Old comic strips enjoy a creative revival

ID Nugroho , The Jakarta Post , SURABAYA | Thu, 03/05/2009 11:44 AM | Arts & Design

Another look: The comics at Cergambore have attracted a lot of attention, and comics lovers are seeing something of a revival. (JP/ID Nugroho)

There’s no need to seek out Japanese manga such as Naruto, Crayon Shincan, Dragon Ball, Neon Genesis Evangelion or Pokemon.

And don’t bother looking for American comics such as Superman, the Fantastic Four, Green Lantern, or even Spider Man.

Indonesia has its own comic-book heroes.

They can be found at Cergambore in the French Culture Center (CCCL) in Surabaya, East Java. Cergambore, the Festival of Comics and Surabaya Urban Art, is showing that the local comic fans’ movement is back.

At this event, 19 comics producers and urban artists from across Indonesia exhibited their works. Among them were Beng Rahardian, Azizah Noer, Tita Larasati, the Comic Gangster Group, the Suicide Group, the Sungsang Imaji Group, the National Child Work Group and the False Comic Group.

Other groups who took part were Nasi Putih, Neo Paradigm Neo Group, the Outline Reborn Group, the Syndicate Group, the Virgin is Suck Group, the Wind Ryder Group and the Wipe Group. The most interesting participants were two French comic-book artists, Silvain Moizie and Alfi Zackyelle.

Looking at the Indonesian comics on display at Cergambore is like going back in time to the 1970s and 1980s when Indonesian comics were king in this country. Just mention Ko Ping Ho, Gundala Putra Petir and Jaka Sembung to people from that era. Of course, there is a striking difference in the visual quality of the modern comics, and the print quality of modern comics is better.

Now Indonesian comics have spawned their own souvenir industry that includes pictures of their comic-book heroes. These range from bags and key rings to necklaces. Beng Rahardian, one of the Indonesian comics artists, said that in many cases, Indonesian local comics had only recently started to advance.

(JP/ID Nugroho)

This advance isn’t just in the artwork, but also in the packaging. Another positive development is the courage being shown in expressing ideals.

“It can be seen again that national comics show the most courage in increasing freedom in expressing individual style, and it’s not just the comics that are booming,” Beng Rahardian told The Jakarta Post.

Beng observed that the situation was quite different some time ago. Moreover, he pointed out, in the era before Japanese manga entered Indonesia, Indonesian local comics tended to be in a manga-like style. These came from Surabaya and two industry leaders in particular, Calista Takarai and Anzu Hazawa.

But slowly things started to change, as originality in the national comics scene began to return. Beng saw that things were starting to move in Yogyakarta, with the comic lovers’ community, called Daging Tumbuh, becoming a pioneer of originality.

More recently, when the comic strip Benny and Mice was published, receiving a great response from the market, it seemed that originality was back and getting noticed.

The presence of Benny and Mice, a leading comic strip in Kompas newspaper, provides a reminder that, as well as displaying originality, the strip must be easy to understand.

“Comics can become famous when they keep faith with the original idea,” said Beng Rahardian.

In Surabaya last year, a number of original comics were signed up to the Romance Surabaya Comic group, a group comprising members of the film community, the Indie music crowd and, of course, that community of comics aficionados.

“We were surprised by the extraordinary response to Romance Surabaya,” Broky, a Surabaya comics lover who is also a member of the comics community Outline Reborn, told The Jakarta Post.

That’s why this year they will present the second edition of Romance Surabaya to be launched on Nov. 10 to coincide with Heroes’ Day.

The comics lovers’ community in Jember, around 190 kilometers east of Surabaya, also has a history of creating original local comics. A group called Nasi Putih periodically publishes comics and a bulletin that bears the same name.

The community, which consists of young people from various educational backgrounds, actively initiates art events in the city, which is known as Suar Suir City after a local snack, made from a kind of sweet cake with slightly fermented rice.

“We want to provide space for the spirit to develop without having to consider other issues apart from work,” Gunawan, one of the Nasi Putih activists, told The Jakarta Post.

It doesn’t stop with Outline and Nasi Putih; the 19 artists and comics lovers who took part in Cergambore have almost all worked on Indie comics.

“Indie comics were the original strength of Indonesian comics, but, at the same time this has become a weakness,” said Beng Rahardian.

Comics galore: A visitor looks at some of the comics on display at Cergambore at the French Cultural Center in Surabaya, East Java. (JP/ID Nugroho)

This weakness lies in the fact that messages delivered through the Indie line can transform society in a very limited way only.

“So it’s better if comics producers don’t stop with developing their works in the Indie area only, but also move to the industry area,” said Beng Rahardian, who has initiated a comics class at the Samali Academy.

Kathleen Azali, a friendly woman known as Kat, is an observer of the Surabaya comic scene and has a different perception. The owner of a library, cinema and the Café H2O believes Indie line local comics should survive as a proper place for creative people to express their ideals.

Kathleen’s advice to comics artists is to continue with the old comic culture while maintaining Indie comics on the side. “While the comics on the side are really a breath of fresh air in the industry … the money from the industry comics that make a profit can finance Indie comics, which are idealistic,” she said.

She gave as an example the Wind Ryder Studio, which has a comic titled Wind Ryder. But Wind Ryder also publishes an Indie work called Komikugrafi, which is printed in black and white.
Work by the Neo Paradigm group, which publishes full-color comics, includes the title Aquanus, Benua ke Tujuh (The seventh continent). The same community publishes black and white comics under the title Defragment.

“Black and white comics are made with minimum cost and reprinting can be done with a photocopier,” said Kathleen.

Whatever the design, Kathleen said, Indonesian local comics had to remain original if they were going to be appreciated. Apart from needing to support many people, these types of comics needed space to survive, which might mean holding a special comics exhibition.

“It’s my belief that one day local comics known as Indie will be accepted like Indie bands,” she said. “We’ll just have to wait for that time.”

Majelis: Guardian of the singing stones

ID Nugroho , THE JAKARTA POST , BONDOWOSO, EAST JAVA | Fri, 02/27/2009 2:33 PM | People

(JP/ID Nugroho)

Night had already long fallen when Majelis, from the Trowulan Archaeological Office in Wringin, East Java, was helping guard a site near Glingseran village.

The father of four was accompanied by three of his colleagues. They wanted to foil any attempts by robbers to steal ancient artifacts in his region. At the time, there was a crime wave underway.

Suddenly, a number of people armed with clurit (sharp weapons often favored by the Madurese) appeared. The two groups confronted each other face-to-face. It seemed that a tragedy was about to unfold right in front of their eyes.

"If they'd attacked at that moment we would certainly have been defeated. But before that happened, I explained to them the punishment for stealing ancient artifacts. It was fortunate that they left straight away," Majelis told The Jakarta Post.

Majelis still clearly remembers the incident, which occurred one night in 1982, two years after he was appointed as a permanent staff member at Bondowose Archaeological Office.

"After that incident, I realized that the ancient artifacts had to be guarded because they had been seen by the thieves," said the now 47-year-old man.

Majelis and the ancient monuments in the region of Bondowoso and Situbondo are actually inseparable. This man is the most senior guard among 42 other guards who carry out their duties in the regency that is located about 200 kilometers from Surabaya.

Since 1978, the man has been delegated to guard the sites of monuments in Glingseran village, Wringin subdistrict. In Glingseran, there are 67 stone sites dating back to the megalithic period.

"In 1978, Abdussomad, a staff member of the culture and education section in Bondowoso offered me the job and I took it," he said.

The elementary school graduate has known of the stone sites since he was young.

When he was little, Majelis played in the rice fields looking for crickets, flying kites or just spending time with his friends. He often played around the sarcophagi that were located one kilometer from his house.

"The village people here knew about the stone sites, the sarcophagi and the kendang *house pillar* stones because every night, especially on legi *Friday night in the Javanese calendar* the stones emitted sounds," he said. "It was like a gamelan."

Due to the mystical factor, the local community respected the existence of the stone sites and considered them to be part of their ancestors' inheritance. During the planting season and at harvest time, the residents always presented offerings at the stone sites.

Majelis's job was, among others, to sweep away the rubbish, pull out the grass and brush off the moss from the surrounding stone sites. For that job, he was getting Rp 5,000 (45 US cent) fee per month.

"It was lucky that I wasn't married at that time," he laughed.

In 1980, Majelis was promoted to permanent staff, receiving a salary of Rp 17,500 a month.

Majelis said his salary was not much, but he also had a plantation and a rice field to support his life and family.

"I never get bored with my job in guarding the site. It seems that this is my fate. Even though I have to work at night, I do my job," Majelis said.

His professional attitude has rubbed off on his eldest child, Hariyadi Susanto, who has also become a site guard at nearby Jatisari village, Bondowoso.

Majelis said explaining to his children about his job as an archaeological site guard was difficult.

"It's been difficult to explain my jobs to my children because it's probably a job that's not done by many people," he said. "But I keep telling them that I'm the guard of ancient artifacts, our inheritance from our ancestors."

His simple explanation has helped his children understood their father's job. "They're proud. The proof is there because one has already chosen to become a stone site guard."

During the 31 years on the job, Majelis has felt the ups and downs from the attitude of different governments toward allocating funds for the maintenance and repair of the monuments.

When he was working during the presidency of Abdurrahman Wahid, the government gave Rp 7,000 per month to pay the land taxes. But that fund was closed down when a monetary crisis occurred during the presidency of Megawati Soekarnoputri.

"Up until now, I and three friends on the staff of the archaeological office have had to contribute our own private money to pay the costs," Majelis said.

However, he hopes that one day the situation will return to normal so the government will pay for the maintenance of the monuments from the megalithic period.

He has heard about plans to develop a field museum in Bondowoso.

"If that plan goes ahead maybe the fate of the stone sites will not be so uncertain."

Monumental indifference to the care of megaliths

Iman D. Nugroho , THE JAKARTA POST , SITUBONDO, EAST JAVA | Fri, 02/27/2009 2:31 PM | Java Brew

Extraordinary: A staff from archeological office shows a dolmen preserved by residents in Wringin district.

At first glance, the plantations in Bondowoso regency, East Java, do not look that special. They just seem to be farms against mountain slopes. But the existence of many big stones spread across the region makes the area unique.

"Those stones aren't just any old stones. These stones date back to the megalithic period, and they can still be seen," said Majelis from the Trowulan Archaeological Office in Glingseran village, Wringin, in Bondowoso.

Bondowoso is well known for its tape (a sweet cake made from slightly fermented rice or tubers). It is also famous as a region of megaliths.

According to records at the Trowulan Archaeological Office, there are thousands of monuments in Bondowoso, which is located 192 kilometers from Surabaya, dating back to the megalithic period.

In the Grujugan subdistrict, for example, more than 400 monuments of various types have been discovered. Meanwhile, in Maesan and Pujer subdistricts, there are 140 large stones.

There are also similar stones in Wringin, Tlogosari and Wonosari subdistricts where so far 60 more megaliths have been discovered.

The archaeological site with the biggest monument is found in Wringin subdistrict. This is in the form of a six-meter-high menhir stone. It is estimated that the real number is far bigger because not all stones have been reported to the archaeological office.

The megalithic age occurred about 4,000 years before the present (BP). Historians have divided the period into old and the young megalithic ages.

The people who lived in the old megalithic age focused their activities on farming and hunting. These people learned how to fulfill their daily needs as the number of animals being hunted slowly decreased. The young megalithic age was noted for its culture of carving stones and making metal.

Dihin Ikhtiardi, a history graduate who is also a teacher at a senior high school, said the sites in Bondowoso and Situbondo showed the characteristics of the young megalithic period.

Geographically, Dihin said, Bondowoso was exactly the right place to live during the megalithic period.

The geography of this regency is framed by several mountain ranges, including Mount Ijen, Mount Argopuro, Mount Raung, Mount Krincing, Mount Keong, Mount Saeng, Mount Gugur, Mount Rampe, Mount Suket, Mount Kalisat, Mount Lebang and Mount Malung.

"This is a fertile region with all the various necessities for supporting life," Dihin told The Jakarta Post.

His analysis has been reinforced with the discovery of various functional objects in Bondowoso and part of Situbondo. These include kenong, gravestones, dolmen, menhir and sarcophagi (stone coffins).

The kenong stones lay at the base of the poles used to build houses, while dolmen and menhir functioned as places of worship.

Sarcophagi and gravestones are all signs of a burial place.

"All the signs here *in Bondowoso and Situbondo* show that this was a region where the people from the megalithic period lived," he said.

What a pity then, that although the sites of these monuments from the megalithic period are very important many are in a rather sad condition. For example, the stones in Wringin subdistrict, Bondowoso. From the 60 or so megalithic monuments seen in this area, located just 15 kilometers from Bondowoso city, only 20 stone sites are well maintained.

This is the basic situation. The sites with kendang stones, sarcophagi and dolmen were covered in moss. They were located in the middle of a plantation and the sites were filled with leaves from the nearby surroundings.

The site located in Grujugan subdistrict, five kilometers from Bondowoso, was in a similar condition. Although in a better physical condition than the sites in Wringin subdistrict, it was not very well maintained.

Three sarcophagi located in the middle of the rice fields have been shattered. A gravestone, which stands beside a resident's house, has succumbed to an attack by moss and age. It has been broken.

Past relics: Students look at stones from Megalith period found inside Selasih Indah timber factory in Grujugan district, Bondowoso regency in East Java.

A collection of stones inside a timber factory face a similar fate. It is as though these things are not useful, so this collection of historical monuments has been left in a jumble behind the factory. Majelis said preservation of the stone sites in Bondowoso and Situbondo did not receive enough funding from the government.

The man, who has been working since 1978, said that in all this time, the government only allocated funds to pay the land tax for the location where the monuments lie. In Wringin subdistrict, for example, from the 60 stone sites there, the land tax provides only enough money for 20 stone sites at the rate of Rp 7,000 (60 US cent) per stone site.

"That funding stopped when Indonesia was hit by the monetary crisis during Megawati Soekarnoputri's presidency. All this time, we *the staff members of the Trowulan Archaeological Office* have personally paid the tax," Majelis said.

The situation has been aggravated by the activities of robbers who have been active at the monument sites. Usually it is the statue-shaped monuments that are the usual targets.

"Megalith thieves were really active in the 1980s. At that time the staff members had to keep watch and stay awake all night to prevent thieving," Majelis said.

At that time, rumors had it that the monuments contained gold. That is why the local community smashed the stones to try and extract the gold.

The number of stone sites damaged by the activity is hard to imagine.

Meanwhile, the number of archaeological office staff members based in Bondowoso and Situbondo is low. In Bondowoso, there are only 35 staff members who have to look after 1,000 or more stone sites spread across almost all of the regency.

Meanwhile in Situbondo, there are only eight staff members to guard 50 or more stone sites.

"On one night, four staff members had to fight 14 robbers. It was lucky that we were all safe," Majelis said.

Cultural observer Ayu Sutarto has seen the deterioration of monument sites in Bondowoso and Situbondo, saying it was a classical case of no funding.

"The regency government can't do much to save these stone sites because it has no funds and on top of that it is not aware that these monumental sites are something important," Ayu said.

She said the only thing that could be done was to establish Bondowoso as an open museum with the support of the government and a significant amount of money.

She said the government had to buy land surrounding the stone sites and build the appropriate infrastructure, such as being done in Mojokerto at the Majapahit kingdom site in Trowulan region.

The government should also maximize the use of the field museum by introducing classroom teachings about the sites to students.

"This is how the government can make the best of the historical remains there," she said.

- Photos by ID Nugroho

Workers demand respect for their right to associate

ID Nugroho , THE JAKARTA POST , SURABAYA | Thu, 02/26/2009 1:58 PM | The Archipelago

Hundreds of workers grouped under a number of different organizations staged a rally Wednesday to demand the East Java High Court respect their right to form workers' associations.

The demand was made over fears that the court would turn down a sentence handed down by Bangil District court in December last year to the general manager of PT King Jim Indonesia (KJI) for banning workers from establishing a workers' association at the company. The KJI case was sparked after general manager Fatoni Prawata barred KJI workers from establishing an association in the company. Fatoni, who received an 18-month sentence, appealed to the East Java High court.

"This is the first time that the workers' right to associate has been legally protected. We must therefore guard it," said Anwar Sastro Ma'ruf from the Alliance of Workers in Protest (ABM).

With university students also taking part, Wednesday's rally began at the Industrial Relations Settlement (PHI) office and proceeded to the provincial prosecutors' office and the court.

In their speeches, the workers said that although they still faced gloomy conditions, that did not mean they had no right to associate.

Jamalluddin, coordinator of ABM's East Java branch, said Fatoni's appeal was well within his rights. However, he added, the uncertainty in Indonesian law had made workers worried that the court would annul the sentence.

"That is why we need to take to the streets, stage a rally to demand the high court not play with workers' fate," he said.

In a closed-door meeting with workers' representatives, the court confirmed they had already reached a verdict for Fatoni's appeal on Monday.

But they insisted they could not give a copy to the demonstrators for fear of violating Article 10 of the Criminal Code, which stipulates only prosecutors and defendants deserve a copy of the verdict.

"It's now in the rephrasing process and will be sent to the prosecutors and the defendant," said court chief M. Arief.

He added any party not satisfied with the verdict was welcome to appeal to the Supreme Court.

Responding to the statement, Jamalluddin said he respected the high court's decision not to give out a copy of the verdict, but warned that if it was not to the workers' liking, workers across East Java would return to the streets in a much bigger rally.

"We will camp in front of the high court building if it really disappoints us," he said, adding that courts in East Java had a "bad track record" when it came to trying cases related to workers.

Stop abusing Ponari, Children’s rights activists urge

ID Nugroho and Indra Harsaputra , The Jakarta Post , SURABAYA | Sat, 02/21/2009 11:33 AM | The Archipelago

The emergence of child “healer” Ponari in Balongsari village, Megaluh, Jombang, has given rise to heated public debate.

The healing practice has claimed four lives, and is now fuelling allegations of rights abuses, with activists calling for the so-called “magical” health activity to end.

Leading child protection advocate Seto Mulyadi and National Commission for Child Protection secretary-general, Arist Merdeka Sirait, said in separate visits earlier this week to Ponari’s home village that the government should take measures to stop villagers abusing the 9-year-old boy.

They said that despite the poverty in the village, security and education authorities should prevent local villagers from exploiting Ponari for commercial gain – with thousands of would-be supplicants visiting the village daily to have their illnesses cured – and allow him his basic rights as a child.

“The law guarantees Ponari’s human rights. Like his peers, the child has the right to go to school, to get a better education; and he also has the right to play games and, unlike this, live in a healthy environment,” Seto said.

Ariest also denounced the local police’s slow moves in stopping Ponari’s “health” practice from devolving into a three-ring circus, despite the rising number of dead and injured victims flocking to see the boy.

“Ponari wants to go school, but he can’t because many sides have abused him for commercial
interests; even his father was severely assaulted when tried to prevent his own son from being abused,” he said.

Ponari, a third-grader at a state elementary school in neighboring Kedungsari village, has not been in class since mid-January. The school has repeatedly asked his father, Kasim, to bring his son to school; but each time he tried, Kasim met
with strong resistance from villagers and visitors.

Villagers are lapping up the attention and milking the hype by setting up food and beverage stalls and parking lots for visitors, with daily turnover in the neighborhood reportedly reaching Rp 1 billion (US$84,745).

Balongsari village head Nila Cahyani denied the rights abuse allegations, but said her village had profited from Ponari’s visitors, the food trade and parking fees.

Villages in Megaluh district became a local focus of attention after rumors spread rapidly from mouth to mouth in the past month that Ponari could heal all diseases with a miraculous stone he once found near his house.

The provincial chapter of the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) has delivered an official letter
asking East Java Governor Soekarwo to act quickly to stop the practice in an attempt to prevent more deaths.

“The ‘health’ practice must be stopped, because it has claimed four human lives and is raising an increasing public polemic,” East Java MUI chairman Abdusomad Bukhori said Wednesday.

He added the Ponari phenomenon went against Islamic teaching because it centered on a “miraculous” stone that could cure all sorts of ailments.

Some sick visitors said they felt better after visiting Ponari several times, while others, mostly suffering from degenerative diseases, said they had seen no progress.

Sociologist Bagong Suyanto has called on the government to give low-income people wider access to healthcare services, saying the Ponari hype was the reflection of a sick, impoverished society that had been denied access to the current expensive healthcare services.