Welcome back to Member Spotlight learn more about the lives of those behind AIYA. This week, we introduce you to AIYA President, Clarice Campbell!

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By Johanna Debora Imelda, Universitas Indonesia

Coin rubbing is a form of folk medication practised in Indonesia and other Southeast Asian and East Asian countries, such as Laos, Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, South Korea and southern China. In Vietnam and Cambodia, the practice is called cao gio and in China gua sha. In Indonesia, this practice is known as kerokan, which comes from the Javanese word meaning to scrape.

Coin rubbing and common cold

Kerokan is a dermabrasive therapy used to treat symptoms of the common cold such as nausea, loss of appetite, headache, dizziness and fainting. These can be caused by viral infection, which usually will go away by its own in five to seven days. The sick person only needs a good rest, to drink a lot of water and to eat proper food.

Coin rubbing is one way to warm the body as rubbing the skin produces heat. Kerokan, mostly applied on the back, neck, shoulder and chest, begins and ends with a massage using ointment containing camphor, such as Tiger Balm, Vicks or coconut oil.

Rubbing begins by firmly using the edge of a coin to produce parallel stripes on the chest and the back. It can also be done using other blunt tools, such as spoons, bones or wooden sticks, and for children, shallot with coconut oil.

Some people also take medicine such as paracetamol and aspirin after applying kerokan. The sick person will feel relieved and sleepy, then will get better and feel refreshed after several hours of sleep. The illness will be cured within two or three days after the sick person takes total rest at home.

Folk belief in coin rubbing

Indonesian folk medicine is influenced by a Chinese philosophy of health and illness. Chinese traditional medicine has influenced Southeast Asia since the fifth century.

According to Chinese beliefs, health is a state of spiritual and physical harmony with nature. A healthy body is in a state of balance between yinand yang, which are generally translated as hot (yang) and cold (yin), but these refer to qualities, not temperatures.

In some societies, responses to illness are grounded in a system of beliefs and practices, which have their own logical structure. From a scientific standpoint, beliefs about the source of illness might be irrational, but the treatments are a logical consequence of those beliefs.

In the case of kerokan, Indonesian people believe the practice is done to release excess cold wind which is considered responsible for the illness. In Indonesia the symptoms of the common cold are referred to as masuk angin, which literally translates as “the entrance of wind”.

It is said that the reddish mark symbolises the disappearance of the cold wind from the body. It is not entirely true, as a healthy person will get the same reddish mark if his/her skin is being rubbed. People also believe that if the sick person sweats a lot and lets out a fart, this is a sign of the cold wind leaving the body.

If the skin has recovered from the reddish marks, it is said that the wind has been dispersed. It may take two to three days for the skin to be recovered.

Scientifically, the idea sounds irrational because wind cannot enter or leave the body through the skin. It is also not wind inside the body that is responsible for the illness. However, many people believe in this practice and testify to the efficacy.

Side effect: irritation, red marks and dependence

Some people consider it a harmless procedure, but kerokan causes skin irritation, creating severe red marks that some people say do not fit into modern life. It looks awful if someone goes to the office with kerokanmarks on his/her neck. Nevertheless, people still do kerokan and seem unembarrassed about the reddish marks.

Other side effects include physical and psychological dependence on kerokan; some people routinely do kerokan even though they do not experience serious symptoms.

The body has at least 360 acupuncture points relating to organs inside the body. If kerokan is done properly, the acupuncture points can be reached. Moreover, the rubbing will apply pressure to points that might also affect the nervous system and brain, producing endorphin hormones.

The body produces endorphins as a local reaction to ease pain during the rubbing, but as the rubbing is continuously applied, the body might overproduce the hormone. Endorphin release makes the body deal with pain better, but it can also make the person feel they need it more than necessary.

Others are more dependent on the psychological effect of kerokan. In their book on traditional treatment, George M. Foster and Barbara G. Anderson wrote that it has a psycho-social support and psychotherapy effect. As it is mainly applied on the back part of the body, a proper kerokan should be applied by someone else, preferably an experienced traditional healer, relatives, friends or neighbours.

In The Art of Medical Anthropology, Susan R. Whyte wrote that interaction during treatment can also lead to psychological dependence because one of the characteristics of folk medication is courtesy and friendliness to the clients.

The whole process of kerokan needs at least 30 minutes, when the sick person and the healer can talk about not only the illness, but also family problems, economy, politics and gossip about neighbours.

Besides skill in massaging people, the masseur should have communication skills and experience. They usually know all the neighbourhood gossip and keep up to date with economic and political issues. A masseur without such skills and experience will likely not be hired a second time.

In this sense, the communication during the process of kerokan has psychological benefits for the sick person and it might make one go for kerokan again and again.

By Johanna Debora Imelda, Universitas Indonesia

This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article.

It was Wittgenstein who said “the limits of my language mean the limits of my world”, and one can hardly find arguments against this statement. In the world that is becoming more and more connected and reliant on different cultures, those who have a good command of several languages will find it much easier to find their place under the sun.

In the context of Australia, we should definitely look into the opportunities provided by speaking Indonesian, since Bahasa Indonesia is the second language in this country. So, whether you’d like your kid to use this language for business or some other purpose, it makes perfect sense to help them master the language of a country that is so close and that has so many connections with the Land Down Under. So, what is it that parents can do to help their kids?

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Selamat Datang!

Welcome to Catatan AIYA! AIYA Membership numbers continue to grow and our Chapters and other activities are becoming increasingly active. We have been searching for a way to provide further updates to our loyal, paid members. So here it is – the inaugural Catatan AIYA, meaning AIYA Notes. This will likely be a quarterly comprehensive, internal newsletter to keep you posted on everything going on in the world of AIYA.

New AIYA National President – Clarice Campbell!

AIYA National officially has a new President! After four years in the role, Nicholas Mark is passing the AIYA baton over to Clarice Campbell, someone who we’re sure many of you have come to know over the years.

Nick started out as the co-founder and inaugural President of AIYA NSW back in late 2012, and has been AIYA National President since April 2015. He has seen AIYA grow and develop over the years, into a bilateral organisation run by over 150 volunteers and facilitating 300 events a year across both countries. Read more about Nick’s AIYA journey here.

Clarice Campbell has experience in AIYA since 2014, moving through from AIYA VIC President to Operations Officer (Indonesia) and more recently has been the Director of Operations for the past 2 years. Clarice is living and breathing the AIYA vision and mission, and will be the organisation’s first President to be based in Jakarta. AIYA’s greatest strength is as a network that engages young Australians and Indonesians as university students through to their time as young professionals, and Clarice is all set to move AIYA into its next phase.

Survey Reminder

You will have seen our various comms over the past month about the AIYA Survey 2019. This survey is crucial to inform AIYA about what matters to our members and what we can do to continue to improve. We really appreciate any time you have to complete the survey and we encourage you to share the link through your networks.

Open Recruitment (Directors, Secretary and more)

With a new AIYA National President, several other roles at AIYA National are also open at the moment as we restructure a fresh National Executive. The following positions are now open for applications until 24 July 2019:

• Director of Operations
• Director of Communications
• Director of Partnerships and Memberships
• Company Secretary
• Operations Officer (Indonesia)
• Communications Officer
• Finance Officer

Have you always wanted to join AIYA National or find out more about what AIYA National does? Apply now or contact Clarice at [email protected] to find out more.

Upcoming Chapter AGMs

As an AIYA Member, you are also eligible to apply for and run in an AIYA Chapter election. Various Chapters will be having their AGM in the coming months. If you are thinking of joining your local AIYA Chapter, we encourage you to contact the current the current executive to find out more and to keep the following months in mind:

• August – NSW
• September – NTT, Jakarta
• October – WA, VIC, ACT
• November – Yogyakarta, NT

More information will be released via the AIYA Links in due course.

NAILA 2019

AIYA’s flagship initiative is the National Australia-Indonesia Language Awards (NAILA). The 2019 NAILA committee is led by Melanie Kilby and Sheila Hie, and again strives to reward and foster Bahasa Indonesia capabilities in Australia.

Before we open up applications and release the fine print, we want to hear from our members to vote on this year’s theme! Complete this Google Form to have your say.

Merchandise

AIYA is also gearing up to release some mantap AIYA merchandise to celebrate the AIYA Community. AIYA members will soon have an opportunity to contribute to designs and have your say on our 2019/20 merchandise – watch this space!

Ada pertanyaan?

Got a question about AIYA, Chapters, Catatan AIYA or anything else related to Australia-Indonesia youth? Send us an email to [email protected] and we’ll assist as soon as possible or point you in the right direction!

Salam semangat,

Nick, Clarice & AIYA National

REUTERS / Willy Kurniawan

It has been a long and restless Indonesia democracy fight to say the least, hundreds of election staff (KPU) have died followed by nine demonstrators killed during the riot of civil unrest in the capital city Jakarta last month. With the endless circulation of speculations and hoax used as weapons, this has alarmed the country since the presidential debates rolled out early 2019. Undivided attention given to both of the presidential candidates has pushed numerous crucial problems aside while political conversation had been inevitable for many Indonesians.

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Nowadays many parents send their children to language schools at a very early age. This is something that has been trending for quite some time now and it’s something that’s growing progressively popular. The reason for this can be found in all the benefits of being bilingual, some of which are improved academic success, better communication skills and higher chances of getting a better job somewhere down the road. People choose different languages for their children, usually depending on their location, countries which do most business with their homeland, but also personal preferences. When it comes to Australian children, their parents are showing increased interest in Indonesian and want their children to be able to learn it at school. But, why is Indonesian so important to them? Here are some answers to this question.Read More

The Australia-Indonesia Youth Exchange Program (AIYEP) menghubungkan pemuda di Australia dan Indonesia melalui pertukaran sosial, profesional dan budaya dan berlangsung dari Oktober hingga Februari setiap tahun.

Minggu ini, kita bertemu Rivana Amelia!

Victoria (Australia Phase) & Provinsi Riau (Indonesia Phase), tahun 2018/2019.

Bagaimana Anda menjadi tertarik/terlibat dengan Australia?

Indonesia dan Australia secara geografis merupakan negara yang bertetangga, akan tetapi memiliki perbedaan latar belakang dan budaya yang sangat berbeda. Dikarenakan oleh hal tersebut, walaupun sangat dekat, akan tetapi terasa sangat jauh dalam hal memahami satu sama lain. Hal tersebut membuat saya penasaran dan ingin mengenal tentang Australia lebih jauh.

Apa yang memotivasi Anda untuk mendaftar AIYEP?

Rasa penasaran saya terhadap Australia dikarenakan perbedaan-perbedaan yang seringkali dianggap sebagai pemisah antara Australia dan Indonesia, membuat saya ingin menjadi jembatan bagi pemuda-pemuda Indonesia lainnya untuk dapat memahami perbedaan-perbedaan tersebut, salah satunya dengan cara bergabung dengan AIYEP. Berdasarkan pengalaman saya, memahami budaya dengan cara berinteraksi langsung dengan masyarakat lokal merupakan salah satu hal yang efektif dilakukan. Lewat program ini pula saya yakin akan meningkatkan kinerja saya dalam dunia profesional lewat aktifitas magang dibidang yang sesuai dengan latar belakang pendidikan saya.

Apa pengalaman AIYEP terbaik atau paling berkesan Anda?

Bagi partisipan Indonesia, AIYEP berlangsung selama 4 bulan secara keseluruhan. Selama 4 bulan tersebut sangat banyak saya dapati pengalaman luar biasa, salah satunya yaitu pengalaman tinggal bersama keluarga angkat di Australia. Ketika fase kota Melbourne berlangsung, saya tidak tinggal di kawasan Melbourne, melainkan disebuah kota kecil yang dibernama New Gisborne. Selama fase ini sering kali terkendala untuk bertemu dengan teman-temen yang mayoritas tinggal di kawasan tengah kota, karena masalah jarak. But trust me, it’s really worth it since I have a wonderful family to be lived with. Dikeluarga ini saya tinggal bersama Ayah, Ibu, seorang adik kecil berusia 6 tahun, adik laki-laki berusia 21, kakak berusia 26 tahun dan seorang abang Ipar. Disini saya merasakan kehangatan keluarga yang sangat besar. Even though we have a really different culture but they always tried their best to make everything’s working well with me. Mulai dari berkomunikasi, makanan dan tempat beribadah. Banyak cerita dan pengalaman yang saya dapatkan dari keluarga ini. Dari program ini, keluarga saya bertambah tidak hanya di Indonesia, tapi juga di Australia.

Saran untuk pendaftar AIYEP tahun berikutnya?

AIYEP merupakan salah satu kesempatan yang luar biasa bagi dalam hidup saya, dan saya yakin hampir seluruh alumni merasakan hal yang sama. Bahkan mungkin kamu akan merasakan hal yang sama juga, dengan cara menjadikan kesempatan ini untuk kamu belajar, menggali ilmu dan membangun relasi sebanyak dan sebaik mungkin.

Terima kasih banyak atas Anda dalam kesediaan Anda untuk ditampilkan dalam seri Alumni AIYEP untuk AIYA.

Aplikasi untuk AIYEP38 buka sekarang hingga 16 Juni 2019, jadi pastikan untuk memasukkan aplikasi Anda! Informasi lebih lanjut dapat ditemukan di situs web AFS Australia. Para aplikan Indonesia dapat menghubungi Purna Caraka Muda Indonesia (PCMI) di kota terdekat.