Raditya Arief Putrasetiawan proved that personal limitations are not obstacles to achieving goals. Radit, who was born blind, completed his undergraduate education at Universitas Indonesia with cum laude honors. He achieved a Cumulative Achievement Index (GPA) of 3.84 in 3.5 years in the Arabic Literature Study Program at the Faculty of Humanities.
When met at the Graduation Ceremony for the 2023/2024 Academic Year at Balairung, Radit said that his achievements were inseparable from the support system within UI. Family, campus, and friends are the parties who have the most influence on educational success. During the process, obstacles will always be there, according to Radit. “However, thanks to my support system, lecturers, and friends who helped a lot,” said Radit.
According to him, the current development of digital technology makes it easier to access learning materials because lecture materials can be converted into audio. This, of course, makes it easier for blind friends to study. There are also many e-books and articles available in the library to help him complete his coursework and final project research.
Radit raised the Interest and Motivation of Blind People to learn Arabic in his research. According to him, now more and more blind people are interested in language because they consider the role of language to be necessary, especially as capital to get better job prospects. Arabic is in great demand, he said, because of the beauty of the structure and uniqueness of the language. For blind Muslims, there is a strong desire to be able to read, memorize, and understand the Al-Quran directly from the source.
Despite this, there are still blind friends who are afraid to pursue general education considering the obstacles to access to learning for people with disabilities. These fears were finally refuted by Radit’s success in proving that people with disabilities can compete and achieve. His success aroused feelings of emotion and pride in his mother who accompanied him during the graduation. Nira’s mother, as she is known, talked about how her child struggled to pursue formal education. “There have been a lot of struggles to get to this point. From him not being able to until he tries.” I always say, “You can. I’m happy, he’s willing to try.”
According to Mrs. Nira, Radit used to like Mathematics and Physics subjects. However, since he was in high school (SMA), his dream stopped. His physical condition prevented him from pursuing education in science and technology. Even so, Radit did not give up. He still maximizes his grades in social subjects to get into UI through SNMPTN.
By achieving this, Mrs. Nira hopes her child can continue pursuing his dreams. She also hopes that access to education and employment in Indonesia for people with disabilities will be broadened so they do not need to go far abroad to get it. Mrs. Nira believes that there are many children with disabilities out there who are also competent and able to compete in any field, as long as they are given the same opportunities to have access to develop themselves.
