Artikel “Wajib Baca” buat para Dosen dan Mahasiswa Indonesia

This article is not written by myself. It is a translation of an article titled “Paspor”, written by Rhenald Kasali, first published in the newspaper “Jawa Pos” on 8th of August 2011. Rhenald Kasali is an Indonesian academic and business practitioner and a professor (Guru Besar) of Management Science at the Faculty of Economics, Universitas Indonesia (UI). Hopefully this article could inspire myself and other people to open their eyes and see more of the world!

source : click here

Passport

Whenever I am lecturing, I always start by asking my students, how many of them have already owned a passport. Not surprisingly, only around 5% of them would raise their hand. However, when asked whether they have flown on a plane before, many more students would say yes. Almost 90% of my students have seen a cloud from the top, yet, most of our young people are only local traveler.

Therefore, instead of giving written assignments and papers like other lecturers, in my classes I begin by asking my students to complete the required paperwork and get a passport. Every student must have this ticket to the globalised world.

Without a passport a man will be lonely, short-sighted, narrow, and thus will be a sterile leader. Two weeks later, the students can already be proud of themselves because of their passports. They would then ask, what is this passport for? I would say, go abroad, outside of the Malay-speaking regions, outside of Malaysia, Singapore, Timor Leste, or Brunei Darussalam. Go as far as you could, to the farthest place that you could reach.

“What about the money for purchasing the tickets, Sir?” I told them I don’t know. In life, what I know is that only foolish people would start his life mission and purpose by asking a question about money.

And as soon as a beginner asks where the money would come from, then he would be trapped in his constraints. Almost surely, the only answer that will come out is no. No I do not have the money. No, I simply can’t. No, it is impossible.

Those questions come up not only in the minds of students, but also those lecturers who have not traveled enough. For those who have not seen the world, other countries would seem far away, expensive, luxurious, unreasonable, and simply a waste of money. Unsurprisingly, many lecturers feel apprehensive about continuing their studies overseas, therefore choosing to do so in their own alma mater.

An open world translates to millions of opportunities to move forward and better yourselves. You can get many seemingly unimaginable things: knowledge, technology, maturity, and wisdom. Luckily enough, such doubts never cross the minds of avid travelers, one of which is the group of students often known as the backpackers. They tirelessly hunt for extra economical tickets and accommodation, sling a worn out backpack and wear a pair of flip flops. Whenever money runs out, they would go to food stalls and work as dishwashers. Their attitude in traveling actually do not differ greatly from Minang, Banjar, or Bugis teenagers who migrate to Java to try their luck despite their limited money and provisions. Many simply have not understood that going abroad is no longer as intimidating, far, and luxurious as it used to be. One student from the countryside, whom I encouraged to travel to faraway places, now travels regularly. He is now a part of PKI (Pedagang Kakilima Internasional – International Street Vendors), whose job is to collate information about large scale trade fairs organised by the government. They would then open a stall there, taking a risk, selling various handicrafts, doing some sightseeing, participating in courses, and of course earning some dollars before going back home. On his graduation, he came to me and showed his passport with immigration stamps from 35 countries. He sure knows his theories well, but more importantly he has the sharpness and confidence that allows him to sense when an opportunity comes by. When his cum-laude friends are still looking for jobs, he had become an executive in a prominent company overseas.

The Next Convergence

In his book, The Next Convergence, recipient of Nobel Prize in Economics writes that our world lies smack in the “third century of the Industrial Revolution“. Since 1950, the average incom of people all over the world have increased twentyfold. Therefore despite the large number of poor people, it is normal for us to find a poor women with only elementary education from a village in Madura shuffling regularly between Surabaya and Hong Kong.   

Of course, we can also find university students who are only busy protesting in the streets and never went overseas at all. Such a student will not know the cost of a plane ticket, let alone having a passport or going overseas. Thus, in my opinion it is essential for educators to bring their students to see the world. With just five hundred thousand rupiahs (US$ 59), Elementary School children from Pontianak can ride on a bus through the Indonesia-East Malaysia border at Entikong and enter Kuching. In this nine hours bus ride they would get a very important civics lesson, that is the decline of nationalism due to our negligence in maintaining the areas near the frontier. Shabby houses, potholed roads, small traders neglected by the local government, and inadequate infrastructure are the features of this part of the country. The very contrast of this condition exists only across the border. The eyes of children who have seen the world would be opened, and they will lead our nation with conscience in the future.

In the University of Indonesia (UI), I made it compulsory for every student to have a passport and see at least one other country. I used to be their ‘shepherd’ and guide myself. We travelled through Chiang Mai and witness how the poor in Thailand and Vietnam struggles again the waves of globalisation. Later on, I changed my mind. When will they have the courage and initiative, if the lecturer oversees them all the time?.

Thus the students embarked on a journey full of uncertainties. When Indonesian students are afraid of not being able to speak English, those from Korea and Japan, with much more complicated writing systems and indecipherable pronunciation have explored the world fearlessly.

Amazingly enough, 99% of those students with a passport finally manages to go overseas. Again, do not ask how they get the money. The students save money and search for cheap guesthouses They and racked their brain in order to get a ticket, even contacting sponsors and asking for donations when necessary. Of course when they are almost there, his lecturer would then chip in with some too.

Now, even students with seemingly unsophisticated (ndeso) faces have one or two overseas immigration stamps on their passport. Are their parents so rich that they can buy the tickets for their children? Of course not. In UI, some of our students’ parents are civil servants (PNS), or even farmers and fishermen. Nevertheless, they do not want to lose out to less educated Indonesian migrant workers (TKW), many of whom are now fluent in foreign languages.

Those sent overseas on their own have also heighten their innovativeness and level of initiative. Their confidence were boosted. As soon as they came home, they bring a wealth of experience, stories, and pictures which shapes their vision.

I think it will be good if educators highly encouraged the students under them to own a passport. It is a ticket to see the world. From a passport, a muslim boarding school student (santri) from East Java becomes a businessman overseas. In Italy I met Dewi Francesca, a Balinese women who owns a stunningly beautiful cafe in Rocca di Papa. Because of that very passport, Yohanes Surya also obtained a scholarship to study in the United States.
Come on, do not let people like Gayus Tambunan or Nazaruddin, who only have their state-funded passport to themselves, beat you.

*Written by Rhenald Kasali

Guru Besar Universitas Indonesia

Arghhhh, kenapa mesti bahasa inggris sih, Mas? Tenang saja, saya ngerti jeritan batin kamu. Buat kamu-kamu yang kurang afdhol baca artikel pake bahasa inggris, berikut ini saya posting juga yang versi bahasa indonesianya. ^_^ Nih, silahkan dibaca ya :

Setiap saat mulai perkuliahan, saya selalu bertanya kepada mahasiswa berapa orang yang sudah memiliki pasport. Tidak mengherankan, ternyata hanya sekitar 5% yang mengangkat tangan. Ketika ditanya berapa yang sudah pernah naik pesawat, jawabannya melonjak tajam. Hampir 90% mahasiswa saya sudah pernah melihat awan dari atas. Ini berarti mayoritas anak-anak kita hanyalah pelancong lokal. Maka, berbeda dengan kebanyakan dosen yang memberi tugas kertas berupa PR dan paper, di kelas-kelas yang saya asuh saya memulainya dengan memberi tugas mengurus pasport. Setiap mahasiswa harus memiliki “surat ijin memasuki dunia global.”. Tanpa pasport manusia akan kesepian, cupet, terkurung dalam kesempitan, menjadi pemimpin yang steril. Dua minggu kemudian, mahasiswa sudah bisa berbangga karena punya pasport.

Setelah itu mereka bertanya lagi, untuk apa pasport ini? Saya katakan, pergilah keluar negeri yang tak berbahasa Melayu. Tidak boleh ke Malaysia, Singapura, Timor Leste atau Brunei Darussalam. Pergilah sejauh yang mampu dan bisa dijangkau.

“Uang untuk beli tiketnya bagaimana, pak?”

Saya katakan saya tidak tahu. *Dalam hidup ini, setahu saya hanya orang bodohlah yang selalu memulai pertanyaan hidup, apalagi memulai misi kehidupan dan tujuannya dari uang.

*Dan begitu seorang pemula bertanya uangnya dari mana, maka ia akan terbelenggu oleh constraint. Dan hampir pasti jawabannya hanyalah tidak ada uang, tidak bisa, dan tidak mungkin.

Pertanyaan seperti itu tak hanya ada di kepala mahasiswa, melainkan juga para dosen steril yang kurang jalan-jalan. Bagi mereka yang tak pernah melihat dunia, luar negeri terasa jauh, mahal, mewah, menembus batas kewajaran dan buang-buang uang. Maka tak heran banyak dosen yang takut sekolah ke luar negeri sehingga memilih kuliah di almamaternya sendiri.

Padahal dunia yang terbuka bisa membukakan sejuta kesempatan untuk maju. Anda bisa mendapatkan sesuatu yang yang terbayangkan, pengetahuan, teknologi, kedewasaan, dan wisdom. Namun beruntunglah, pertanyaan seperti itu tak pernah ada di kepala para pelancong, dan diantaranya adalah mahasiswa yang dikenal sebagai kelompok backpackers. Mereka adalah pemburu tiket dan penginapan super murah, menggendong ransel butut dan bersandal jepit, yang kalau kehabisan uang bekerja di warung sebagai pencuci piring. Perilaku melancong mereka sebenarnya tak ada bedanya dengan remaja-remaja Minang, Banjar, atau Bugis, yang merantau ke Pulau Jawa berbekal seadanya.Ini berarti tak banyak orang yang paham bahwa bepergian keluar negeri sudah tak semenyeramkan, sejauh, bahkan semewah di masa lalu.

Seorang mahasiswa asal daerah yang saya dorong pergi jauh, sekarang malah rajin bepergian. Ia bergabung ke dalam kelompok PKI (Pedagang Kaki Lima Internasional) yang tugasnya memetakan pameran-pameran besar yang dikoordinasi pemerintah. Disana mereka membuka lapak, mengambil resiko, menjajakan aneka barang kerajinan, dan pulangnya mereka jalan-jalan, ikut kursus, dan membawa dolar. Saat diwisuda, ia menghampiri saya dengan menunjukkan pasportnya yang tertera stempel imigrasi dari 35 negara. Selain kaya teori, matanya tajam mengendus peluang dan rasa percaya tinggi. Saat teman-temannya yang lulus cum-laude masih mencari kerja, ia sudah menjadi eksekutif di sebuah perusahaan besar di luar negeri.

*The Next Convergence*

Dalam bukunya yang berjudul The Next Convergence, penerima hadiah Nobel ekonomi Michael Spence mengatakan, dunia tengah memasuki Abad Ke tiga dari Revolusi Industri. dan sejak tahun 1950, rata-rata pendapatan penduduk dunia telah meningkat dua puluh kali lipat. Maka kendati penduduk miskin masih banyak, adalah hal yang biasa kalau kita menemukan perempuan miskin-lulusan SD dari sebuah dusun di Madura bolak-balik Surabaya-Hongkong. Tetapi kita juga biasa menemukan mahasiswa yang hanya sibuk demo dan tak pernah keluar negeri sekalipun. Jangankan ke luar negeri, tahu harga tiket pesawat saja tidak, apalagi memiliki pasport.Maka bagi saya, penting bagi para pendidik untuk membawa anak-anak didiknya melihat dunia. Berbekal lima ratus ribu rupiah, anak-anak SD dari Pontianak dapat diajak menumpang bis melewati perbatasan Entekong memasuki Kuching. Dalam jarak tempuh sembilan jam mereka sudah mendapatkan pelajaran PPKN yang sangat penting, yaitu pupusnya kebangsaan karena kita kurang urus daerah perbatasan. Rumah-rumah kumuh, jalan berlubang, pedagang kecil yang tak diurus Pemda, dan infrastruktur yang buruk ada di bagian sini. Sedangkan hal sebaliknya ada di sisi seberang. Anak-anak yang melihat dunia akan terbuka matanya dan memakai nuraninya saat memimpin bangsa di masa depan. Di universitas Indonesia, setiap mahasiswa saya diwajibkan memiliki pasport dan melihat minimal satu negara.

Dulu saya sendiri yang menjadi gembala sekaligus guide nya. Kami menembus Chiangmay dan menyaksikan penduduk miskin di Thailand dan Vietnam bertarung melawan arus globalisasi. Namun belakangan saya berubah pikiran, kalau diantar oleh dosennya, kapan memiliki keberanian dan inisiatif? Maka perjalanan penuh pertanyaan pun mereka jalani. Saat anak-anak Indonesia ketakutan tak bisa berbahasa Inggris, anak-anak Korea dan Jepang yang huruf tulisannya jauh lebih rumit dan pronounciation-nya sulit dimengerti menjelajahi dunia tanpa rasa takut. Uniknya, anak-anak didik saya yang sudah punya pasport itu 99% akhirnya dapat pergi keluar negeri. Sekali lagi, jangan tanya darimana uangnya. Mereka memutar otak untuk mendapatkan tiket, menabung, mencari losmen-losmen murah, menghubungi sponsor dan mengedarkan kotak sumbangan. Tentu saja, kalau kurang sedikit ya ditomboki dosennya sendiri.

Namun harap dimaklumi, anak-anak didik saya yang wajahnya ndeso sekalipun kini dipasportnya tertera satu dua cap imigrasi luar negeri. Apakah mereka anak-anak orang kaya yang orangtuanya mampu membelikan mereka tiket? Tentu tidak. Di UI, sebagian mahasiswa kami adalah anak PNS, bahkan tidak jarang mereka anak petani dan nelayan. Tetapi mereka tak mau kalah dengan TKW yang meski tak sepandai mereka, kini sudah pandai berbahasa asing.

Anak-anak yang ditugaskan ke luar negeri secara mandiri ternyata memiliki daya inovasi dan inisiatif yang tumbuh. Rasa percaya diri mereka bangkit. Sekembalinya dari luar negeri mereka membawa segudang pengalaman, cerita, gambar dan foto yang ternyata sangat membentuk visi mereka. Saya pikir ada baiknya para guru mulai membiasakan anak didiknya memiliki pasport. Pasport adalah tiket untuk melihat dunia, dan berawal dari pasport pulalah seorang santri dari Jawa Timur menjadi pengusaha di luar negeri. Di Italy saya bertemu Dewi Francesca, perempuan asal Bali yang memiliki kafe yang indah di Rocca di Papa. Dan karena pasport pulalah, Yohannes Surya mendapat bea siswa di Amerika Serikat. Ayo, jangan kalah dengan Gayus Tambunan atau Nazaruddin yang baru punya pasport dari uang negara.

*Rhenald Kasali

Guru Besar Universitas Indonesia