Traditionally, women performed vital roles both within and outside the family in different Indonesian communities. Despite that, women have always been (and continue to be) marginalised. In present-day Indonesia, violence against women and child marriage is still high, even as steps are being taken to reduce the disparity between women and men.

As part of our research into the state of digital rights in Indonesia, EngageMedia research consultant Indri Saptaningrum highlights the work of PuanIndonesia, a self-funded website dedicated to capturing the stories of women in their struggle for rights and justice. The article was originally published in Bahasa Indonesia in Konde.co, in time for celebrations for International Women’s Day last March.

“Through this platform, readers get access to different voices of women’s struggles which may never get an opportunity to appear in the mainstream media,” Indri writes.

The article also highlights recent initiatives by PuanIndonesia that have led to collective action.

“When the COVID-19 pandemic hit the country in early 2020, this online initiative led to a broader collective action under #kitabukansekedarangka. The hashtag is a combination of online and offline activities, in which 56 women from Papua to Aceh wrote their stories on how the pandemic affected women. PuanIndonesia was a medium to build common ground in reflecting their experiences on pandemic through the lens of women, especially as many of them did not have any previous experience in popular writing.”

Read more about PuanIndonesia at Konde.co.

The published article is also part of EngageMedia’s work to expand Indonesian digital rights networks. Stay tuned for the full research in the coming months.