Independence Day

KC: Why do we celebrate Independence Day?

PB: First, we need to know and cannot forget about our history. It was not easy to achieve our independence. We were not like this before, instead we were conquered, not allowed to speak like a slave. Now we are an independent country and we want to respect the heroes who helped us gain our independence.

KC: Which event is your favourite?

PB:  love all the events we had. When we had the flag raising ceremony, I was very touched to see the children respecting the country. In the traditional food competition, everyone was happy, they gladly shared the food they brought, that is how Indonesian children should be. When we played the games, it was very fun. If we were lazy and no one wants to respect the country, no one would want to come and participate but this event is very fun and everybody enjoyed it.

KC: Why do we celebrate the traditional food competition?

PB: There are a lot of answers for this question. At this time, food from other countries are introduced to Indonesia. Children in this country are used to eating pizza and pasta but they don’t know whether Indonesian food are delicious. They are not used to eating Indonesian food like soto and sate but if we became businesswomen and businessmen, we will have the advantage of introducing our country’s food to other countries just like how they introduce their food to us. We have delicious food like rendang, which is our number one food in here. This is very inspiring for us because we can also introduce Indonesia’s food to other countries.

KC:   What was the difference between last year’s and this year’s traditional food competition?

PB: This year, more people brought food to the point where the teachers couldn’t eat anymore. On that day, the teachers also prepared food for themselves but because of the traditional food competition, they didn’t get the chance to eat their own food.

KC: What educational purposes did the students get?

PB: It is very clear that we have to respect our own culture. For example, if we weren’t familiar with our own food, how can we respect it? Love is started by knowing or being familiar with things. I was very happy because the children didn’t only watch the television to see the activities people had on Independence Day but they also participated in the events the school held for Independence Day.

Mr. Basuki’s Inspirational Speech

“Selamat pagi BapakIbu Guru dan anak-anakku sekalian. Mari kita ucapkan pekik merdeka tiga kali.

Bapak dan Ibu Guru benar-benar menghargai dedikasi kalian.Ketika pada hari ini ada banyak sekolah libur, kalian mau mengorbankan waktu dengan tetap masuk sekolah.Ini jelas merupakan pilihan sikap yang  membanggakan.Ini adalah salah satu contoh nyata, bagaimana kita menghargai jasa para pahlawan kita. Dulu,para pahlawan demi mendapatkan kemerdekaan, mereka rela mengorbankan harta, bahkan nyawa sekali pun.Kalian juga perlu tahu sejarah.Bahwa sejak awal, Negara yang kita cintai ini dibangun oleh keragaman. Dibangun oleh diversity. Karena itu kita memilih semboyan Bhineka Tunggal Ika,“unity in diversity”. Kita sadar Indonesia memang beragam. Kita yang berkumpul di sini pun, asalnya macam-macam.

Ingatlah, Indonesia, jadi menarik, jadi keren, karena Indonesia is a country full of diversity. Indonesia yang beragam ini harus kita jaga. Sekolah kita Bina Bangsa pun sungguh-sungguh bertekad menjaga keragaman ini. Karena itu, di sekolah kita, kalau sampai ada rasisme, pasti kita lawan. Anak-anak Bina Bangsa harus menjadi pelopor anti-rasisme. Anak-anak Bina Bangsa pasti tahu bagaimana menghargai mereka yang berbeda, berbeda suku, bahasa,agama, kepercayaan dan lain-lain.

Anak-anakku, kelak di mana pun kamu berada, / teruslah berusaha untuk mengharumkan nama bangsa dan negaramu. Harumkan negeri ini dengan prestasi kalian. Harumkan negeri ini dengan talenta-talenta yang kalian miliki. Selamat berjuang. Merdeka! Merdeka! Merdeka! Terima kasih.”