North Sulawesi spearheaded birth of Indonesian press<\/p>\n
By Rudy L. Badil<\/p>\n
MANADO, North Sulawesi (JP): The length of the list of local
\nnewspapers, weeklies, magazines and bulletins that have appeared
\nand still appear in North Sulawesi may surprise many: It contains
\nat least 93 titles.<\/p>\n
As we commemorate our 11th National Press Day in Manado today,
\nFeb. 9, it is worth recalling that as early as in 1886 -- 109
\nyears ago -- a bulletin by the name of Tjahaja Siang (Light of
\nDay) appeared in Tanawangko, although its circulation was
\nlimited.<\/p>\n
This first \"newspaper\" to appear in North Sulawesi was
\npublished by N. Graafland, a Dutch missionary and anthropologist
\nwhose aim was to spread the gospel in a language which the local
\npopulation would easily understand. Hence the use of the local
\nMalay dialect. By comparison, the first Malay-language newspaper
\nin this country, the Bintang Soerabaja, appeared only a little
\nmore than two decades earlier, in 1861.<\/p>\n
In 1923 the bulletin Tjahaja Siang became a newspaper and its
\nname was changed to Minahassa Courant (1923-1934). A second
\nbulletin, titled Manado Courant, was in existence at around the
\nsame time as Tjahaja Siang but was apparently short-lived.
\nRecords show that it did not last beyond 1909-1910.<\/p>\n
\"Between 1890-1900 there was already a printing plant, owned
\nby the Manadosche Drukkerij. Later there were several others. The
\none owned by Liem Boen Yat, which operated from 1926 to 1944, was
\nthe most important because it was a letter press, not a hand
\nsetting machine,\" says Chris A. Rondonuwu, who is general manager
\nand chief editor of the Obor Pancasila (Pancasila Torch) weekly
\nnewspaper and a member of the SPS national association of
\nnewspaper publishers as well as a student of the history of the
\npress in North Sulawesi.<\/p>\n
During the heyday of the Indonesian nationalist movement in
\nthe 1930s, the press in Minahasa was closely associated with the
\nmovement. The mass media became the channel for its political
\naspirations and journalists were generally firmly opposed to
\nDutch colonial rule. For example, there were noted journalists
\nand nationalists Dr. Sam Ratulangi, A.B. Waworuntu, A. Durant, M.
\nLinuh, G. Dauhan, H.M. Taulu, O.H. Pantauw, A.A. Maramis, J.
\nSariowan and O.F. Pua.<\/p>\n
The Manado Courant, Aldibra, Persatuan (Unity), Radikal,
\nPertimbangan (Judgment), Gerakan (Movement), Menara (Tower) and
\nothers were all newspapers which opposed colonial rule. At that
\ntime the nationalists and the religious organizations played a
\nsignificant role, according to Rondonuwu.<\/p>\n
During the Japanese occupation the newspaper Matahari Terbit
\n(Rising Sun) appeared as a mouthpiece of the Japanese
\nauthorities. After Indonesia proclaimed its national independence
\nand the armed struggle against the Dutch began, the newspaper
\nMenara (Tower) reappeared, its circulation reaching about 20,000
\nin the 1950s.<\/p>\n
At around the same period many other newspapers appeared, most
\nof them serving the interests of specific political groups such
\nas the nationalists and the socialists.<\/p>\n
At the end of the 1950s a rather gloomy period set in over
\nNorth Sulawesi. The Permesta secessionist rebellion against the
\ncentral government in Jakarta rocked the country. A number of
\nnewspapers did their share of heating up the political situation
\nin the interest of the Permesta secessionists.<\/p>\n
However, a few independent and education-oriented newspapers
\ncontinued to exist, among them Taman Ibu (Women's Garden), led by
\na noted local leader Mrs. Walanda Maramis, Guru (Teacher) and
\nSuara Guru Minahasa (Voice of Minahasa Teachers).<\/p>\n
During the period of the Permesta secessionist rebellion not a
\nsingle newspaper of the previous period survived. To fill the
\nvoid the local military command published the newspapers
\nGenderang Prajurit (Soldier's Drum) and Warta Amurang (Amurang
\nNews). The revival occurred only at the beginning of the 1960s,
\nduring the period of Guided Democracy, when the bulletin Merdeka
\n(Freedom), and the newspapers Harian Sadar (Awakening Daily
\nNewspaper), Suluh Merdeka (Torch of Freedom), Pancasila, Nusa
\nPutera (Son of the Country), Suluh Bhakti (Service Torch) and
\nothers appeared.<\/p>\n
A refreshing breeze came for the media after the Basic Press
\nLaw of 1966 came into effect,\" says Rondonuwu, who has led Obor
\nPancasila since 1961. Although its capacity was limited, the
\nstate printing plant served all the 25 press publications as best
\nit could on a rotation basis. This printing by letter press
\nlasted until 1978.<\/p>\n
In the meantime newspapers perished one after the other until,
\nafter a few mergers, only several were left. These mergers were
\nnecessary because of the shortage in both printing capacity and
\nmaterials. Chris Rondonuwu still remembers how he was forced to
\nhave his newspaper, Obor Pancasila, printed in Jakarta. Warta
\nUtara (News of the North) fared the same fate.<\/p>\n
\"Only in the early 1980s did we have adequate offset printing
\nfacilities, which was provided by a plant owned by the PT Golden
\nWebb company in Manado. This situation lasted for one year,\"
\nrecalls Rondonuwu. \"In 1984, the year when the system of press
\npublishing permits (SIUPP) was introduced, another offset
\nprinting plant opened, this one owned by Toko Lima. Then a few
\nnewspapers, among them Lensa Utara (Lens of the North), brought
\nin their own printing equipment.\"<\/p>\n
In a workshop under the theme The Press in Eastern Indonesia,
\nwhich was held in Manado in October 1987, the North Sulawesi
\nmedia was represented by the Manado Pos, Cahaya Siang, Warta
\nUtara, Obor Pancasila, Wibawa (Authority) and a number of other
\npublications, including Bogani, which appeared in Kotamobagu.<\/p>\n
The North Sulawesi printed media, meanwhile achieved
\nconsiderable progress by cooperating with newspapers in Jakarta
\nand Surabaya. Cahaya Siang, for example, for some time
\ncollaborated with Media Indonesia and the Manado Pos with Jawa
\nPos.<\/p>\n
The circulation which the local newspapers enjoy in North
\nSulawesi is quite satisfactory, considering the fact that the
\nprovince has a population of only 2.5 million people. In addition
\nalmost all the major media publications published outside the
\nprovince also circulate in Manado and other major cities in the
\nprovince.<\/p>\n
\"But among the constraints that emerged is capital. Another
\nrestriction concerns the incomes of those who are involved in
\nmedia publication. The average salary for journalists here is Rp
\n150,000 a month. The difficulty of getting local advertisements
\nis yet another constraint,\" says Rondonuwu, who admits that
\nbecause of these problems his supposedly weekly newspaper Obor
\nPancasila is having difficulties appearing regularly. \"Another
\nserious problem is that some government officials prefer to
\nsubscribe to journalists rather than to local weeklies or daily
\nnewspapers.<\/p>\n
\"Because our reporters are not paid enough they are tempted to
\naccept pay-offs. Some reporters show those officials clippings of
\ntheir reports in the hope that they will get something in return
\nfor it. This is disgraceful but that is the reality,\" says
\nRondonuwu.<\/p>\n
Rondonuwu hopes National Press Day, 1995, will mark the dawn
\nof a brighter future for the press in North Sulawesi.<\/p>\n
\"It is an undeniable fact that the publication of Tjahaja
\nSiang near the end of the last century places North Sulawesi in
\nthe ranks of pioneers of the Indonesian press. But we must admit
\nthat the situation in which the North Sulawesi media is at
\npresent operating, facilities and capital included, is actually
\nstill quite dim and certainly not as bright as the name of the
\nfirst bulletin would suggest,\" he says.<\/p>",
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