Mandarin newspaper hunts for new subscribers<\/p>\n
Tantri Yuliandini, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
It has been five years since the government lifted the ban on
\nexpressions of Chinese culture, and many Chinese language
\npublications have since come and gone trying to serve a dwindling
\ncommunity of Chinese-savvy Indonesians.<\/p>\n
But, one Chinese language publication has come out on top,
\nHarian Indonesia (Indonesian Daily), which, at 39 years, is the
\noldest of them all.<\/p>\n
Established on Sept. 12, 1966, Harian Indonesia was born --
\nwith government backing -- amidst tumultuous relations between
\nIndonesia and China.<\/p>\n
After an apparent coup attempt in 1965, which the government
\nbelieved was supported by China, the newly installed New Order
\nregime banned all expressions of Chinese culture. Additionally,
\nthe teaching of Chinese languages was prohibited, ostensibly to
\nencourage Chinese-Indonesians to assimilate.<\/p>\n
It was all the more important at that time for the government
\nto be able to disseminate information to the Chinese-Indonesians,
\nand since at the time they had little knowledge of Bahasa
\nIndonesia, a Chinese-language paper was needed, according to an
\neditor of the paper.<\/p>\n
\"The aim was information. We wanted the Chinese community here
\nto receive the correct information from the government about the
\npolitical situation at that time,\" the daily's chief editor, Inny
\nC. Haryono, told The Jakarta Post.<\/p>\n
\"Chinese-Indonesians today can proudly say they are Indonesian
\ncitizens, but at that time people were still heavily tied to
\nChina. It took time to make them understand that they were now
\nIndonesian citizens, and tied to Indonesian law,\" she explained.<\/p>\n
Despite being heavily censored by the government -- as were
\nall other publications during the New Order -- Harian Indonesia
\nwas allowed some freedom to report on Chinese culture.<\/p>\n
\"Because we printed in Chinese text and used Chinese language,
\nwe were allowed to write about Chinese life and culture, unlike
\nIndonesian language newspapers,\" Inny -- who has been with the
\npaper's editorial staff since the beginning -- said.<\/p>\n
The paper also served another function. Because of its broad
\ncirculation both in Indonesia and abroad, separated families in
\nChina, Hong Kong, Malaysia and Singapore, could get news of their
\nfamily members living in Indonesia.<\/p>\n
\"At least through our obituary section they would know which
\nmembers of their families had passed away,\" Inny said, explaining
\nwhy the paper's obituaries were popular with readers.<\/p>\n
Times now have changed and Chinese-Indonesians are now busy
\ntrying to rekindle the cultural traditions that were lost to them
\nfor more than three decades.<\/p>\n
And after watching its daily circulation drop to less than
\n40,000 copies from about 100,000 in its heyday, Harian Indonesia
\ntoo felt the need to change.<\/p>\n
\"Our readership has gotten older, many have died and not many
\nin the younger generation know enough Chinese,\" said Inny, adding
\nthat the paper now runs a Chinese learning segment every
\nWednesday and Saturday to help readers increase their Chinese-
\nlanguage capabilities.<\/p>\n
Since her appointment as chief editor in November, Inny has
\nalso changed the paper's format from the usual broadsheet with
\nnine columns to a more compact eight column paper and the number
\nof pages to 12 pages daily, from alternating between eight pages
\nand 12 pages previously.<\/p>\n
The paper now also opens from right to left -- like other
\nnewspapers -- whereas previously it opened from left to right.<\/p>\n
\"We used to print in two languages (Chinese and Bahasa
\nIndonesia) for our Sunday edition, but now we only use one
\nlanguage. After all, we are a Chinese-language newspaper,\" Inny
\nsaid, adding that the paper now also runs more community stories.<\/p>\n
But gaining a new and younger readership is certainly not
\neasy, particularly with their limited ability to read Chinese
\ncharacters, which is why the paper is pushing for more
\ncirculation abroad.<\/p>\n
\"We now have about 5,000 readers abroad, mainly Chinese-
\nIndonesians who live in Malaysia, Hong Kong and Singapore, who
\nwant to keep in touch with Indonesia,\" Inny explained.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/mandarin-newspaper-hunts-for-new-subscribers-1447893297",
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