Soe Hok Gie, an activist and a university student, is an Indonesian Chinese who took part in the downfall of Soekarno's managed democracy and a critic of Soeharto's new order government. Gie, as he was called among his friends, was a young Catholic who was born in Jakarta, December 17, 1942. Gie is the fourth of five children in the Soe Lie Piet family which is famous for the family of writers. Gie's father is a novelist, so Gie often had the opportunity to visit public libraries and various reading parks around Jakarta (https://m.merdeka.com/soe-hok-gie/profil/). Therefore, Gie's literacy was already very qualified at a very young age. His reading interest was not limited to only magazines or children's books, but also to some of the greatest literary works. One of which was by Pramoedya Ananta Toer.

As long as he was in school, his interest in the social world had begun to appear. Gie chose to study literature for his major and continued choosing history when he was educated at the University of Indonesia. From the social world, his awareness of politics began to rise. He made travel notes and incisive writing full of criticism, and took the role of a student activist. This was where Gie was known as a productive writer. Many of his writings have been published in several well-known mass media such as: Kompas, Our Daily, Sinar Harapan, Indonesian Students, and Indonesia Raya. In his writings, he criticized the injustice of the rulers towards The Poor and also the attitude of the leaders who ruled power. But not yet even 27 years old, the justice enforcer breathed his last while climbing Mount Semeru with University of Indonesia Mountaineering Club (MAPALA UI).

Soe Hok Gie's works and examples

As already written in the biography section, this young Catholic who is also a writer has produced phenomenal works. Even though he has not had the chance to publish his written works, his work in the real world has been very helpful and beneficial to many people. Some of the thoughts and works of Soe Hok Gie that I look up to are as follows:

First. Offering constructive criticism is better than only criticizing. The criticism that he delivered was not a petty criticism that had no solution to the problem, but this criticism was accompanied by suggestions for the government to change the depravity among officials. This action of Gie is very representative of behavior that shows the Catholic Faith, where every action must be based on real justice, not based on personal desires such as attaining popularity, power, and property.Gie in this case also strongly fights for the rights of the poor people to be able to experience real independence.

Second. Every action that Soe Hok Gie took was never ridden by the interests of a power. This is indeed true because he himself does not like organizations outside campus whereas those organizations are just a political stooge. He strives for all Indonesian people to be at the same level in all aspects. This reflects how true Gie’s faith in God to only be a connector for His will without asking for fame.

Third. Despite differing views, Gie has never hated his opponents. This is what actually knocks us, as Jesus taught, that we should not hate our opponents because all humans should love one another as God loves all mankind. One example was when Gie carried out the Anti-Indonesian Communist Party (PKI) movement. He urged the government to immediately abolish PKI, but he was very sad when the realization of the actions by the government had violated the rights of PKI members as humans. What Gie meant was the elimination of communism but without torture.

Soe Hok Gie's thoughts saved a lot of poor and powerless people

Gie's thought that had saved the poor and powerless people at that time was about equal rights for all Indonesian citizens. Such a simple thought emerged as a result of the negligence of the rulers who at that time held power and were blinded by property, which was actually people's money to build this country together. Like in the Soekarno era, the first President of the Republic of Indonesia was blinded by prestige from which Indonesia wanted to compete with the US, which had a great influence in the world. The first President of Indonesia wasted public money on large non-major projects such as building NEFO. Gie harshly criticized it and gave an explanation of what problems should be solved first.

Implementation of Gie’s ideas and faith against the problems of COVID-19

Gie's example of faith should be emulated during the COVID-19 pandemic. His sincerity to be God's hand to work and to apply the principles of Jesus' teachings to help others in a way that each of us is capable of should be exemplified to immediately improve the situation. Concrete examples that we can do are wearing masks, maintaining a safe distance, and following health protocols that have been advised by the government.

We should also support the government which wants us to improve the current chaotic situation. In addition, we can also reprimand our neighbors for not obeying the rules. To help people who are experiencing socio-economic difficulties, we can do online fundraising to raise funds without causing crowds of people. Criticism and constructive suggestions also need to be made like Gie did. Constantly giving constructive feedback to the government during this pandemic is also worth criticizing.

Summary

The selection of a Catholic thinker (Soe Hok Gie) in my writing was intended not only as the fulfillment of the task I have to do, but also as a whip for reflection, both for me personally and for anyone who reads this article. I hope that from reading this writing, readers (especially university students) can imitate and practice how students should behave and act in a Catholic manner and realize the calling of each human being to become a connector for God's work in this world to create the Kingdom of God. I think Gie is a suitable figure to reflect the actions of students who uphold the truth and do them according to the teachings of Christ. Thus, students can imitate his actions at the age Gie started realizing his ideas.

Bibliography 

Soe Hok Gie Biography:

- Gie, Soe Hok. Catatan Seorang Demonstran, Jakarta: LP3ES,2011. Johnson, Doyle Paul. Teori Sosiologi Klasik dan Modern. Jakarta: PT. Gramedia.

- Biografiku.com.(2019, 18 Februari). Biografi Soe Hok Gie, Kisah Perjalanan Sang Aktivis ‘Pemberontak’. Accessed pada 20 September 2020, from https://www.biografiku.com/biografi-soe-hok-gie/

- Merdeka.com. Profil Soe Hok Gie. Accessed pada 20 September 2020, from https://m.merdeka.com/soe-hok-gie/profil/ 

Soe Hok Gie acts and representative for the people:

- Kompasiana.com. (2012, 13 November). Soe Hok Gie: sosok penulis dan aktivis yang perlu dicontoh. Accessed pada 21 September 2020, from https://www.kompasiana.com/zamanb77/5519657c813311d9769de0fe/soe-hok-gie-sosok-penulis-dan-aktivis-yang-perlu-dicontoh

- Soe Hok Gie. 1999. Di Bawah Lentera Merah. Yogyakarta: Yayasan Bentang Budaya

- Soe Hok Gie. 2005. Orang-orang Di Persimpangan Kiri Jalan. Yogyakarta: Bentang

- Soe Hok Gie. 2005. Zaman Peralihan. Yogyakarta: Gagas Media

Gabrielle Darda Wisnu Wardhana

Mahasiswa S-1 Program Studi Ilmu Hukum Universitas Airlangga Surabaya

Ilustrasi: https://www.merdeka.com/peristiwa/soe-hok-gie-si-china-kecil-yang-bahagia-mati-muda.html