Bali's Hindu culture: A dying phenomenon?
By Putu Wirata
SANUR, Bali (JP): Karaoke, the newest form of music entertainment on the local scene, has spread its tentacles as far as Bali, where no less than five establishments on Jl. Raya Ngurah Rai, Sanur, are doing brisk business. Coming under the names Barcelona, Korean Karaoke, Lenny Garden, Bali Rama and Angin Mamiri, these sumptuously constructed entertainment places offer karaoke singing sessions in the company of pretty and sexy ladies, whose customers are comprised mostly of Korean and Japanese male clients.
Karaoke has been the most popular form of entertainment in Bali for the past two years, after the opening of the Denpasar- Korea-Taiwan air route made Bali accessible to thousands of Asian tourists. It did not take long for local establishments in the entertainment business to discover that most Asian tourists are just mad about karaoke, even more so if this singing fun were to be combined with a certain amount of sex appeal.
Tourist demand for this kind of entertainment has spawned instantaneous construction of more than 20 karaoke establishments, massage parlors, bars and discotheques in the region. The establishments flourished, even if this meant that they had to break the rules of trade, as most are operating without licenses.
Though cover charges are kept at minimal rates of between Rp 10,000 and Rp 15,000 (US$6.38 and $4.25), the establishments' main sources of income come from the sales of drinks and customer services. General customer spending per visit is reportedly Rp 100,000, comprising an entry charge, a song, drinks and snacks, female company and a service tip.
At the New Primadonna bar, karaoke singing was spiced up with striptease dancing. The program was short-lived when New Primadonna had to close down in July 1995, after the authorities discovered that the establishment had been running without a license. Striptease dancing then disappeared from the karaoke scene, but entertainment and pleasure continue quietly undercover in Kuta, Sanur and Denpasar, as disguised havens for prostitution.
When news of this reached top leaders of Forum Pemerhati Hindu Dharma Indonesia, a Hindu religious organization, members of the board were not at all amused.
"Sex tourism is of no use to the Balinese," commented I.D.G.N. Swastha, a lawyer and chairman of the organization, during a session of Bali's House of Representatives.
"If the government isn't doing something about this, pretty soon Bali will become like Hawaii and Thailand," added Ida Anak Agung Gde Agung, an elder on the board of the organization.
Negative effect?
What detrimental effects would karaoke, or pub life, pose to the Hindu culture of Bali? There are no simple answers to the question, since Bali has shown a strong sense of responsibility in shaping its cultural image. A shining sample of this can be observed in the ideas of the governor of Bali, Ida Bagus Mantra, when he created The Bali Culture Fest in 1978. His idea grew into a cultural fortress with the purpose of stemming the influx of foreign cultures, which were making their presence felt with the arrival of thousands of tourists on the island. The project was called "tourism culture". Its concept was based on the assumption that tourists visited Bali mainly to enjoy the island's scenic beauty. Thus, tourists did not need to be served with their own cultures.
With this concept in mind, it is not too difficult to understand why Ida Bagus Mantra has been against sex tourism from the start. A decision was issued by his office in 1985, permitting operation of two nightclubs only: the Subec Discotheque in Sanur, and the Peanut Club in Kuta.
Yet it is a far cry from today's entertainment affairs. Bali's entertainment scene is now a fertile ground for mushrooming nightclubs under Governor Ida Bagus Oka, who is enjoying his second term in office. Clubs are spreading everywhere, from Nusa Dua, Sanur, Kuta, Denpasar, to Lovina in Buleleng regency, despite the fact that the former governor's decree is "still in force". Prostitution is also furtively rampant.
As was earlier mentioned, several discotheques and karaoke bars offer singing sessions in the company of attractive women. The duration of the female accompaniment can be extended to the intimacy of the customer's bedroom, depending on the compatibility of both parties.
Services of the Karaoke New Primadonna waitresses on Jl. Raya Kuta range from Rp 75,000 to Rp 150,000, applying to brief sexual encounters as well as to the striptease shows.
A sex trade of lesser grades thrives in Sanur, Kuta and Denpasar, where pleasure is sold at prices ranging as low as Rp 35,000 to Rp 50,000 for a brief sexual encounter.
The blatant presence of prostitution everywhere on this "island of the gods" has become a matter of grave concern for the culture-loving people of Bali, who shake their heads in wonder and ask themselves what effects all this might have on the image of their traditional culture.
Putu Suasta, 35, a young Hindu intellectual, is strongly opposed to prostitution.
"If we go on tolerating this situation, it might evolve into something like Surabaya's Dolly district, the largest red-light area in East Java's capital. Dolly started with a few cottages, which increased in number to its present situation," he said.
He is of the opinion that Hindu institutions should be more vocal in defense of their own culture. He expressed his fears that Bali might become like Thailand, where sex has been proven to be the main attraction in tourism.
"I heard that more than 80 percent of Japanese, Korean and Taiwanese tourists visiting Thailand are in search of sex," Putu said.
Ketut Sumadi, 34, another Hindu intellectual of the Hindu Institute, Dharma Denpasar, suggested that the government work together with the council of village customs to eliminate this growing evil.
"If the council is still effective, they might succeed in eliminating the problem," he said.
Former governor Ida Bagus Mantra likened these village customs as a cultural fortress of sorts for Bali. The government also made use of village customs councils to introduce several government programs to the islanders. The most successful of these programs were family planning, a village credit foundation and a family legal service.
Based on his long-term observations, Sumadi believes that the service of the council has mainly been deployed for the purpose of Hindu rituals. Meanwhile, council members should be paying more attention to social matters.
"If every village council were able to stand firm against this problem, prostitution would not be allowed the slightest chance to persist," said Sumadi.