation in Indonesian society of respectability, as well as the biological, cultural and social meanings associated with ‘mother’ (Djadjaningrat-Niewenhuis 1987; Magnis-Suseno 1997, p. 52).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Monika Swasti Winarnita

Monika Swasti Winarnita is a doctoral candidate