IPB’s Students Empower Shemales of Bogor Town Thursday, April 17, 2014
The presence of shemales or transvestites often disturb the public. People look at them more negatively than positively, so their existence is often denied in the social life.
Surianie, Idan Mardhani, Intan Paramitahasanah, Agus Harianto and Laras Lestari, students of Bogor Agricultural University (IPB) of the Departments of Family and Consumer Sciences, Aquatic Product Technology, Environmental and Resource Economics and Agribusiness are concerned and called to empower shemales.They are trying to make the transvestitesbecome excellent human resources with superior quality so that their behaviors are not judged negatively by the society.
Surianie and colleagues develop a Student Creativity Program (PKM) of Community Services by improving training and skills of the shemales in Bogor. In doing this, they will develop two approaches, namely life skill education and entrepreneurship.
This approach is expected to effectively empower the transgender. In the implementation, this PKM Team of IPB is assisted by and in coordination with the Social Department of Bogor town.
Both approaches are transformed by the team into several activities such as Shemale Section, Marak Banci(an acronym meaning Let’s take good deeds and love God), Outbound, Shemale Sejari (physically and mentally healthy), E Mo Shemale (Entrepreneurship Motivation Shemale), Action-Sharpening-Interests-Talent, Reship Shemale (Real Entrepreneurship), Shemale Showtime Preneur, G-Pro (Production Galleries) and Shemale Consulting Clinic.
The program is designed by Surianie and colleagues with the guidance of a lecturer of Family and Consumer Sciences, Faculty of Human Ecology IPB, Megawati Simanjuntak, SP., M.Si, adopting unique and easy-to-follow methods. This program combines thelearningelements of hard skills and soft skills in the form of training, practice and educational games that support creativity and the ability of the participants so that they will not get bored with the empowerment program.
According to the data collected by the Social Service of Bogor, at present the number of shemales has reached 320 people. This community is managed by a work program organization of the Social Service of Bogor town, called Warna Lentera Pakuan.
According to an assessment by Agus Harianto, one PKMteam, not all shemales have a negative behavior. Agus has been involved and interacted directly for 20 days with the transvestites who are active in Warna Lentera Pakuan. He says that transvestites also have different social statusand classes, ranging from street singing beggars, sexual workers, home-based and high class. Commonly the transvestites in this group have already got established lives and have their own business.
In addition, Agus Harianto explores the potential of each shemale. He said that many of them want to have a business. There are even those who already have professional skills such as having beauty salons, working as make-up artists, designers and so on.
Surianie added, generally shemales with negative temperament are those on the streets or street beggars/singers and sexual workers. According to Surianie, in their interviews they expressed the desire to change behavior and have a good business, but unfortunately people tend to unable to be accept them. Agus and colleagues hope with this empowerment model there will be some changesto the transvestites of Bogor so that they are acceptable and acquire the work skills in the community. (Mtd)
