W. Sumatra: Only 5 shelters for street children operational

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Fri, 11/04/2011 11:08 AM

Only five shelters for street children are operational in West Sumatra, the province's Social Services Agency says.

“Back in 2008 we had 22 shelters for street children,” Haryolelono, the agency's head of social protection and health services for children, youth and the elderly, said Thursday in Padang as quoted by antaranews.com.

Haryolelono added of the 22 shelters, only five in Solok were up and running because of a lack of attention from the local government.

Shelters in other areas including Padang, Padangpanjang, Padangpariaman, Sawahlunto and Sijunjung were still there but not running properly, he said.

Haryolelono said the shelters were the responsibility of the local administrations, adding that his agency had prepared scholarships and rice subsidies to anticipate the increase in numbers of street children in the province.

Text your say: Dreaming of younger candidates

The Jakarta Post | Fri, 11/04/2011 8:40 AM

Your comments on the domination of the Indonesian political scene by old faces and the absence of young potential candidates for the 2014 presidential election:

Doesn’t it mean that old faces are old roses and old cracks? Frankly speaking, I was hoping that young politicians would bring about a fresh political scene in Indonesia.

The reality is still beyond our hope, for the performance of them, like what Nazaruddin did, hurt the people. The old faces have made use of this condition to dominate. Don’t blame them!

Ahmad Ghozali
Majalengka, West Java

It’s time for the young to lead this country.

Cucu Perwira Purwakarta
West Java

The young generation is no guarantee better than the old faces for the 2014 presidential election.

E. Nurdin
Jakarta

Younger doesn’t necessarily mean better. I’d support a leader with higher integrity no matter if she/he is young or old. Age has nothing to do with wisdom. It is courage (not our age) that can lead us to make a difference.

Happy Indriyono
Yogyakarta

The 2014 presidential election is still far away.

Taco de Vries
Aceh

Don’t forget Sri Mulyani Indrawati, who is currently in the World Bank. She could be the dark horse if she decides to run and if there’s any political party willing to recruit her.

Hanutama Cahya

It’s a lesson for young people to establish networking from the beginning so that we (old people) know you and we can elect younger and cleaner figures to run the republic.

Eddy Arjuna Zainy
Bekasi, West Java

This is a hard reality of the Indonesian political scene. We can see artificial thinking of many political leaders. We hope the younger generations are preparing themselves to be wise, so they can serve the country better than their older generation.

Laurent Dadag Yogama

It is so sad that this country has no notable younger figures.

Iwan Pranoto

We need to revamp Indonesia’s political party structure and recruitment for new or alternative political figures to emerge.

Sahala Sianipar

Oligarchy kills the seeds of rising stars.

Nugroho

It is because the old figures have not wanted to step aside from the political scene.

Thita Rossiana Putri

Next topic

While the government questions the credibility of the organizers, former vice president Jusuf Kalla promotes campaign for the inclusion of the Komodo National Park in the New7Wonders of Nature competition. What do you think?

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4 dead, 57 trapped in China coal mine rock blast

Associated Press, China | Fri, 11/04/2011 10:36 AM

Rescuers were working Friday to try to save 57 miners who were trapped in a coal mine in central China after a rock explosion that followed a small earthquake, state media reported. Four miners were killed in the blast.

The accident in the coal mine in the city of Sanmenxia in Henan province occurred Thursday evening when 75 miners were working in the shaft, the official Xinhua News Agency said. Fourteen workers escaped.

At least 200 workers were digging a small rescue tunnel about 1,650 feet (500 meters) deep to try to reach the trapped miners, the People's Daily newspaper's website said.

The Qianqiu Coal Mine belongs to Yima Coal Group, a large state-owned coal company in Henan, the State Administration of Work Safety said on its website.

Xinhua said a magnitude-2.9 earthquake occurred to the east of Sanmenxia and that the rock explosion happened about 30 minutes later.

The phenomenon known as a "rock burst" occurs when settling layers of earth bear down on the walls of a mine and result in a sudden, catastrophic release of stored energy. Exploding pillars can turn chunks of rock or coal into deadly missiles, and the shock waves alone can be lethal.

The survival of the trapped miners depends on the intensity of the rock explosion and the rescuers' ability to provide ventilation to them, a local official told The Associated Press.

"If it was not very strong, it might have caused the tunnel to get narrower, but we might still be able to send some air in there to ensure ventilation," said the Yima city Communist Party's head of propaganda, who would give only his surname, Tian, as is common with Chinese officials.

Mexican mayor slain ahead of elections

Associated Press, Mexico | Fri, 11/04/2011 10:32 AM

The mayor of La Piedad was handing out campaign fliers outside a fast-food restaurant when a black SUV pulled up, a hand holding a pistol appeared at its window, and he went down with a shot.

Ricardo Guzman, 45, died late Wednesday in an ambulance racing to the hospital, one of more than two dozen Mexican mayors who've been assassinated since 2006, the majority presumed victims of drug violence.

But Guzman's killing raised new questions about organized crime's impact on Mexico's democracy, specifically the Nov. 13 elections in the western state of Michoacan, where Guzman had been handing out campaign material for gubernatorial candidate Luisa Maria Calderon, President Felipe Calderon's sister.

Before Guzman's assassination, polling firm workers were kidnapped in August while trying to conduct surveys on the election, though they were later released unharmed. The three major political parties all say they have local candidates who have received some kind of pressure or threats in the Calderon family home state, where the president launched his drug war five years ago.

Creating theater in the capital

Aruna Harjani, Contributor, Jakarta | Fri, 11/04/2011 9:51 AM

Whether in New York, London or Jakarta, theater has its own magic.
Diverse: The Indian, Javanese, and Chinese characters from Singh Sang Song on stage. Courtesy of Singh Sang Song

If you haven’t had the opportunity to go to the theater in the West, then it is good to know that people in Indonesia have been busy pioneering Western-style plays with Indonesian touches.

Three recent plays, Ali Topan, Laskar Pelangi and Singh Sang Song, all had their own unique ways of combining East and West.

Ali Topan is a love story set in the 1970s, Laskar Pelangi is a story about children from Sumatra and Singh Sang Song is about three bachelors, one Indian, one Javanese and one Chinese, who have the
same mother.
East meets East: The Chinese son in Singh Sang Song. Courtesy of Singh Sang Song

The risks of producing and creating plays in Indonesia are very high these days. First, Indonesians are still not into so-called “stage culture”. Although Teater Koma has been around for awhile — and wayang for even longer — the budgets to produce those forms of entertainment are low, as are ticket costs. But, with the highly budgeted musicals staged these last two years using the best multimedia, props and artists, the same amount will get one a seat in the balcony section. VIP seats can easily cost Rp 750,000 (US$83) to Rp 1 million.

Riri Reza, the creator of Laskar Pelangi said, “When we started the project, we already knew that with the high cost of our production that the play would have to be shown for a minimum of three weeks. Our props and set design were complex, we actually had the set made to look like a village; we had an ensemble that played folk music that we called the theater company.

“We were very ambitious; Mira and I thought that if we want to enter this line [of work], we had to be grand enough to make a good impression. We hired professional musicians and actors to save time, as they do not require training.”
The boards: A scene from Singh Sang Song. Courtesy of Singh Sang Song

He added, “There were many who called to congratulate [us] and have heard about Laskar Pelangi but had not seen it. They asked for another showing after the 28 performances.” Although the play was shown again from July 1 to 10, the investment has still not been recovered, even though the target of 25,000 viewers has already been achieved.

Maera Arifin Panigoro of Ali Topan said, “I wanted to introduce a musical similar to the ones on Broadway with a simple storyline, very easy to digest. I wanted to let the Indonesian people have an alternative because this is something that Westerners having been doing for so many years. The roots of our theater culture are all musical, there is singing, dancing and acting.”

She said she believes in educating people about musicals that have been and that will be. Ali Topan’s nine shows brought in over 3,000 viewers and broke even on the financial side.

“For Singh Sang Song, the production costs were minimal but had the same effect on the audience as Ali Topan and Laskar Pelangi. I wanted to create a play with a minimal budget using the best multimedia, lights and props and with a maximal effect on the audience. I wanted to make people laugh and cry and at the same time impart a moral message… Like Maera and Riri, I wanted to educate the viewers on the existence of a variety of musicals,” the Singh Sang Song creator said.
On stage: An image from Singh Sang Song shows passengers aboard a Metro Mini bus. Courtesy of Singh Sang Song

Sukamdani Sryantoro, who watched Ali Topan and Laskar Pelangi, noted that, “Ali Topan was entertaining because the producer was able to present the 70s in an attractive modern setting … Laskar Pelangi on the other hand showed the difference between watching the story on film or at the theater. The clever use of multimedia and sets made watching Laskar Pelangi better live.”

The most challenging issue in this kind of an industry is the venue. There are limited theatrical theaters in Jakarta, and the ones now have limited equipment.

Maera notes, “We don’t have a proper theater building in Jakarta with international standards. It makes it more difficult for us in terms of production. We have to add more sound systems and lightings and the cost to rent them are per day, so this increases the production costs … Our difficulty at the moment is finding the right place to stage our plays.”  

Riri’s main concern is the lack of venues, as it is not possible to book any theater for a long time. “If we stage the show for three months, then we will have a very good performance. The first five performances are like a test for the performers, it is only from the sixth performance onwards that the actors get the feel that they live in that shack and then for all you know, it’s the final performance already. So I really hope we can have a good theater that we can book for six months so people all over the country can have the
opportunity to watch the play.”

Acting in a film is less strenuous, Riri said, and stage actors require more of a time commitment. “For musicals you demand a lot more from the actors, you demand full commitment, you demand the ability to sing, dance and act but you can’t afford to pay them as much as film actors.” The stage actors are barely paid half of their film counterparts on top of that they have to go through vocal exercises for the first two hours of each rehearsal, then the scene practices for the next one hour, every day for four months”.
Behind the scenes: Backstage there are many stagehands to assist the actors. Courtesy of Singh Sang Song

For Singh Sang Song, the actors were trained in four and a half months, mostly after office hours, as the artists were mostly businessmen and housewives who had a talent for acting. Since the play was for charitable purposes, the actors performed for free. The budget instead concentrated on multimedia and props.

Riri said, “Last year there were several plays staged but suddenly it stopped because people realized that it wasn’t as easy as it looks because there is not enough audience and sponsorship; there’s just not enough of everything … We also need to educate people to get them interested in performing arts. And if the show is good, then you have credibility, then people advertise for you by word of mouth.”

Maera notes, “I am very positive about this industry. It will be there as long as the production houses can sustain this for another two or three years. And if the government can support with price reductions of the rentals, then all the more.”

At the end of the day, the theater is all about one’s own talent, one’s intelligence, one’s passion to bring to life a story in a magical way possessing the capacity to mesmerize the audience from head to toe.

Ahmad Tohari: The return of the people�s writer

Ika Krismantari, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Fri, 11/04/2011 10:02 AM

Ahmad TohariIndonesian writer Ahmad Tohari is back, not with a new book but a movie.

Leaving his hideout in a secluded hamlet in Purwokerto, Central Java, Tohari returned again to Jakarta to attend a screening of Sang Penari (The Dancer) on Wednesday morning, which was inspired by his famous trilogy Ronggeng Dukuh Paruk (A Dancing Girl of Paruk Village).

But this is not the first time the epic was made into a film. In 1983, filmmaker Yazman Yazid brought the characters in the book alive onscreen with a 96-minute film titled Darah dan Mahkota Ronggeng (Blood and Crown of the Dancing Girl).

However, Tohari vowed never to watch the film for he felt disappointed that his novel, which has been praised as one of the greats of Indonesian literature, ended up a cheap pseudo-porn flick in Yazman’s hands.

Twenty-eight years later, big names in the movie industry — top producer Shanty Harman (Pasir Berbisik or Whispering Sands, The Photograph and Banyu Biru), award-winning screenwriter Salman Aristo (Ayat-Ayat Cinta or Verses of Love and Laskar Pelangi or Rainbow Troops) and talented new director Ifa Isfansyah (Garuda di Dadaku or Garuda in My Heart) — made a second attempt to reinterpret the masterpiece.

This time the maestro loved it, forcing him out of his peaceful exile in Tinggar Jaya village, 27 kilometers from Purwokerto, to celebrate the movie, which took four years to make.

“Ifa has succeeded in grasping the spirit of the novel,” the 63-year-old said, praising the work of the young director in a recent interview with The Jakarta Post.

The bespectacled man even confessed that Ifa had made him cry with scenes that exposed the mass killing of innocents by the military because of their alleged connection with communism.

“[Ifa] is braver than me,” said Tohari, who could not say much in his book about the violence of the 1960s because of oppression from the authorities when the novel was written.

Sporting a black cap and simple white shirt and black trousers, Tohari looked very humble against the crowds of celebrities and people attending the movie screening for the media in Jakarta.

His modest appearance, however, didn’t prevent him from being the star at the event. When the show was over, fans and book lovers swarmed Tohari, asking him to sign their books or take pictures with them.

“I never liked Jakarta,” he said.

“Maybe I am just too old,” he told the Post with a laugh while signing books.

Tohari once worked in Jakarta as an editor for numerous publications in the 1970s and 1980s. But, the man decided to return to his village because he felt he did not belong in the city.

“I felt alienated like an ant walking in the desert,” said the former editor of Merdeka.

It was a wise decision after all, because most of Tohari’s works were inspired by things not far from his home.

In a previous interview with the Post, he revealed that a river near his home had given birth to many ideas for books, including Ronggeng Dukuh Paruk, which has been translated into English, Japanese, Dutch, German and Chinese.

The proximity of the writer of 11 novels to nature has helped hone his skills at describing his surroundings in detail. Critics have acknowledged Tohari’s mastery in making the environment in his books come alive in readers’ imaginations.

He is also known as a writer of the poor, with many of his works telling the story of unfortunate persons living in remote villages trying to survive under the country’s social, political and economic pressures.

The book lover said his works had brought him to a cultural mission of empowering those people.

And in the same spirit, the writer is currently busy running a local magazine in his town, preserving the local Banyumasan language.

Few people speak Banyumasan, putting the language at the brink of extinction, he said.

With the spirit of promoting the local dialect, Tohari set up the magazine Ancas, meaning vision, in 2009 with 10 people.

Yet, Tohari has managed to develop the publication, completely written in Banyumasan, from a circulation of 2,000 at the beginning to 3,500 currently.

Apart from running a magazine, the man who prefers to be called Akang (brother) is also involved in activities to empower young local writers.

“I have made a commitment to support the birth of young writers surrounding me,” said Tohari, who has endorsed three short story compilations by his juniors.

He has been encouraging young authors to set up an independent publishing house so they don’t need to be dependent on big publishing companies to publish their works.

Life is quite busy for Tohari nowadays but he continues to write.

“I want to make one more novel that matches Ronggeng Dukuh Paruk [in quality],” said the writer, who said it took him four years to complete the book.

He told the Post that his upcoming book will tell the story of a child whose parents are allegedly
involved with communism.

But when will he stop writing?

“When I become used to my surroundings, that means I have lost my power [to write],” the man answered.

But, as long as political and social conditions still anger him, Tohari says he will always continue to write.

“If I am still capable of being angry seeing rampant corruption or children whose school buildings are broken, or my neighbors who cannot get to the doctor... If I still can get mad at the government, legislators, the President, that means I still have fuel [to write],” he said.

So, let’s wait for the return of this writer of the people and his new novel.

KPK plans to follow up on Sitorus graft allegations

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Fri, 11/04/2011 11:10 AM

The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) plans follow up on recent allegations by the Judicial Corruption Taskforce that graft took place in a land dispute between the Forestry Ministry and DL Sitorus, a prominent businessman operating oil palm plantations in Sumatra.

“We will conduct a follow-up investigation of the report,” Johan said Friday as quoted by tempointeraktif.com.

The taskforce received a report from Hendrik R.E Assa, whose ex-wife was a notary who was hired by Sitorus to channel a bribe worth more than Rp 140 billion to influential figures including Supreme Court justices presiding over the case.

Former forestry minister MS Kaban also said Sitorus had attempted to bribe him through his relatives.

Kaban said, however, he had rejected the offer and continued the legal process.