Message of Peace for Nation
Asa Firda Inayah
Using an old device worth Rp 600,000, Asa Firda Inayah, 19, grabbed the attention of netizens with her ideas on the importance of appreciating diversity. The writing of the daughter of a cilok (rice flour ball) seller from Gambiran district, Banyuwangi regency, East Java, went viral and has been read by tens of thousands.
Since it was written on May 15 at 10:21 a.m. and until Monday (22/5) afternoon, the composition entitled “Warisan” (inheritance) on the Facebook wall of Afi Nihaya has been shared 66,538 times and received 20,701 comments and 112,822 reactions.
Afi Nihaya is a pen name taken from the anagram of the account owner and writer of “Warisan”, Asa Firda Inayah, 19. Through “Warisan”, Asa, who just graduated from senior high school this month, said that Indonesia was a country built on the principles of Pancasila, the 1945 Constitution and the slogan Bhinneka Tunggal Ika (Unity in Diversity).
From the perspective of Pancasila, Asa wrote, every person is free to believe and practice a religion. However, no one has the right to force a point of viewon others, or usetheir own religious teachings as a benchmark to judge people of another religion. “No one doubts the power of God. If He willed, He could have made us all the same. Similar. One religion. One nation. But it is not so, is it?”
Asa said that the differences in religion, ethnicity, race or nationality should not become barriers between humans. This is because, when humans are born, they are not able to choose which religion, ethnicity, race or nationality they are born into. These are all inheritances.
The writing of the girl from Gambiran district, Banyuwangi, East Java, is like dew amid an increasingly heated national situation caused by various frictions. Asa’s writing was inaccessible for almost 24 hours because Facebook temporarily closed Asa’s account. The operator of Facebook asked Asa to verify her personal data because her account and status had been reported by some people who did not like her thoughts.
“It turned out that there are still some people who are not happy with the message I gave. Maybe they felt disturbed and reported the Afi Nihaya account,” she said calmly.
She has also been attacked and became the target of bullying. However, Asa stayed strong. For her, not everyone must have the same thoughts. “But let us all think.”
What she did not understand was why a childwho asked people to think is considered dangerous by certain people.
Daughter of cilok seller
Asa is the first daughter of Imam Wahyudi and Sumartin, both 47. Her father is a cilok seller who goes from one school to another. Her mother, meanwhile, can only stay at home because of a glaucoma disease that has affected her eyesight. Her family’s limited situation has not caused Asa to lose all hope. Her mind is always open because she enjoys reading books. She has a target of reading three books a month.
Popular psychology books are her favorite. Two of the books that she said had changed her life were The Magic of Thinking by David Schwartz and Seven Habits by Steven Covey. From the two books, Asa learned that the mind has two characteristics that can kill andcan help. There are people who are killed by their minds,but there are others who are helped by their minds.
“I choose to try to shape my mind to help realize my wishes. My wish is to create a peaceful world and an Indonesia for everyone,” she said.
Asa also has a habit of writing all her experiences and thoughts in a diary. This habit is stored in six books with a total of about 500 pages. It was only in 2015 that Asa started to write her thoughts on social media. She uses the status column on Facebook to spread her thoughts.
She has access to social media through a Rp 600,000 smartphone. She managed to buy the device after saving up money for more than a year. “This is my first smartphone. It is from saving what was left over from my pocket money of Rp 5,000 a day,” said Asa while holding up her modest phone.
Initially, Asa’s reason for buying the device was not to have access to social media, but to find school learning materials. However, she does not deny that she also wanted to be on social media like other teenagers.
“Warisan” was not Asa’s first writing that went viral. About three months after she bought her smartphone, she wrote her thoughts down and uploaded them onto Facebook. The untitled piece went viral.
In her writing, Asa commented on the world of education in Indonesia. The piece, which was written following news of a parent reporting a teacher to the police for pinching his son, was shared 4,705 times and received 143 comments and 6,200 reactions. Another of Asa’s writings that went viral was one about her experience of keeping her phone non-active for 10 days. The writing received 5,885 comments and 56,000 reactions and was shared 34,702 times.
Asa said that she does not write and go on social media in search of likes. She only wants to express her thoughts about the phenomena happening around her. “If I wanted to get likes or go viral, it would be easy: just write a piece that support a certain group or a piece that attacks a certain group, then it would definitely go viral. But that is not what I’m after. I’m in the middle, not defending this group or that group. I only want to share a message of peace.”
An attitude of tolerance has grown inside Ada since elementary school. At that time, one of her friends did not allow her to play at the house of another friend who was of a different religion. Little Asa was could not understand why there were such boundaries. From that moment on, Asa wanted to break down the barriers of differences. She wanted to appreciate differences and diversity more.
Asa’s father, Imam Wahyudi, never thought her daughter would shake up cyberspace using only her smartphone. Imam said that he used to be worried about Asa, who often played on her device until late at night. Imam confiscated her device for 10 days. In the end, Imam and Asa agreed that by 10 p.m. her phone must be turned off.
“I was worried that she would be like other teenagers who do not help their parents because they are too busy with their cell phones. I was also worried that I could not monitor her social life because I am not able to control her cell-phone use,” Imam said. However, after hearing news about her daughter’s activities, which have inspired a lot of people on social media, Imam said hewas grateful because it turned out his daughter uses social media for positive things. He then offered his daughter a new phone, but Asa refused it.
“This one can still be used.Why do I need to buy a new one? It would be better to use the money for mother’s treatment, for my brother’s school fees, or for my college preparation,” said Asa, who is active as an administrator of an anti-false-news community.
Because of Asa’s courage in inspiring a message of peace, Banyuwangi Regent Abdullah Azwar Anas invited her over for breakfast in his office. Anas said he hoped there would be more teenagers whobecome inspired and have the courage to deliver the message of peace all over the country.
“Her limited family situation does not limit the openness of a person’s mind. I thank Asa because her writing has inspired me to have the courage to speak up about the beauty of diversity,” said Anas, who promised he would help Asa continue her education in a state college in East Java.
ASA FIRDA INAYAH
- Born: Banyuwangi, 23 July 1998
- Parent: Imam Wahyudi, 47, and Sumartin, 47.
- Sibling: David Mahbubi, 15.
- Education: SD 4 Yosomulyo; SMP 1 Genteng; SMA 1 Gambiran
- Organisasi: Admin of Anti False News Community
