Female Indonesian Soldiers perform martial arts to commemorate Raden Ajeng Kartini, a national heroine and leader in Indonesia’s Women’s Rights movement

Indonesia’s top military commander, General Moeldoko, recently defended the practice of performing virginity tests on female recruits. Although Moeldoko admitted to the Jakarta Globe that women’s sexual status does not affect their performance as soldiers, he claimed that it measures morality—a requirement for armed service members. He says, “There is no other way” to gauge a woman’s character “So what’s the problem? It’s a good thing, so why criticize it?”

General Moeldoko

Female officers interviewed by the Human Rights Watch describe the test as traumatic both psychologically and physically. Doctors require women to remove their clothes and submit to an invasive “two-finger” test that violates international human rights law, and according to the World Health Organization has “no scientific validity.”

Men are not even asked about their virginity.

I spent much of my childhood living in Indonesia. Born the U.S., I moved to Jakarta, Indonesia at the age of 10, and lived there for four years. It saddens me to know that such a discriminatory, harmful practice occurs in a place where I made my childhood memories.

But, I’m getting ahead of myself.

Now that I have described a shining example of gender-based violence, I should tell you who I am. My name is Abby Clark. I am a Biology Major and Women’s Studies Minor from Anchorage, Alaska. Learning about social injustices like Indonesia’s virginity tests is one of the reasons I applied to the Moxie Project. My interest in feminism and social justice developed after I began taking Women’s Studies courses in college. Once I could see how the patriarchal structure of American society influences everyday life—from the gender wage gap to street harassment—I could not remain passive. I had to engage in conversation and action addressing systemic sexism.

This summer I have the chance to do just that. As a Communications intern for the National Domestic Worker’s Alliance, I will help work for the dignity and inclusion of domestic workers in labor protections.

During my time in New York, I hope to do two things. Firstly, I want to listen and learn as much as I can from my peers, supervisors, and other people I meet.

Secondly, I want to be bold.

Only a couple years ago, I would never have dared to start my first blog post with such an abhorrent topic as virginity tests. It seemed too shocking—too likely to make others (and myself) feel uncomfortable. But when I read General Moeldoko’s statements on Sunday, I knew I could not let the subject go unmentioned. As Mahatma Gandhi said, “silence becomes cowardice when occasion demands speaking out the whole truth and acting accordingly.”

So, here’s a promise: this summer I will step out of my comfort zone and address issues that matter.