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View all search results‘Nowhere, everywhere and anywhere’: Tari Lang on exile and Indonesia in 1965
Forced into exile by the trauma of 1965, Tari Lang revisits a country she loves and its unfinished struggle for freedom in her memoir, My Neighbour, The Dictator.
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Across borders: Businesswoman Tari Lang, born to an Indonesian father and a British mother, recounts her experiences during the 1965 upheaval in Indonesia in her memoir, ‘My Neighbour, the Dictator’. (ubudwritersfestival.com/-)
T
strong>Tari Lang was 14 when the political turmoil of 1965 shattered her family and changed the course of her life. In My Neighbour, The Dictator: Coming of Age in the Shadow of Indonesia’s 1965 Military Coup, she combines personal memoir with Indonesia’s turbulent history, recounting the arrest and imprisonment of her parents, years of uncertainty and political activism and her eventual settlement in the United Kingdom at 18 to pursue a career in international business and reputation management.
Ahead of her appearance at the Ubud Writers & Readers Festival (UWRF), Tari reflects on the events that shaped her life and her views on Indonesia, past and present, in a conversation with journalist and novelist Eric Buvelot.
Question: What was your experience growing up in Indonesia during the 1960s?
Answer: My world was turned upside down one morning in 1965. I was 14 and my younger brother was 9 when the seismic events of Sept. 30 caused immense damage to my family and our lives, as they did to millions of Indonesians. Our Indonesian father and British mother were arrested without charge or trial, our family was torn apart, and my friends were either arrested or disappeared.
I had to grow up quickly to take responsibility for my parents and family while continuing my schoolwork. I was also determined to support the underground movement and live a normal teenage life. I learned to be resilient, balance my interests and priorities and negotiate my way out of difficult situations while still having fun. It was my introduction to entrepreneurship, though I did not know that was what it was called at the time.
What does it mean to bring your book to the UWRF, and is this your first time presenting it in Indonesia?
The Ubud festival has an excellent international reputation, so it is an honor to present my book there. My Neighbour, The Dictator invites conversations and the sharing of memories and stories, allowing younger generations to hear a personal account of the events of 1965.
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