Rinaldo, Rachel. “Muslim Women, Middle Class Habitus, and Modernity in Indonesia.” Springer Science and Business Media B.V, 2007.
Web.10 Feb. 2013. Topic Sentence: The Cold War era and the subsequent protection of women rights in Indonesia.
Significance: The Cold War era saw sweeping changes in laws relating to the women rights. The laws were changed in an effort to promote the wellbeing of Indonesian women. The status of women and their role in national life was enhanced greatly. Supporting quotation: “A women’s movement was emerging. In the 1980’s, a few women took advantage of government’s loopholes to form NGOs.” Discussion: The Women’s movement in Indonesia began as a result of the struggle for education of Indonesia woman and the fight against the practice of polygamy.
Prior to Indonesia gaining its independence from the Dutch colonialists in 1945, Indonesia boasted of women leaders, who were wise and tough. These women leaders had ruled over the Indonesian kingdoms for many years. Kingdoms that were once ruled by these powerful female leaders include the Tri Buana Kingdom and the Tunga during Kingdom of the 19th century. In addition, women actively participated in the fight for independence from the Dutch colonialists; among them were Marta Christian, Cut Mutiah, Nyi Ageng, and Cut Nyak.
Throughout the colonial period, women struggled to ensure they received the same education as their male counterparts. Women were also opposed to polygamy during this period and fought against being restricted from carrying out their activities in public life. These issues played an important role in uniting the Indonesian female activists. The struggle for colonialism and feudalism by the famous Dutch colonialist named Katrini enhanced the creation of new women’s organizations in Indonesia (25-26). Suporting evidence: Rinaldo asserts that significant changes have been made towards ensuring that there is gender equality in Indonesia (26).
Conclusion: Women in Indonesia have actively participated in democratic activities throughout Indonesia’s history. This fact is apparent from the massive campaigns of Indonesian women’s movements before independence, the involvement of women in Constitutional debates in the 1950s, the increasing number of women voters during the country’s elections and massive protests. Therefore, the war did not cause more suffering to the women. Nye, Robert A.
"To the Ends of the Earth: Women's Search for Education in Medicine." Science 257.5071 (1992): 820. Gale Opposing Viewpoints in Context, n.
d. Web. 10 Feb. 2013. com.ezp-00vi9.lirn.net/ic/ovic/AcademicJournalsDetailsPage/AcademicJournalsDetailsWindow?> Topic sentence: The role of World War I in enhancing women’s careers.Significance: The historic World War I played a crucial role in enhancing women’s careers. Throughout this period, women were involving in nursing careers actively. Supporting quotation: "You have shown by your example that it is possible for women to devote themselves to the medical profession without denying your female nature"(n. p.). Discussion of the quotation: Initially, women were not allowed to act as the medical profession and this field was dominated by males. However, because of the overwhelming casualties and constantly increasing demand for medical workers, women were employed as nurses for providing care to the wounded soldiers. More than 1,500 women physicians registered as nurses by 1917. After the war, more women enrolled as professional nurses, and this fact enhanced the growth of the female healthcare professionals across the globe. Secondaryy evidence: As Robert A. Nye acknowledges, medical profession had been a male dominated filed for many years. However, the World War I created opportunities for women to fulfill their ambitions and realize their potential. Conclusion: Despite the psychological effects, the war had on women, its contributions towards enhancing women’s nursing careers cannot be underestimated. Scott, Anne, and William Chafe. “Southern Women and Their Families in the 19th Century: Papers and Diaries Series F, Holdings of the Centre for American History.” University of Texas at Austin, n. d. Web. 10 Feb. 2013. Topic Sentence: Women involvement in politics during the World War I. Significance: There was a shortage of labor during the World War I and thus, women were employed as drivers, welders, masons among other professions that had been previously dominated by men. In addition, women were able to participate in political meetings, as well as discussions. Supporting quotation: “As early as the 1820s there is evidence for women’s participation in political meetings and discussions. Such involvement continued through the secession debates and the difficult days of reconstruction (IX)”. Discussion of the quotation: The involvement of women in manual jobs and politics played a crucial role in enhancing their democratic rights. Secondary evidence: Scott and Chafe assert that the war showed that women could be trusted to carry out jobs, which had been previously done by men only (XI). Conclusion: War has created jobs for women and hence made them less dependent on men. Some jobs continued to exist after the War. For instance, the British Women’s Police Service was created during the First World War.
