'Dalangs' must learn Pancasila

'Dalangs' must learn Pancasila

JAKARTA (JP): Dalangs, the puppet masters in the highly- popular art of Javanese wayang, must also be masters of Pancasila, according to President Soeharto.

During a meeting with the leaders of the association of Indonesian dalangs on Saturday, Soeharto said the puppet masters, because of their powerful influence on society, could be instrumental in popularizing the state ideology Pancasila.

"It may not be too late, but dalangs should have been included in the current course for Pancasila propagation ," Soeharto said.

Despite the onslaught of television, cinema, and laser discs, the all night long wayang puppet shows often held in villages still attract enormous crowds.

The government also recognizes the power of the dalang to communicate messages and values. The profession is considered a politically strategic and one that, along with teaching and journalism, is off-limits to any former communists.

Soeharto said the target audience of the Pancasila courses organized by the government is simple -- every member of society.

"Dalangs can instill the values of Pancasila and the 1945 Constitution in the people," he said.

The government last week organized a special course on Pancasila for people who will later be assigned to teach the values of the ideology and the constitution to others. Dalangs, however, seem to have been excluded. (emb)