A visit to the longest longhouse in W. Kalimantan

A visit to the longest longhouse in W. Kalimantan

Text by Lewa Pardomuan
Photos by Don Hasman

SUNGAI ULUK, KAPUAS HULU, W. Kalimantan (JP): The rain turned
the clay road leading to the longhouse into a treacherous mud
track.

Crawling along the unfinished road through thick jungle, some
of the vans became bogged down, were dragged out by the surviving
jeeps and slowly climbed the rough and hilly trail.

After a long struggle, pushing and towing, plus a very short
lunch break, we arrived at Sungai Uluk, a tiny village that
boasts the longest longhouse in West Kalimantan.

It took us two hours to reach the house located 30 kilometers
from Putussibau, the capital of the Kapuas Hulu regency,
including the trip along a very new two kilometer dirt road
leading to the longhouse.

Named Daidanom Sorongan, the house is 268 meters long, 18
meters wide and accommodates 66 families in 54 apartments. A
nearby river is their only source of water.

The house is made of ebony and sits on stilts, some are 300
years old, seven meters above the ground. It also contains a few
old gongs, beads, cannons and a peculiar deer horn which is
believed to produce a new branch each year.

As we walked towards the longhouse the thundering of old
canons greeted us as honored guests.

At the front gate of the compound, traditional Dayak men and
women dressed in colorful outfits welcomed us with broad smiles.
The distant sound of a soothing brass musical instrument
comforted the guests including members of the Kapuas to Mahakam
expedition team, the wife of the regent and the secretary of the
regency.

Banners of red and yellow and ornaments made of coconut leaves
adorned the gate and enriched the beautiful, stunning dress of
the villagers.

Odd

When we were seated, cross-legged and facing the residents,
Bakupa Leteang, the house leader, greeted us. "Sorry if our
service is minimal or odd," he said.

Daidanom Sorongan is one of dozens of longhouses scattered
throughout the province. Although it is the longest and one of
the oldest, it is in desperate need of maintenance. The house's
supporting stilts are being eaten away by termites.

Life for the house residents is not always festivities and
palm wine.

Bakupa told us that most of the 1,729 people living in the
area, including the people in his longhouse, live below the
poverty line. They are farmers and rotate their crops between
various locations.

"But in this kind of poverty, we accept this visit," he said
sitting across from us.

"Our village is not blessed with natural beauty, instead, we
have traditions like this house, even though it is shabby," he
stated optimistically.

It is believed that originally the longhouses, locally know as
betang, were a form of defense against the headhunting raids that
were rife in Kalimantan in past centuries.

It was easier to defend the community if the people gathered
together in one house.

The building also provides shade and allows cool breezes to
circulate driving away the humidity. The stilted house keeps
everyone safe from floods, while sheltering pigs and poultry that
consume the human refuse dropped from the floor above.

Isolation

Bakupa acknowledged that the area's long isolation has left it
behind in terms of development. "We are far from the government's
patronage," he said.

Compared to other longhouses, like the one in Melapi, 20
minutes by car from Putussibau, this house is a far from modern

The better off residents in Melapi live in well painted
apartments furnished with TV sets and radios. In Sungai Uluk, the
apartments are bare and gloomy because of a lack of light and
little paint.

The inhabitants need electricity.

Bakupa said that their long isolation has made it difficult
for them to make contact with outsiders.

Residents claim that the first sound of a vehicle in the area
was ours.

The new road was apparently built to make it easy for us to
reach the house. "We question why the road was built just
recently," queried Bakupa.

Before the road was opened, the residents had to walk for
three hours to catch public transportation to Putussibau.

"We do not understand why we are left behind. We know that we
are poor when we see other people," said Bakupa.

Bakupa said that what concerns him most is what he terms the
"downfall of culture" among his people.

"I am not sure that tradition of building longhouses will
continue if the government does not make an effort to protect
it," he said, adding that it would be best if his longhouse was
declared a historical monument.

He said that he did not think the dwellers, with their limited
finances, could maintain their houses. "We need the government,"
he stressed.

Bakupa said that urban migration could also threaten the
existence of the structures.

"The culture will decay if the people are not helped to
preserve it," he said.

It is easy to see that the longhouse is at a crossroads.

Tadjudin, said that living in a longhouse required endurance
because there are so many people jammed into one small area.

"I think I will move into an ordinary house," he concluded.