08/09/2022
WHAT IS THE PROBLEM???
The Status que: Refugees and asylum seekers In Indonesia have become slowly but undeniably disconnected from the most fundamental elements of civilization— that is food, education, and the very nature of work itself.
Over the last many years, the state of affairs for refugees and asylum seekers in Indonesia is that you just can't live a life of purpose or you can't pursue individual dreams or do anything that adds value to your life while in this country. The reason for this inability to have purpose or to pursue dreams is due to the present state of affairs toward refugees and asylum seekers. I suggest to you today that the Indonesian laws toward refugees is a broken system.
The result of this broken system is that refugees and asylum seekers have convinced themselves to settle for less, that there's really nothing much they can do to achieve success, happiness or a quality of life which they intend for themselves and their loved ones.
Many organizations are spending enormous amounts of resources trying to tackle challenges faced by refugees in this country, but I am afraid they aren't tackling the real issues. Being a refugee myself who has lived in this country for ten years, with my own experience, my humble conclusion is that, while other efforts by different organizations are meaningful to supporting refugees, the most crucial one is to empower refugees with vocational education skills. It is to this difference that our organization’s main focus wants to lead.
That's right, vocational education, training handy program skills such as: Spa massage & therapy, working in salons, Machine sewing skills, tailoring, and making clothes, plumbers, electricians, steamfitters, solar panel technicians, Air conditioning technician, auto mobile mechanic, metal welding and fabrication, farming, fishing, and other skilled programs.
With many jobs available here in Indonesia for these skilled programs, we strongly believe that refugees can have important trades that will both assure them of a fulfilling tomorrow, and give them productivity however long they may have to stay in this wonderful country.
Just to reaffirm, I believe that a career in the skilled programs I have mentioned about is practical and more realistic to tackling refugee challenges and should be desired and adopted. The status quo, refugees' current inability to be productive, is simply the opposite and is bringing daily pain upon every refugee in Indonesia.
This is why we must connect the average refugee with the value of a skilled workforce. Only then, will a refugee aspire to dream of and to pursue a better future.
HOW DO WE CHANGE THE PREVAILING STATUS QUE OF REFUGEES IN INDONESIA??
The starting point is to determine what skills a refugee may already have and then enable him or her to find work. For those without skill, we would help them determine their skills and provide practical skills training to equip them to acquire a job so that they could then make a living.
That is why we are on a mission; we want to help our fellow refugees to build those skills needed and thereby challenge the stigmas and stereotypes that discourage refugees from earning a living. As a refugee-lead organization we want to redefine the definition of a good education and a good job, because a degree is not the best path for most of us.
We want refugees to understand the impact of skilled labor in their lives, and we’re convinced that the solution needs to start with a new appreciation for hard work. Our mission is to give away scholarships in programs to hard working refugees to help them get trained for skilled jobs that are in demand.
Through these programs, we encourage refugees to learn a useful skill, and we will reward those who demonstrate that they’ll work hard to provide for their needs. When it comes to hard work, there is no alternative.
The hard reality is that the refugees in Indonesia are stuck. Due to the present system that restricts their ability to have a job, get a driver’s license, open a bank account, or buy a vehicle, the refugees here resort to begging, seeking money from friends, mosques, churches, and a variety of yayasans. They are often forced to break the law to drive, borrow cell phones from friends, and to get an Indonesian to allow them to use their personal bank accounts for the transfer of funds.
Above all this, productivity is from God. God placed the first man in the Garden and told him to work the garden to provide for his needs and for the needs of his family. The refugees in Indonesia are not fulfilling their God-given responsibility of hard work to meet their needs, and we are on a mission to change that.
These huddles have produced mental health issues, family issues, marriage issues, suicides, as well as laziness and an attitude of entitlement.
We ask you to join us on our journey to restore the refugee spirit and hope through providing these training programs.
I thank you very much,
Tendo Erik Benjamin.
087888952787
