The Useless Tradition of Ospek and Indonesia’s Feudal Mentality
It has become one of the things often preserved and excessively glorified by students who might have flawed thinking and limited intellectual capacity. To be straightforward, this article will be a critique of the useless campus orientation (Ospek). Indonesia has long been independent, yet its people still cling to colonial or feudal mentalities. I’ve heard many stories from my friends who went through this campus orientation: being forced to shave their heads, make pointless videos, get yelled at, and so on. Strangely enough, none of these things have any rational or logical reason.
Why all the yelling? Is it just to make them look cool? Why the shaved heads? Is this a campus or a prison? It’s as if students are entering a military barracks.
The truth is, they should be learning to shape their own future and the future of the nation — not wasting time with traditions that claim to be “mental training” but are actually nothing more than ego trips and acts of showmanship. Many seniors feel superior just because they “entered campus first,” but in terms of thinking quality and maturity, that doesn’t necessarily make them better. They take pride in harsh orientations, yet in reality, they amount to nothing. Giving bizarre assignments, insulting juniors as they please, imposing punishments with no educational value — and yet they believe they are “educating.” That’s not education, that’s oppression.
A campus should be a place to learn and grow, not a stage for power shows. If students are already being taught to bow to feudal culture from the moment they step into university, don’t be surprised if, upon graduation, they perpetuate the same rotten system. A mentality of submission, conformity, and seniority — these are the things that must be eliminated, not celebrated.
Campus orientation should be designed to introduce new students to campus life, preparing them mentally and academically, not leaving them stressed and traumatized. If the excuse is “to build solidarity,” solidarity can be built without shouting and forcing people to shave their heads. Solidarity grows from respect and empathy, not from fear.
So, to the students who still take pride in militaristic and abusive orientations: congratulations, you are part of the problem. And hopefully, you will wake up soon, before passing down the same foolishness to the next generation.