Milung (Sunday Cleaning Activity)

Hi Friends of Lindalang ..

Today (October 5, 2014) we will carry out one of our regular activities that we conduct  every two weeks, which is named MILUNG or Sunday Cleaning Activity (SCA) in English. SCA is a hand-picked or garbage scavenging activity conducted with all members of the  Lindalang group on Sunday. The group itself divided into two subgroups (Posa, for groups of adults-10 youths  and Arsi, for groups of 25 children). 

This activity is one of the forms of our campaign to increase public awareness of the importance of keeping the environment and to utilize existing garbage around house. We prefer not only to make slogan / poster as campaign tools:  like to dispose waste in place;  but we prefer to have direct action in our village. We think it will be more effective.

We used to do the activity around the village of Muara, Bogor Regency – West Java Indonesia. We will be divided into several groups, each group will usually be given 2-4 large garbage bags (trash bags) and spread out at some point or defined areas in order to save time and to collect more waste. We collect the garbage that can be recycled and waste which can be sold as plastic cups, plastic bottles, aluminum cans, etc.. We must be aware because there is rarely much rubbish hiding in the grass, or even in the gutter.

Sometimes there are people who look at us with strange face and even scolded us, we did feel uncomfortable at first but after a long time we have become accustomed to, yet we do not do something harmful or disturbing them. In fact, we did race when scavenged, ie who among us who get the most ridicule he/she will become the winner. But many people welcomed our action too: when we passed their house carrying garbage bags, sometimes they will give us plastic bag full of  garbage that they had already collected. This is what we expect when people are able to manage and sort their own waste, and get extra revenue for them (we sometimes do barter for their trash with money, gathered periodically).

After we collected garbage, we will sort them together, separating waste by type and waste that can be recycled. Then we will sell at the existing middlemen in the village. Some products also created from the waste such as pencil cases, bags, purses, brooches, etc.. Money we earned  from  selling activities then will be used for one of our yearly program called "Trash Blessing For Orphans".

 
Editor's note:
• Lindalang group formed about two years ago and is a community-based group of young children (elementary through college/working). Currently, members of the group has come from several villages. It is estimated that an active member of this group ranged from 35-45 people. The main focus of this group is a waste management and environmental education. Interesting things made ​​by this group is social-entrepreneur activity by manage trust funds, the manufacture of recycled products, and environmental campaigns to schools. Several awards such as the Young Change Maker Award from the Ashoka Foundation and Youth Competition for the Sustainable Development by the  World Wide Fund (WWF) have been achieved by this group for their commitment in social-environmental  issues.
• Perhaps any of you know them? Aviani Kurnia (participants RCYPM II and III), Rahma Novianti (participants RCYPM II and III), Lindawati Saputri (participants RCYPM II) are members of this group.

Writing by Aviani Kurnia from Lindalang - member of SMN (Suara Muda Nusantara)
Translated by Indra N Hatasura

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MILUNG (Minggu Ulung)

Hai Sahabat Lindalang..

Hari ini (5 Oktober 2014) kami akan melaksanakan salah satu kegiatan rutin kami yang dilakukan dua minggu sekali, yaitu MILUNG atau Minggu ulung . Minggu ulung adalah kegiatan memulung atau mengambil sampah yang dilakukan bersama seluruh anggota kelompok Lindalang pada hari Minggu. Kegiatan ini memang selalu dilaksanakan pada hari Minggu oleh 2 kelompok Lindalang (Posa, untuk kelompok dewasa-10 orang dan Arsi, untuk kelompok anak-25 orang). Kegiatan ini adalah salah satu bentuk kampanye kami untuk meningkatkan kesadaran masyarakat akan pentingnya menjaga kebersihan lingkungan dan dapat memanfaatkan sampah yang ada di sekitar. Bukan hanya berkoar-koar untuk membuang sampah pada tempatnya namun juga langsung dengan aksi . Kami berpikir bahwa hal itu akan lebih efektif.

Kami biasa memulung sampah di sekitar daerah kampung Muara, Kabupaten Bogor – Jawa Barat, Indonesia. Kami akan dibagi menjadi beberapa kelompok , setiap kelompok biasanya akan diberikan 2-4 kantong sampah besar dan disebar di beberapa titik atau daerah yang sudah ditentukan untuk menghemat waktu dan agar sampah yang dikumpulkan bisa lebih banyak. Sampah yang dikumpulkan adalah sampah yang dapat di daur ulang dan sampah yang dapat dijual seperti gelas plastik , botol plastik, alumunium, kaleng , dsb. Kami harus jeli karena tak jarang banyak sampah yang bersembunyi di antara rerumputan atau bahkan di selokan. 

Terkadang ada saja orang yang memandang kami aneh dan bahkan mencemooh kami , memang pada awalnya kami merasa risih namun lama-lama kami menjadi terbiasa, toh kami tidak melakukan sesuatu yang merugikan atau mengganggu mereka. Bahkan kami pernah melakukan lomba saat memulung sampah, yaitu siapa diantara kami yang mendapatkan cemoohan paling banyak maka dialah pemenangnya. Namun banyak juga masyarakat yang menyambut baik aksi kami, ini terbukti saat kami melewati rumah mereka dengan membawa kantong sampah, terkadang mereka akan memberikan sampah plastik yang ternyata sudah mereka kumpulkan juga. Hal inilah yang kami harapkan saat masyarakat mulai mampu membuang dan memilah sampahnya sendiri , dan mendapat tambahan pendapatan untuk mereka (kami terkadang menukar sampah yang mereka kumpul dengan uang secara periodik). 

Setelah sampah terkumpul kami akan memilahnya bersama , memisahkan sampah berdasarkan jenisnya dan sampah yang dapat di daur ulang.  Lalu kami akan menjualnya di tengkulak yang ada di muara. Sampah yang dapat kami daur ulang kami ubah menjadi beberapa produk yang berguna seperti tempat pensil, tas, dompet, bros, dll. Hasil penjualan sampah dan prodak daur ulang akan kami kumpulkan untuk digunakan pada salah satu program tahunan kami yaitu “Berkah Sampah Untuk Anak Yatim” .

Catatan editor:

• Kelompok Lindalang terbentuk sekitar 2 tahun yang lalu dan merupakan kelompok berbasis komunitas anak muda (SD sampai kuliah). Saat ini anggota kelompok sudah berasal dari beberapa desa. Diperkirakan anggota aktif kelompok ini berkisar dari 35-45 orang. Fokus utama kelompok ini adalah manajemen sampah dan pendidikan lingkungan hidup. Hal-hal menarik yang dilakukan kelompok ini adalah wirausaha dengan dana simpan pinjam, pembuatan produk daur ulang, dan kampanye lingkungan hidup ke sekolah-sekolah. Beberapa penghargaan seperti Young Change Maker Award dari Yayasan Ashoka dan Kompetisi Anak dan Remaja untuk Pembangunan Berkelanjutan dari Yayasan World Wide Fund (WWF) pernah diraih oleh kelompok ini untuk komitmen mereka dalam melakukan aksi perubahan sosial.
•  Mungkin di antara kalian ada yang mengenal mereka? Aviani Kurnia (peserta RCYPM II dan III), Rahma Novianti (peserta RCYPM II dan III), Lindawati Saputri (peserta RCYPM II) adalah anggota dari kelompok ini.

My Life Story

My name is Naw Victoria Baw I am 25 year old, I am Sgaw Karen and Baptist Christian. My father is a teacher, and also work with KED in Daw OO. In the past he taught history (Karen, Burmese and international) in the Karen State. My mother live at home. Now he teaches in Mae Ra Moe Karen refugee camp I was born in the Karen State, in Taungoo district , in the Hee Daw Kaw village.

When I was 5 years old, I started primary school in my village. After finishing it, I went to middle and high school in another place because they were hiding in the jungle from SPDC. In 2006, I finished high school. In the same year, SPDC army burned our village, we had no house and no food so we lived in the jungle for one year. In December 2006, I came to the Mae Ra Moe Karen refugee camp and started post-term education there. It took 2 years. At the same time, I worked with KSNG. After that, in 2010, I came to Mae Sot.

2006, Hee Daw Kaw Village was burn

When I was young, SPDC often attacked the village, destroying animals and paddy fields. People would always flee and later come back again. So I went to a high school in the city, in Taungoo. I was afraid because the SPDC would try to identify who was not from Taungoo so I had to hide there too. My village was burned twice and people kept going back and forth – from the village to the jungle and back. I spent more than 10 years in Taungoo.

Children in front of thier ex-house

In Thailand it is a little bit better than in my village, but I am not registered so I’m worried and miss my village. I’m less afraid now than in Burma but I have no ID card. We left the village in 2006, along the way there was Burmese military. We had to stop and stay for a few days until it was safe to go. We had to do this many times. On our way we had to cross a military road – Tha Da Daw road only for the military. We went in a group of nearly 300 people so we had to cross the road very quietly, at 3-4 am. We reached the Salween and then took a boat along the river. On one side we saw the Burmese military, on the other side – the Thai.

There was also a military checkpoint but the driver took the boat along the Thai side and the Burmese military did not see us. We crossed the border at the Mae Ne Ta village – it is an IDP area. We had to cross the KNU and Thai checkpoints, but not Burmese. We only worried about the Thai checkpoint because Thais did not want to accept refugees. KNU knew all about us so we did not worry about them. My family was separated when the village was burned and during the fleeing. I arrived to Thailand first. I have one brother and one sister, all of my family is now in the refugee camp except me.

First time I felt afraid because I had never been to the camp. There were too many people there and it was not my country. I was afraid to be arrested or do something wrong. We did not understand the Thai language so it was difficult.they are separate – in terms of communication. But they also mix because of their residence location – they rent whatever houses are empty. It is not possible to tell where which ethnic area is as people are mixed.when I am in Mae Sot, it feels temporary. When I am in the camp, it is also not eternal, it is temporary. The Karen State is my homeland, Thailand is temporary. I miss living in the Karen State every day.

I miss the Karen people who are still in the jungle, the students who can’t go to school. I feel sorry for them. People are still hiding in the jungle, do not have enough food, who have to go very far just to get a tin of rice.

I feel happy to come back. I’m satisfied to have a chance to go back and see the people and know the situation of the Karen State. I am worried to cross the river, but satisfied. From Mae Sot to the border is more dangerous than crossing the [river] border. But still there is no stability in the political situation so it still feels dangerous [in Burma].I never had to deal with them, I am afraid of them and I avoid the police. I avoid checkpoints, sometimes the Thai police wait for us when crossing the river and then we have to pay them. I was arrested 5-6 times, sometimes for 1 hour or 0.5 hour, sometimes for 3-4 hours. If that happens, somebody else has to go to the police station and pay 7,000-8,000 baht to get me released. The KNU pays for us.

Burma and Thailand are close but very different political situation. People who are registered have a good chance to get a job, to get hospital treatment, they don’t need to pay the school fees. They can get a permission to go anywhere, help when looking for a job. Thailand is a developing country, it has better leadership than Myanmar. In Myanmar, there is no free provision of education, medical care – we have to pay a lot for it. Burma government does not really protect the population. It is a military regime because they only care for the army rather than the whole population. They spend most money for the army. I want to say that I will try a lot to get freedom for Burma. I want to go back but not yet. We are still facing problems. Can you tell me what to do to get freedom for Burma?

Writing by Victoria Baw, Burma / Thailand.Photo is taken from www.freeburmarangers.org to support this story