.Author Tita Meydhalifah | Inggried Editor Dwi Wedhaswary
KOMPAS.com - Today, December 22, 2020, is the commemoration of Mother's Day in Indonesia. Mother's Day has been commemorated every year since 1938. December 22 was chosen as Mother's Day in Indonesia to commemorate the momentum of 22 December 1928, the first time the Indonesian Women's Congress was held. The idea for this Mother's Day commemoration emerged during the Third Women's Congress in 1938. The purpose of the commemoration was to fight for independence and improve the situation for Indonesian women. Apart from initiating Mother's Day, the Third Women's Congress also brought up issues in the form of improving nutrition and health for mothers and toddlers, ending early marriages, and trafficking in women and children. Mother's Day celebrations do not only exist in Indonesia. The world and a number of countries also commemorate Mother's Day, such as Poland, India, Malawi, Qatar and Thailand. Also read: Towards Mother's Day December 22, This is the History of the Commemoration How is the story of Mother's Day in these countries?
world
Reported by Kompas.com, December 22, 2017, initially Mother's Day was an expression of mourning for women who were left behind by their husbands who were involved in the World War. This celebration began in 1850, when Anna Jarvis and her organization, Ann Revers Jarvis, held a Mother's Day event at the work club. Ann Revers Jarvis plays a role in reducing infant mortality by fighting disease and reducing milk contamination. In addition, this organization also played an important role in caring for soldiers during the civil war in the US in 1861-1865. Thanks to Jarvis, Mother's Day has become popular and celebrated in the US. However, over time, Anna Jarvis disagrees with Mother's Day celebrations. She doesn't like Mother's Day, which is celebrated with expensive items, flowers, chocolates, or make-up. The reason Jarvis does not like this is because the excessive celebration of giving gifts is only understood as a trend that has no deep meaning. France
Kompas.com, 22 December 2019, reported that French citizens celebrated Mother's Day on the fourth Sunday in May. If it coincides with the celebration of Pentecost, then Mother's Day celebrations will be postponed for one week after Pentecost. To celebrate Mother's Day, French people usually distribute flowers and greeting cards, and have dinner with the family.
Thailand
Thailand commemorates Mother's Day every 12 August. This Mother's Day celebration also marks the birthday of Queen Sirikit who is highly respected in Thailand. In celebration, ceremonies and parades are held, and use of jasmine flowers as gifts.
Poland
Polish citizens celebrate Mother's Day every 26 May. Mother's Day in Poland or also known as Dzien Matki since the 1900s has been popular during World War II until today. Usually, schoolchildren will organize events such as drawing flowers and writing messages on a piece of paper to celebrate Mother's Day. The letter is usually submitted together with the father who has bought a cake or flowers for the mother.
India
India commemorates Mother's Day on the second Sunday in May. To celebrate this, many shops and restaurants in India offer promos at special prices. Restaurants also usually provide promos because many people invite their mothers to eat together at restaurants. This Mother's Day celebration in India was inspired by what was initiated by Anna Jarvis in the US.
Malawi
Malawi celebrates Mother's Day every October 15th and is used as a national holiday. The country chose October 15 as the celebration of Mother's Day because it coincided with the commemoration of the International Day of Rural Women. This Mother's Day is interpreted as a form of appreciation for women and mothers who struggle for their families to fight poverty because Malawi is still shackled with poverty.
Qatar
Mother's Day in Qatar and other Arab countries is commemorated on March 21, i.e. every March and May. In that area, Mother's Day was introduced by Egyptians, namely journalists named Mustafa and Ali Amin. The two brothers wrote in a column about choosing a day to honor a mother. March 21 was chosen as Mother's Day because it was the beginning of spring and was first held during the reign of Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser in 1956.