Indonesian Kids ‘Missing on Culture’

Doha, Qatar - Many Indonesian children born and raised in Qatar are not familiar with their cultural roots that they are seemingly losing out their sense of national identity and belongingness.

A spokesman of the Indonesian Embassy here said there is a growing concern among Indonesian parents in Qatar about the need to educate and reintegrate their children to let them appreciate better their cultural norms and heritage.

“We don’t want them to lose the connection with their cultural roots,” said Muhammad Al Aula, Third Secretary of the Indonesian Embassy in Qatar who heads the information and socio-cultural affairs.

Al Aula estimates that about 25 percent of Indonesian children, mostly in their school age, were born in Qatar but seldom have the chance to visit their country for them to learn better their history and culture. There are about 35,000 Indonesians now living and working in Qatar.

“Some of these children can fluently speak English and even Arabic but not their native language,” the diplomat admitted and said they only have the chance to visit Indonesia for 30 days during annual leave of their parents.

“This is not substantial to let them understand their culture, manners, values and languages,” Al Aula said underscoring the importance in understanding the values particularly the attitude of their Indonesian peers and how they should behave with the elderly people.

To address this concern aired by most parents, the Indonesian Embassy will initiate a Children’s Day programme on July 23 at the Embassy where they will feature cultural activities to serve as a “wake up call” for children to know better about their cultural roots and heritage.

More similar activities will be conducted in the coming months as a continuous effort of the Embassy to inculcate to the minds of young Indonesians the significance of appreciating their sense of values and national identity.

Al Aula said the upcoming cultural events slated in September or October this year for the general public in Qatar, will showcase the rich cultural heritage of Indonesia which he said could also be helpful in strengthening mutual understanding on socio-cultural relations.

Source: http://www.thepeninsulaqatar.com
Photo: http://nanafadjar.wordpress.com

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