Old polemics die hard in Indonesian literary circles<\/p>\n
Polemik Hadiah Magsaysay (Polemics on the Magsaysay Award)<\/p>\n
Editor: A.S. Laksana<\/p>\n
Foreword: Nirwan Dewanto<\/p>\n
Institute of the Study on Information Flow (ISAI) and the
\nCultural Work Network (JKB), Jakarta, May 1997<\/p>\n
xiv and 241 pages<\/p>\n
Rp 17,500.<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): The selection of Pramoedya Ananta Toer for the
\n1995 Ramon Magsaysay Award in journalism, literature and creative
\ncommunications arts opened up old wounds. Intense debate raged
\nover whether Toer was an appropriate choice as some believed he
\nhad, in the words of former Magsaysay winner Mochtar Lubis, been
\ninvolved in "(suppression of) freedom of expression" prior to the
\nabortive Indonesian Communist Party (PKI) coup in 1965. An irate
\nLubis subsequently returned his award.<\/p>\n
This collection of news reports, opinions, interviews and
\nstatements on the controversy is interesting as it reveals
\ntendencies still extant in Indonesian literary circles. Authors
\ncontinue to be lumped into two differing camps which are
\nthrowbacks to the 1960s: those branded followers of the now
\noutlawed Lekra, the literary group of the PKI, who leaned towards
\nthe principle of "politics as commander", and those defending the
\nManikebu (cultural manifesto) and opposing the dominant role of
\npolitics in literature.<\/p>\n
The foreword is written by Nirwan Dewanto, who is now gaining
\nprominence as a cultural thinker. Sources are domestic and
\nforeign mass media, which explains why some pieces are in
\nEnglish. The interviews and statements include those made by Toer
\nhimself and by the Ramon Magsaysay Foundation.<\/p>\n
Dewanto makes an interesting point when he states the
\nMagsaysay Award controversy assumed a bigger dimension because of
\npolitical, and not literary arguments. This shows also the great
\nrole played by nonliterary arguments in confronting literary
\nproblems, and at the same time makes us realize that it is time
\nthat literature was assessed as literature.<\/p>\n
The works also point out that some of us, writers or
\notherwise, are still fond of stigmatizing people because of their
\npast deeds. Rejection of Toer's honor mostly stemmed from
\nindividuals' traumatic experiences suffered during the heyday of
\nLekra, and were not based on the literary merit of the author's
\nwork. These people felt justified in disputing the conferral of
\nthe award because of their lingering pain; Toer is supposed to
\ncarry the stigma as a badge of dishonor for the rest of his life.<\/p>\n
It is heartening, however, to read that several young
\nIndonesian intellectuals and writers, such as poets Acep Zamzam
\nNoor and Sitok Srengenge, social anthropologist Ariel Haryanto
\nand cultural observer Tommy F. Awuy, stress the need to "liberate
\ncultural life from political prejudices" and demand that "the
\nspirit of reconciliation must have in it more of the substance of
\ndialog in an awareness of pluralism". It seems that to the
\nyounger generation, the Magsaysay controversy is an unhealthy
\ndevelopment in social and literary discourses in Indonesia.<\/p>\n
Polemics, by their very nature of hostility, have no
\nresolution. Probably to the dismay of his detractors, the
\nbrouhaha over the Magsaysay merely cemented the international
\nreputation of Toer, nominated many times for the Nobel Prize in
\nLiterature and recognized at home and abroad as one of the
\nworld's master storytellers.<\/p>\n
-- Lie Hua<\/p>\n
The reviewer is a lecturer at School of Letters, Universitas
\nNasional, Jakarta.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/old-polemics-die-hard-in-indonesian-literary-circles-1447893297",
"image": ""
},
"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
}