Jakarta. Raden Adjeng Kartini, or Lady Kartini, was born on Apr. 21, 1879. Celebration of her birthday is also a commemoration of the century-long struggle for women's rights in Indonesia.

A daughter of Jepara regent, Kartini attended a Dutch primary school. After six years, she was fluent in Dutch — an unusual achievement for a Javanese women at the time. Kartini also became fond of Western ideals.

Born into an aristocratic Javanese family, at the age of 12 she was told to leave school and stay at home to prepare for marriage. She aspired to pursue her education, but it was not possible.

During her seclusion, she wrote letters to her former sewing teacher, Marie, her former schoolmates, Dutch feminist Stella Zeehandelaar, and Dutch official Jacques. H. Abendanon. In her letters, she expressed her dissent with the gender inequality in Javanese tradition, forced marriages, and denying women the freedom to pursue education.

She also spent a lot of time reading Dutch newspapers, books and  magazines, opening her to European feminism. It ignited her desire to fight for women's rights. With her linguistic background, Kartini became a regular contributor to Dutch magazine De Hollandsche Lelie ("The Dutch Lily").

At the age of 24, she married Rembang regent Raden Adipati Joyodiningrat, 26 years her senior.

In 1903, Kartini opened the first Indonesian primary school for Javanese girls. The school was opened to all, regardless of their social status, and adopted a progressive Western curriculum.

On Sept. 17, 1904, Kartini died in labor. Inspired by her, the Van Deventer family established the R. A. Kartini Foundation and opened "Kartini schools" in Central Java's Semarang, Yogyakarta, and in Malang and Surabaya in East Java.

Kartini's pen pal Abendanon, Minister for Culture, Religion and Industry in the Dutch East Indies, compiled and published her letters as "Door Duisternis tot Licht," ("Out of Darkness Comes Light"). The book was published in 1911 and translated into English as "Letters of a Javanese Princess."

Kartini Day is celebrated on Apr. 21 across Indonesia.