Yogyakarta, March 11th 2022─Fisipol Crisis Center (FCC) in collaboration with KAFISPOLGAMA held an online webinar with the title “Going Beyond Women in The So ‘Called’ Men’s Working Field” in commemoration of International Women’s Day. On this occasion, the speakers of the webinar were attended by Amalia S. Prabowo and Sri Astutik. Both are women who work in fields that are dominated by men, namely as Manager Director of Export Hub Ecosystem and Member of PK4L Center of UGM.
Starting the discussion session, the starter question was guided by Marwa, a lecturer of the Department of International Relations, Faculty of Social and Political Sciences, UGM. In line with the theme of this year’s International Women’s Day, ‘Break the Bias’, the questions were raised discussing the dynamics of the two speakers at work.
“Men’s world is different from mainstream women’s business, they have a rule of the game, and like it or not, we have to be able to follow that,” Amalia said.
As a woman who works in the export sector, Amalia agrees that often women are only seen for their beauty or appearance, rather than their capacity. According to her, it is important for women to adhere to the principle of showing strength rather than asking for space. For her, it was more important to arm herself with equal abilities, than to ask for space on the basis of her femininity.
The same thing was conveyed by Sri Astutik, as a woman who works in the security sector, women are often seen as different, but by showing good professionalism and responsibility, she is able to show that she is worthy.
“The challenge is to divide time, work responsibilities and as a mother, you have to be able to do it well without leaving one of them,” Sri said.
Continuing this, Amalia also said that what women need is not having to work but a space for self-actualization. This can be obtained in various places, starting from the community, writing a blog, becoming a celebrity, or online school. Through these spaces, women can become empowered individuals, able to understand their qualities and capacities.
Closing the material presentation session, the two speakers said that women can love their work and be responsible for the role of a mother. When we work in a space dominated by men, understand the rules of the game there, follow those rules but understand our limits. Finally, build a support system and understand that the starting points for men and women are different. But this is not a problem, because women basically have a qualified capacity.