We can only beat terrorism by sowing the seeds of diversity. Therefore, surely it is important to support all efforts of teaching tolerance and empathy to others through education and awareness campaigns.
By
ACHMAD ZAKY
·4 minutes read
As someone who works among talented young people in the ever-progressing creative economy, I always look at Indonesia’s future with optimism. In my sector, for instance, experts predict that Indonesia will one day equal China as one of the world’s largest e-trading giants. In the bigger picture, experts also predict that Indonesia’s economy will continue to grow and become the world’s seventh largest in 2030 and the fourth largest in 2050.
The series of bombings in Surabaya on May 13 and 14, followed soon by assaults on police personnel across the country, have reopened my eyes to fact that huge struggles remain ahead for Indonesia to truly become an advanced, empowered and prosperous nation. We still have a long way to go. All optimistic predictions may be rendered meaningless if forces of hate find their way to destroy the fabric of Indonesia’s nationhood.
Pushing for diversity in the economy
Terrorism will never be defeated if we remain divided. Amid the clouds following the tragedy, we often point our fingers and put the blame on one another. This will only help proponents of hatred sow divisions in society. Tragic moments should have united us in mutual empathy. Instead of blaming one another, let us all try and look at what we can do together to weed out the roots of terrorism.
As many scholars have said, we can only beat terrorism by sowing the seeds of diversity. Therefore, surely it is important to support all efforts of teaching tolerance and empathy to others through education and awareness campaigns. Nevertheless, outside of education and campaigns, I believe that there is one huge agenda that we all must push: diversity at work.
As an entrepreneur who works with various business groups, from micro and small and medium enterprises to conglomerates, I often see a symptom that may have contributed to the proliferation of intolerant ideas among the people. In the number of companies I work with, diversity often leaves much to be desired.
It is understandable that entrepreneurs, in their endeavors of building new businesses, surround themselves and fill strategic positions in their new companies with people they know well – both in terms of capacity or personal ties. However, as humans often have a limited circle of friends, we often prefer to work with people in similar social circles. This usually leads to company elites turning into relatively uniform communities, whether consciously or not. Even though I do not have comprehensive research data, I observe that company founders from certain identities are often predisposed to surround themselves with managers with those same identities.
This is applicable to many identity groups, including religion and other traits. This often leads to companies turning into “bubbles” where people with common identities gather and share their fears to those different from them.
As a businessman in Indonesia, I believe that there are things we can do to change this mindset. In building businesses and recruiting people, including at the top level, let us all place diversity as a major consideration. It is true that a merit system must be upheld at all times, but let us not forget that our vision is sometimes shrouded in our personal bias. We can truly help in campaigning for diversity by opening the door to diversity in our companies and organizations.
Moreover, these efforts to foster an understanding society can only be effective if we are habituated to “building bridges”. For instance, rich company leaders may need to ensure their children mingle with ordinary people instead of placing them in sterile environments from they are small.
Diversity as key to progress
Far more than just weeding out the roots of terrorism and fostering a spirit of diversity, I believe that diversity at work will also bring forth a sturdier and more advanced economy. In Day of Empire: How Hyperpowers Rise to Global Dominance and Why They Fall, Yale professor Amy Chua tries to find out the reasons behind the rise and fall of the world’s great powers. She finds that a major factor behind the progress of the great powers is their acceptance and support for diversity.
This enables big empires and states to utilize all their people’s potential and build strong social bonds. Chua also finds that a major sign of a big states’ impending collapse is when intolerance spreads and reigns, leading to the creation of exclusive communities in suspicion of one another.
We surely do not want our beloved country to fall. Pushing for diversity, including at work, is one of the key measures to prevent such a calamity. By pushing for diversity at work, we are campaigning for the manifestation of Pancasila through real action.