A Man Called Ahok – Film Bagus, Tetapi… –


I got off my idle butt this week and went to the movies. With so many films available on cable tv, and dvds, I don’t go to cinemas nearly as often as once I did.

But this was different.

 

Image result for a man called ahok

If you want a traditional film review, use the above JP link.

I went to watch today because I admire the subject of the film tremendously, a very good, very decent, very human and VERY unjustly treated man.

Most people here know that Ahok was the best City Governor that Jakarta has had in many, many years.

Some people hated him, ignorant Islamist street scum…

Jakarta Jew-Haters Boo Chinese Christian Candidate 

…and high-powered extremist ‘scholars’ wanted desperately to see him brought down…

Jokowi picks Ma’ruf Amin, key expert witness on Ahok’s blasphemy trial

http://singchamindonesia.com/jokowi-picks-maruf-amin-key-expert-witness-on-ahoks-blasphemy-trial/

…one of whom is very likely going to be Indonesia’s next Vice-President, chosen for that position by President Jokowi, who paradoxically had once been very happy to have Ahok as his running mate when Jokowi was running as a gubernatorial candidate in Jakarta.

Ahok ended up in prison under the benighted ‘blasphemy’ law, an outcome which did dreadful damage to Indonesia’s reputation as a pluralist democracy…

Slouching Towards Shariah, Indonesia Jails Ahok! 

Despite the sickening sight of Islamist fanatics howling for his blood, to the bitter end, it has to be said that Ahok held the loyalty of MANY decent Muslims.

Their courage can be measured by the intimidation they withstood, some of which was mentioned in a Jakarta Post report….

During the gubernatorial campaign, some mosques called on Muslims not to hold funeral prayers for deceased Muslims found to have supported Anies’ contender, Basuki “Ahok” Tjahaja Purnama, who is a Christian of Chinese ethnicity.   http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2017/11/22/city-to-hand-out-rp-1-6t-to-mass-organizations-religious-institutions.html

ooooooooooooooooo

So while it was a fascinating, well-made film, it was a shame it did not cover the Jakarta chapter of his life, except brief allusions thereto at the very start and very end.

I suppose an honest account of the events and their denouement might risk the movie-makers facing similar benighted ‘blasphemy’ charges, if they reported on the harmless quip which ignited bigot fury.

My other criticism involves the English translation of the dialogues, which appeared throughout the movie.

Surely it would not have cost much to get it done properly.

Heck, I would have done the job for free, which might have improved the fluency and grammatical quality.