Cultural festival marks Fishermen's Day jubilee
Cultural festival marks Fishermen's Day jubilee
By Mulkan Salmona
PELABUHAN RATU, Sukabumi, West Java (JP): A sea of small, big,
old and young people packed the usually quiet street in Pelabuhan
Ratu, West Java. They made a human fence, some standing, others
squatting along the road, patiently waiting for the annual
fishermen's festival to start. As the morning sun slowly rose in
the sky, turning the gentle morning rays into a stinging bite,
the onlookers became drenched in perspiration.
Just as their patience began to grow thin, a group of young
dancers appeared from the end of Jl. Siliwangi, their bright
yellow and green outfits shining in the dazzling morning light.
Right behind them were their elderly and handsome guards in
traditional Sundanese attire. The guards escorted the "King" and
"Queen", both dressed in royal Sundanese garb, as the regal pair
rode in a delman (horse cart) decorated to look like a royal
carriage. The procession also included servants carrying tandu
(litters) full of offerings.
The sea of humans cheered when they saw the procession, their
anxious faces turned bright and, without prompting, started to
clap to welcome the grand procession. The quiet morning of April
6 turned into a storm of joyful shouts and cheers.
The occasion was for local fishermen, in fact all fishermen in
the archipelago, to celebrate Fishermen's Day.
A group of musicians played the angklung, drums, tambourines,
a trumpet and a trombone. There were also a group of kuda lumping
(horse dancers) and debus players performing in a trance. The
latter showed off their invulnerability by slicing their throats
and tongues with machetes without leaving any marks on their
bodies. The scene drew various responses from the crowd. Some
cried in fear, others stood still, entranced by what they saw,
and quite a few loved it so much they shouted for more.
The procession moved slowly from the park in front of the
Pelabuhan Ratu regency office to the parking lot of the fish
market, where the festival to mark the 35th Fishermen's Day was
held.
According to Zaenal Muttaqin, secretary of the organizing
committee, this year's festival drew a bigger crowd than it did
last year. And, unlike in the past, this year's celebrations were
initiated solely by the fishermen. In previous years, the
government had never been able to organize the festival to start
on April 6, the official Fishermen's Day.
"We intend to start the festival every April 6 in the future,"
assured Zaenal.
This year's program was also more varied. Aside from the
procession, there was a thanksgiving gathering on the evening of
April 5 where the fishermen prayed and threw a buffalo's head to
the sea.
"We also provided financial aid to the poor fishermen, held a
mass circumcision program and a lot of games," explained Zaenal.
A sudden rain shower failed to disturb the crowd, especially
since a traditional Sundanese singer was chanting to the
accompaniment of the gamelan. Nobody wanted to miss the beautiful
melodies.
The West Java's Regional Secretary, Ukman Sutaryan, then gave
the sign for the offerings to be brought to the motor boats that
would carry them out to sea. The offerings were an expression of
the fishermen's gratitude to Mother Nature who had allowed them
to go to the sea to earn their livelihood.
The people left the parking lot and one by one entered the
boats. When everybody was ready, the 50 boats started off.
They arrived at the appointed spot when the sun was right on
top of their heads. They slowly threw the offerings into the sea,
including the giant turtle which looked free and happy when it
touched the water.
The festival's link with Islam, which does not recognize such
rituals, had been questioned, but a member of the organizing
committee asserted that, "This is not a religious ceremony, but a
cultural event which needs to be preserved."
Back on land there were more activities. There was wayang,
dangdut and films. The festival ended on Sunday with a mass
prayer led by preachers from Jakarta and Bandung.
As the boats were heading toward land, a voice was heard
singing a fisherman's song made popular on the radio:
Gula lagumu suara nelayan
berayun-ayun laju, berayun-ayun laju
Gula lagumu suara nelayan
berayun-ayun laju, berayun-ayun laju