'Barongsay' dance springs back to life
By Kafil Yamin
BANDUNG (JP): In the name of preserving national culture and defending precious traditional values, Chinese-related art and culture has long been barred from public display in Indonesia.
Chinese-Indonesians must celebrate the Lunar New Year modestly -- no fireworks, no carnivals. But when Indonesians observe independence day on August 17, money is often collected from Chinese-Indonesians to help make the celebration as noisy as possible. Stages are sometimes set up next to Chinese-Indonesian houses where ear-banging rock music is performed. It is guaranteed no Chinese-Indonesian would refuse a donation or protest over the noise. Those who object to independence day fanfare are the nation's enemies, aren't they?
If authorities think that restrictions against Chinese- Indonesians help create socio-cultural cohesion between the pribumi (indigenous Indonesians) and Indonesians of Chinese descent, they are wrong. Hostility against Chinese-Indonesians pulsates under society's surface like a time bomb. Last month's riots prove how disastrous the explosions can be.
Recently, many Indonesians gained new insight when they were introduced to a Chinese-related art form at the Ganesha Festival held from June 5 to June 8 in front of the Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB).
Performances of barongsay, a Cirebonese folk dance adopted from China, are officially prohibited during Lunar New Year celebrations even though it has become a part of the pribumi cultural heritage.
Barongsay is performed by two dancers under a decorated cloth with the head of a monster on it. The two performers stamp their feet while following music. During the performance, the monster dances throughout the watching crowd.
Only people in their 40s or older can remember that this folk art was very popular in West Java decades ago when it was regularly performed without restriction. Today's teenagers who see the performance are often amazed that their culture possesses such a unique art form.
"I thought that it was a performance from Beijing," said Dewi, a senior high school student. "I've frequently seen similar kinds of performances in kung fu movies on TV. But this is a unique one because its music is so familiar to people here."
Endo Suanda, an ethnomusicologist and director of the barongsay show, was not surprised that today's city youths don't know about the dance.
"They are surrounded by Hollywood movies and soap operas. You can't expect them to be informed about an art which is only allowed to be performed in village ceremonies," he said.
Harvest
Although it is precluded from Lunar New Year celebrations, barongsay is still performed during harvest and preplanting ceremonies in Cirebon. It was even performed to awaken people for sahur (the predawn meal during the Moslem fasting month of Ramadhan). "Not only have Cirebonese regarded barongsay as part of their own cultural heritage, they have also practiced it as a Moslem tradition," said Suanda.
In 1996, after Cirebon was officially named one of the country's tourist destinations, the government decided to restrict barongsay in public ceremonies. "The government was afraid that foreign tourists will think barongsay is one of Indonesia's traditions," Suanda said.
Suanda said that on one occasion, local police confiscated barongsay costumes during a harvest ceremony in 1996 in which he was involved. He went to the police station to reclaim the costumes, but was too late. "The police had already burned it," he recalled.
It is not known exactly when this Chinese art form first came to Indonesia. Some say that the dance has gone through a sort of "Islamization" and that it may have existed in Java before Islam came to its shores in the 7th century.
The barongsay performance at the Ganesha Festival last week was intended to expose the art form as a part of Indonesia's cultural heritage. "Just like Chinese-Indonesians here, it is an inseparable part of our nation," Suanda argued.
Likewise, the skill the Chinese-Indonesian performers displayed in the festival deserves credit, he said. They masterfully performed a Madurese fisherman dance and Sundanese music as well as their indigenous counterparts did.
According to Gustaff Harriman, from the art division of the Ganesha Festival committee, barongsay is an example of Indonesia's cultural syncretic character. Indonesia has always been open to outside values and cultures.
"We have adopted Indian culture, Arabic culture, European culture and Chinese culture. We have the Borobudur temple, Arabic letters and Portuguese-rooted keroncong music," Harriman said.
"So from the very beginning, our cultural attitude was very democratic. We were a broad-minded people.
"Pribumi have no problem with our brothers of Chinese descent or any other race. Current problems between pribumi and nonindigenous Indonesians do not stem from race, but from injustice."
Observers trace the financial disparity between the two groups to the colonial period. Under Dutch colonial rule, Chinese merchants were treated as a second class under Europeans, while the pribumi were treated as a class below the Chinese.
During Sukarno's presidency, the affiliation of some Chinese- Indonesians with the Indonesian Communist Party (PKI) worsened views against them. PKI which was later involved in the 1965 aborted coup attempt.
The attempt to show barongsay as an Indonesian tradition in the festival, however, was overshadowed by anti-Soeharto expressions.
"No entry for political adventurists", read the sign on the gate. Some visitors seemed confused as to how political adventurists could be related to the artistic event.
A first glance at the festival compound convinced the casual observer that everything was normal: artistic presentations, music instruments on stage and photographs on display. But soon it was obvious these were nothing more than expressions of hatred against the old regime.
Sugandi, head of the festival's public relations, did not deny the theme. "Well, let's just say that this is a medium for maintaining the reform fervor of the students," he told The Jakarta Post.