Sonja van Wichelen
Tell us about yourself!
I am Professor of Anthropology and Sociology at the University of Sydney—and since this year Deputy Director of the Sydney Southeast Asia Centre (SSEAC). My current research is about bioscience governance and global inequality—focusing especially on Indonesia. I am passionate about the field of Science and Technology Studies, which brought me fresh perspectives to the ethics and politics of scientific and technological practice and progress. I’m also a huge advocate of advancing science journalism, and Indonesia has a remarkable representation with people like Dyna Rochmyaningsih and Ahmad Arif at the forefront. Outside of academia I am learning how to skateboard(!)
Where does your interest in Indonesia stem from?
My mother is from Solo in Central Java, and my Belgian father taught at a secondary institution in Yogya and Solo as a Jezuit priest before he met my mum. Although I was born in a small town called Leiderdorp in the Netherlands, I mostly grew up in Jakarta and Singapore where my father subsequently worked as a humanitarian worker. Indonesia was always there—even if it was not—and for my MA and PhD research I returned to Indonesia to conduct ethnographic research. My first monograph was about religion, gender and politics in Indonesia. I’m now preparing a book manuscript that addresses the postcolonial politics of bioscience in Indonesia.
What is the nature of your engagement with Indonesia – are you an academic, a professional, an alumni…
My engagement with Indonesia is foremost personal as I still have family there and cherish the time we have together when I have the chance to visit. This is much easier from Australia than it is from Europe or the US where I have lived for longer periods too. Being an academic who works in and on the region has given me such privileged insights into “Indonesian” culture and society (note the scare quotes). Now, as deputy director of SSEAC I also engage more closely with Indonesian diplomatic and governmental delegations. I’m learning so many new things about Indonesia and feel immensely grateful for this opportunity.
Have you ever been to an Indonesia Council Open Conference and if so, what is your fondest memory?
Embarrassingly, I must admit that this year was the first time that I joined the Indonesia Council Open Conference. But hoping it will be the first of many! It was great to meet so many new young scholars working on Indonesia and to reunite with those scholars whom I knew from the past when I was working on my PhD research. It was a very diverse community, both in terms of academic seniority, as well as culturally. I much enjoyed the opening plenary, which consisted of three excellent early career researchers and tackled the question what it meant to be Indonesian today.
How do you think organisations like Indonesia Council can improve Australia-Indonesia relations?
Organisations like Indonesia Council are crucial to improving Australia-Indonesia relations. The showcasing of current research and network opportunities for people engaging specifically with Indonesia is unique and unparalleled. Bringing people together and connecting them with other people and opportunities is the secret to building stronger relations. Indonesia Council seems very apt at making sure that these connectivities are alive and kicking!
What are some of the challenges and opportunities in the Indonesia-Australia relationship?
From my experience as an outsider, though having lived in Australia now for 12 years, the biggest challenge is still the general Australian public’s unfamiliarity with the cultural breadth and historical depth of their neighbouring country. It is disheartening (and embarrassing) to learn that many (Anglo) Australians continue to conflate Indonesia with Bali—or are not even aware that Bali is in Indonesia. While the political investments seem more favourable now, it will take more than a speech in Indonesian from Penny Wong to further strengthen relations. I’m hoping more cross-fertilization with respect to scientific knowledge, popular (and digital) cultures, art, music, but also more collaboration in activism and social movements when thinking of the climate challenges ahead.
Tell us about your favourite Indonesian food experience
Jejamuran! This is a vegan restaurant where they make numerous Indonesian dishes out of… mushrooms (jamur = mushroom). So mushroom rendang (delicious), mushroom satay, mushroom Tongseng Curry, even mushroom kerupuk! You can buy beautiful mushroom arrangements and have your dead skin on your feet be eaten by fish in the pond. A must do when you’re in Yogya with kids (or when you’re leading a field school with university students from Sydney!) (Editors note: don’t miss Sonja’s podcast with her ‘Social Justice in Indonesia’ field school students)
Do you speak Indonesian and where did you start learning it?
My mother always spoke Indonesian to me and my brother, so while growing up in-between Indonesia, Singapore, and the Netherlands, Indonesian was a constant mode of communicating. But I still have difficulty with formal Indonesian. My mum spoke a mix of Indonesian and Javanese and I never really learned the difference. My formal Indonesian feels clumsy and always think I’m still talking like a twelve-year old when I converse in Indonesian. I have, however, started studying advanced Indonesian and have planned an intensive Indonesian language course in Yogya together with my partner and my two boys.
What’s your favourite Indonesian food and why?
By far it would be “Sego Liwet, which is a rice dish cooked in coconut milk, chicken broth and spices, from Solo. The rice is often topped with some omelette, shredded chicken, and kumut (coconut cream). It goes really well with opor ayam, a coconut chicken dish that includes spiced boiled eggs, tempeh, and labu siam (chokos). My Solonese family always bring me to Nasi Liwet Yu Sani, a warung in Pasar Kliwon. I once made the train trip from Yogya just to eat there.
What’s your favourite Indonesian music/song/writer?
High culture: Gamelan
Low culture: Sheila on 7 (I know cringe, but LOVE singing it out loud while biking to work)
What’s your favourite Indonesian idiom?
“Sudahlah”, which roughly translates into something like “let’s leave/stop it here”. As a conflict-avoiding person it is a magical idiom to end an argument without being rude (in fact it has a calming effect). And I remember the idiom being generously used in Indonesian soap operas (sinetron) when mothers would sooth their husbands after a blow up with their son or daughter. Would be great if we could use the idiom in contemporary university settings, but alas, I have not found an adequate equivalent in English.
[Last month’s PAY IT FORWARD question]:
Have you ever watched or joined any Indonesian traditional ceremony or show? Tell us the most memorable moment of those?
Balinese gamelan performances (which are often more powerful and faster than Javanese gamelan) have always had a trans-like state or hypnotic effect on me. A memorable moment was when I was watching a Balinese cockfight while listening to Gamelan music in the background—and I had also just read Clifford Geertz’ Deep Play! I vividly remember that the coming together of those elements—the music, the cockfight, and the anthropological knowledge—was exhilarating.
?PAY IT FORWARD: Finally, it’s YOUR turn to ask a question… Please suggest a question we can ask our next member!
What is the most hilarious situation you have found yourself in in Indonesia?