Gender equality a threat to unique Donggala silk<\/p>\n
Hera Diani, The Jakarta Post, Donggala, Central Sulawesi<\/p>\n
Juleha, 67, is proud of the fact that three of her daughters, of
\nfive children, have their own careers and are financially
\nindependent.<\/p>\n
Yet, the resident of Kabonga Kecil village, Banawa district,
\ncomplained about how young women today refuse to learn the skill
\nthat has been passed down through generations: weaving.<\/p>\n
\"My daughters just don't want to do this. They're lazy, or
\nhave got too many other things to do: teaching and working. And
\nwhile they're at work, they drop their children here and ask me
\nto mind them,\" sighed the woman at a recent visit I made to her
\nhouse.<\/p>\n
In front of her was the traditional weaving equipment made of
\nebony, gedokan, as Juleha prepared to work on another sarong in
\nthe living room that noon.<\/p>\n
Around her, two toddlers ran around the simple wooden house,
\nwhile one of her daughters-in-law was trying to put her baby to
\nsleep.<\/p>\n
\"If my grandchildren are not around, I can finish more
\nquickly,\" Juleha said while looking for her glasses, finding them
\nin a wooden box filled with thread.<\/p>\n
She is justified in worrying, though, as Juleha is one of only
\nthree elderly women left in the village with the skill to produce
\ntraditional handwoven cloth.<\/p>\n
Donggala regency is famous for its home industry that produces
\nhandwoven cloth, or ikat, made of silk, which has become a
\ntrademark of Central Sulawesi.<\/p>\n
Unfortunately, handwoven textiles are on the brink of
\nextinction, as fewer and fewer women are willing to master the
\nskill, like Juleha's daughters.<\/p>\n
At neighboring Wani village, there is not a single woman left
\nwho can weave using gedokan. In the past, Wani was the most
\nfamous place, turning out Donggala silks, using natural dyes.<\/p>\n
Handwoven cloth is still produced in the area, but with more
\nmodern, more sophisticated equipment (ATBM), which is faster and
\nmore productive.<\/p>\n
That is part of the reason why young women prefer to work with
\nATBM, as a piece of cloth can be finished in less than a week,
\ncompare with two weeks or even months if working with gedokan.<\/p>\n
However, ATBM cannot produce certain motifs that are the
\ntrademark of Donggala silk. Although slicker, ATBM cloth lacks
\nthe detailing and unique \"imperfections\" found in traditional
\nhandwoven cloth.<\/p>\n
\"Bombakota (a checkered motif) is difficult to make on ATBM.
\nIt can't weave two-sided cloth like this either,\" Juleha said,
\nshowing off one of her creations, where one side has golden
\nthread, which does not show through on the other.<\/p>\n
Juleha has woven using both ATBM and gedokan, but since last
\nyear, she gave up the ATBM as she found it too large and
\ncumbersome to operate in her old age.<\/p>\n
She then recalled how she learned the craft back in the World
\nWar II period, when the Japan colonized the country.<\/p>\n
\"We had plenty of food back then, but there was no fabric, let
\nalone clothes. The Japanese taught us how to plant cotton, make
\nthread and use natural dyes,\" said Juleha, whose husband is a
\nretired schoolteacher.<\/p>\n
Today, she said, people here no longer used natural dye as it
\ncould only be applied to cotton.<\/p>\n
\"But we don't produce cotton anymore, because it's really
\ndifficult to weave. The material is easily broken. We only use
\nsilk now, and that's what has made Donggala famous.\"<\/p>\n
It was amazing to see Juleha installing the threads one by one
\non the more-than-100-year-old gedokan, as she recognized well
\nwhat the motif would be, while it was still in the form of
\nthread.<\/p>\n
\"Hey, there's a high level of mathematics involved. There is
\nnothing that has not been calculated. I may only be an elementary
\nschool graduate but I'm experienced,\" she bragged, laughing.<\/p>\n
Now, she no longer breeds silkworms, making thread and dyeing
\nit. Others exist who can provide that service, and thread is
\nreadily available on the market.<\/p>\n
\"But now it's becoming more expensive. Before the economic
\ncrisis in 1997, three threadballs, which could produce one piece
\nof cloth, cost only Rp 25,000. Now they cost Rp 105,000,\" Juleha
\nsaid, shaking her head.<\/p>\n
Her creations cost about Rp 300,000 to Rp 350,000, but Juleha
\nsaid the profit was not that great.<\/p>\n
\"Well, it's not bad, it helps my husband,\" she said.<\/p>\n
But at least she does not have to look for customers, as
\npeople come to her house: government officials, tourists and
\nothers.<\/p>\n
Sometimes they order, and many prefer purple, brown and grey
\nhues.<\/p>\n
\"It usually takes two weeks for me to make a piece of cloth.
\nMy mother, though, worked very fast, taking only three days to a
\nweek,\" Juleha said.<\/p>\n
When asked whether she felt sad that handwoven silk might
\nbecome extinct, Juleha paused for a moment, looking into the
\ndistance.<\/p>\n
\"I'm sad, of course, but well, what can I say?\" she asked
\nwistfully, while continuing with her work.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/gender-equality-a-threat-to-unique-donggala-silk-1447893297",
"image": ""
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