Minang community in Malaysia to build Rumah Gadang in KL

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Mon, 11/07/2011 11:04 AM

The Minang community in Malaysia has plans to set up a Rumah Gadang, or a large house with horn-like roof, in Gombak, Kuala Lumpur as part of efforts to preserve the Minangkabau culture overseas.

“The wish to build the Gadang house has partly materialized through the purchase of a 2 hectare plot of land in Gombak,” said chairman of the Minangkabau Community Union (PIKMM) Buchari Ibrahim on the sidelines of a familial gathering of the Minang community in Kuala Lumpur on Sunday evening.

Buchari said that the union was now in the process of arranging a land ownership certificate.

According to Buhari, the community has 20,000 Malaysian Ringgit to settle the paperwork for the Rumah Gadang.

“Minang people in Jakarta, Surabaya as well as those in West Sumatra have lent their support to the construction of the Rumah Gadang in Malaysia,” he was quoted as saying by Antara news wire.

Also present at the Sunday meeting was an official from the Indonesian embassy, Rusdi MA, and hundreds of Minang people living and working in the country.

Two artists from West Sumatra, Lepay and Bunda (Rafflesia) had been invited to enliven the gathering.

"Songs and pantun [poetic quatrains] recited by Lepay and Bunda, serve to quench the people's longing of homecoming,” said Uni, a waiter at a restaurant in Kuala Lumpur, who attended the gathering.

Another union committee member, Syafrinaldi Sa’ad, said that thousands of Minang people were living in the country. The union counts more than 1000 households within its membership.

Papua community welcomes development acceleration plan

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Wed, 02/16/2011 11:44 AM | Archipelago

Papuan community leader and city councilor Athanasius Allo Rafra has welcomed the government plan to establish a taskforce in March in a bid to accelerate development in Papua and West Papua provinces.

"I support the establishment of the taskforce because the development of Papua and West Papua has progressed at a snail's pace," Allo Rafra said Wednesday as quoted by Antara.

The taskforce (UP4B) would work to make sure the development of the provinces is conducted in line with government and community priorities.

Allo lamented that budget allocations in both provinces had been squandered because of unclear guidelines on development priorities.

“It isn’t clear where the priorities lie, whether it is in infrastructure, education, health or other sectors,” he said.

Allo said he hoped the taskforce would perform a similar function as the taskforce that helped Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam and Nias provinces to recover after the earthquake and tsunami.

He called on the central government to strictly supervise all development activities in Papua and West Papua to avoid misuse of the state budget.