By: Nirla Hastari, Finance Admin for the YKPI Program
Working on human rights and freedom of religion or belief issues is often imagined as frontline advocacy work: assisting victims, policy discussions, or public actions. However, from my position as a Finance Admin at the Indonesian Foundation for Justice and Peace (YKPI), I have learned that the struggle also happens quietly behind the desk, amidst spreadsheets, financial reports, and orderly administrative procedures.
Finding Meaning in Technical Work
Initially, I viewed the finance admin role as purely technical: ensuring the budget runs, reports are accurate, and fund accountability is completed on time. But over time, a realization dawned on me. Every number I manage actually represents real life, the transportation cost for a local facilitator to meet a victim, refreshments for a meeting that brings two conflicting parties together, or rent for a safe space for a vulnerable community.
At YKPI, human rights and interfaith issues are not just programmatic jargon. They are present in small daily decisions: how a budget is structured to genuinely support the capacity of local partners, how financial flexibility is designed for a rapid response to emergency situations of violence, and how strict accountability is, in fact, a form of our moral responsibility to the communities we serve.
Weaving Networks from an Unseen Space
Even though I’m not always present in advocacy meeting rooms, I realize I am directly involved in networking through the administrative processes that support it. Collaboration with other civil society organizations, both local and national, always requires a foundation of trust. And that trust is built, in part, through a financial system that is transparent, accountable, and easy for everyone to understand.
I learned that a healthy network is not just about meetings and joint statements, but also about commitment manifested through orderly and honest management. When YKPI supports local partners in advocating for policy, that work would not run smoothly without clear proposals, timely disbursement of funds, and honest reports that accurately describe the process. From here, I understand more clearly: collective struggle needs every single role without exception, including those often overlooked.
The Challenge of Consolidation: Turning Sectoral Ego into Shared Resources
One of the hidden challenges I observe is the persistent strength of sectoral egos. This is felt not only in advocacy dynamics but also seeps into resource management. There’s a tendency to view the budget as “mine” or “my organizations,” not as “our shared tool” to drive greater change.
My experience at YKPI has taught me the importance of promoting truly coalition-based work, including in planning and using resources. When organizations are willing to sit together, share roles based on capacity, and agree on collective goals, the burden of the struggle is distributed. The impact becomes deeper and wider. Administrative and financial processes managed collaboratively actually become pillars that strengthen the coalition.
Immeasurable Satisfaction Behind Neat Reports
The happiest moments for me are not merely when the final financial report is approved without notes. They are when good news comes from the field: a discriminatory regulation is successfully revoked, public services begin to accommodate minority groups, or when a local partner shares that they now feel more confident and supported.
In those moments, I feel directly connected. I realize that my work ensuring every rupiah is well-documented is an inseparable part of those small victories. There is a unique satisfaction in knowing that a well-ordered system actually gives space for the program team and partners to move more agilely, bravely, and progressively.
Rights-Holders Must Remain the Center
From behind the computer screen and piles of receipts, one lesson is constantly confirmed: rights-holders must remain the center of all our work. Budgets, reports, and administration are not the end goals. They are all merely tools. Tools to ensure that the communities we serve have safe spaces, voices that are heard, and strong bargaining power.
Therefore, managing finances with a justice perspective is a necessity. It is not merely an administrative duty to donors, but an intrinsic part of the struggle strategy itself. When every single rupiah is accounted for with principles of honesty and taking sides, it transforms into ammunition to build a more just world.
Nurturing Hope from Behind the Spreadsheet
For me, working at YKPI is an endless learning process about the essence of justice, the power of true collaboration, and humility in the struggle. In the midst of a civic space that sometimes feels increasingly narrow, every role becomes crucial.
From behind numbers and spreadsheets that may seem dry, I have instead learned that hope can be nurtured and grown. The way is through work that is consistent, transparent, and always takes the right side. As long as we continue to nurture this web of humanity with trust and integrity, I am confident that the collective struggle for human rights and interfaith harmony in Indonesia will always find its way with or without the spotlight.