Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Decolonizing Gender Identities In Indonesia: A Study Of Bissu ‘The Trans-Religious Leader’ In Bugis People, Petsy Jessy Ismoyo

Paradigma: Jurnal Kajian Budaya

Bhinneka Tunggal Ika is one of the pillars of Indonesia that has placed our nation and nationess to a diversity of identity, from genders, tribes, religions, to cultures. Indonesia has a long history of gender diversity that recognized various gender identities as part of the culture. Henceforth, In Indonesia, gender is not perceived in a binary way between male or female, masculine and feminine, without giving the ‘third space’ to other genders and sexuality. For example, Bugis people recognize five genders: oroané, makkunrai, calabai, calalai, and bissu, which will be examined further in this paper. In reality, a lively debate …