(updated January 27th 2026)

Dear kind souls,

This is a follow-up on the mutual aid Support For a Senior Trans Activist in Indonesia, Rully Mallay, that we started in December 2025. Some unexpected things came up again, and she’s dealing with some personal debt at the moment (around 7 million IDR / ~€420).

For those who don’t know her: Rully Mallay is one of the most influential figures in Indonesia’s queer movement and the founder of Waria Crisis Center (WCC) in Yogyakarta, a community-based crisis space for trans people. She left her job as a teacher to focus on community work and has been part of the movement for decades.

Now at 64, she plans to step back from active community work this September. She’s already past retirement age in Indonesia, but as a trans woman, there’s no pension or safety net for her. Any support we raise will help ease her financial stress so she can rest and take care of herself in this new stage.

This is something I initiated myself, because Rully Mallay is someone I deeply look up to, and I want her to feel the kind of support she’s been giving for so long.

If you’re able to donate or share, it truly means a lot. And if you have questions, feel free to dm me on the gram (@petty.homo) or email hudaragil[@]gmail[.]com.

In solidarity,

Ragil

*******

Dear kind souls,

I’m writing this on behalf of Rully Mallay (or Mami Rully), founder of Waria Crisis Center (WCC Yogyakarta), a crisis center for trans communities and other vulnerable individuals in Yogyakarta, Indonesia, and one of the most courageous and big-hearted movement workers in the LGBTQ+ community in Indonesia.

Mami Rully left her government job years ago to serve the community, giving up comfort to stand by those pushed to the margins. Her work has always come from the heart: legal support, crisis help, emotional care, and all the behind-the-scenes labour that keeps our community going. She’s dedicated her life to uplifting others, and she hasn’t stopped.

But right now, she’s going through an incredibly difficult time.

She’s grieving the loss of her mother and younger sibling, who passed just six months apart this year. She’s also navigating health challenges, all while continuing to run a grassroots shelter and care for others.

Now in her late 60s, Mami Rully is still going strong in her activism, continuing to care for her community day in and day out. But with the weight of caregiving and the many responsibilities on her shoulders, she often puts her own needs last.

She is currently buried in personal debt, debt she took on to support others in crisis. Like many caregivers, she borrowed money not for herself, but to keep people safe. In the last six months alone, this has amounted to IDR 16.5 million (around €850). This is why we’re fundraising, to help ease the financial burden she’s taken on from always putting others first.

I’m one of the many people Mami Rully has helped, in ways I’ll never be able to repay. When I returned to Indonesia for medical treatment, fragile, grieving the loss of both my parents, and completely undone, I honestly didn’t think I’d make it through. But because of Mami Rully, I did. She kept me company through the most painful time of my life, under her care and calm presence. Without her, I wouldn’t be where I am today.

This is an invitation to support someone who has spent her life helping others. By easing some of the burden she carries, we can give back, even in a small way, to someone who has given so much to so many.

This fundraiser will go toward easing her debt, supporting her access to medical care, and giving her the space to rest. Any amount helps.

In solidarity,

Ragil Huda

(on behalf of Rully Mallay)