Bali Arts Festival leaves unresolved issues

Bali Arts Festival leaves unresolved issues

I Wayan Juniartha, The Jakarta Post, Denpasar, Bali

The party is over, and there are still a number of dirty glasses
in the kitchen sink that need to be cleaned.

This is precisely the case with the 24th Bali Arts Festival
that closed last Saturday. The "dirty glasses" are several
unresolved issues that have plagued the one-month-long festival
-- from the usual widespread confusion over the true objectives
and mission of the festival to the much talked-about Rp 2.1
billion in cash provided by the Bali administration to finance
the annual event.

"We are not questioning the quality of the performances, but
merely doubt the festival committee's capacity to run the
festival and handle such huge sums of money in an appropriate and
prudent way," said festival enthusiast Dhyananatta.

Most of the festival's performances were, indeed, superbly
staged. Around 6,000 artists from 184 troupes truly gave their
best in some 160 performances presented during the festival. On
the other hand, art enthusiasts also showed their generous
support by continuously packing various indoor and outdoor venues
at the Werddhi Budaya Arts Center, where the festival was held.

Yet, even those outstanding performances and warm audience
responses were unable to hide the fact that this festival was
poorly managed, so poorly managed that the very first day of the
festival was marred by the postponement of three performances,
generally inadequate stage equipment -- lighting and sound
systems, the lack of information in the festival program except
the name and time of the show, and the incessant and irritating
inability on the part of the festival committee to communicate
it's work to the general public.

"The committee used to provide us with a fully-equipped press
room and an informative daily press release. Now, it's all gone.
So are the writing and photography competitions," a local
journalist complained.

The fact that this year's festival cost around Rp 2.1 billion,
twice the amount spent on the 2001 festival, made it more
difficult for the general public, the critics and, most notably,
the local press corps to just let the committee walk away quietly
despite such obvious incompetence.

"To put it in perspective, the 2002 Singapore Arts Festival
cost around the same amount of money as the 24th Bali Arts
Festival, yet this 24-day-long festival was able to present 500
events by 32 troupes from 18 countries, and attracted at least
270,000 people. The participating troupes were officially invited
and fully-financed by the festival organizer," Dhyananatta said.

The 24th Bali Art Festival could only managed to organize 160
performances. Furthermore, several foreign troupes that did
participate in the festival had to finance their own trips and
shows.

As usual, the festival committee, which consisted mostly of
government bureaucrats, took a defensive stance whenever this Rp
2.1 billion issue was brought up.

The deputy chairman of the festival committee, Rai Arnita,
argued that the festival's costs had increased significantly due
to the increase in the number of the participating troupes -- up
from 94 troupes in 2001 to 184 troupes in 2002.

"In 2001, the festival committee gave between Rp 1.5 million
and Rp 2.5 million in financial assistance to each troupe. In
2002, we raised this amount to between Rp 2.5 million and Rp 3.5
million. That was the reason why we spent more money this year,"
she said.

A very simple calculation reveals that at most the 184 troupes
would have accounted for only Rp 644 million, way less than a
billion rupiah. So far, the committee has not issued any
explanation as to where the rest of the money went, the remaining
Rp 1.3 billion!

The outcry over the money intensified when the public learned
that the committee had also pocketed money from some 175
participants in the festival's handicraft exhibition. Each of the
participants was asked to contribute between Rp 500,000 and Rp 1
million to cover the exhibition fee, and water and electricity
bills. It was also reported that several dozen street vendors
that flocked to the festival arena were also required to "donate"
a certain amount of money to the committee.

The public is demanding an explanation and local legislators
are debating the idea of setting up a special commission to grill
the committee over this issue. Meanwhile, the governor of Bali
himself has openly asked the committee to publicly clarify its
revenue and expenditure.

Moreover, this issue has once again put the idea of setting up
an independent body to run the festival firmly back on the
agenda. This idea has been around for years, but the local
administration bureaucrats, particularly those who are involved
directly with the festival, have always been able to brush it off
for one reason or another.

This year, however, it was those same bureaucrats who, by
handling the Rp 2.1 billion issue in such a clumsy way, have
given the idea the momentum it has been desperately seeking.

"Forget the idea of once again giving those bureaucrats a
part-time job running the festival. This year, they have failed,
miserably, if I may add. It's about time that the responsibility
was given to an independent body, a private institution or a
foundation, perhaps, to run the show. This body must consist of
people with good managerial skills and the ability to work full-
time for the festival," another festival enthusiast Sugi B Lanus
told.

In his mind's eye, Sugi already has a picture of a
streamlined, well-structured body working all year long with
Japanese-style zeal and efficiency in preparing for the 25th Bali
Arts Festival in 2003 -- assisting the participants, renovating
the Arts Center complex, raising additional funds from the
private sector and concerned individuals, and conducting
aggressive promotional efforts abroad. Surely, such a body would
be able to provide more than just Rp 3.5 million in financial
assistance to each participating troupe, Sugi suggested.

"With Rp 2.1 billion in our pocket, I certainly think that we
can afford these professional guys. Frankly speaking, I see no
reason why we should not do it," he told.

Yes, we certainly can afford those professional guys, but the
problem is whether the bureaucrats are ready to give up their
stranglehold on the Rp 2.1 billion and let other people run the
show. It is still a huge sum of money, after all.