Fallen heroes remembered on 10th anniversary of deaths
The country was saddened in mid-April 1992 by the loss of two of its best mountain climbers, Norman Edwin and Didiek Samsu Wahyu Triachdi. National and international media devoted extensive coverage to the deaths of the duo.
Leading members of the University of Indonesia's Mapala UI sports nature club, the men died trying to climb the 6,959-meter Mt. Aconcagua (locally called Kon Kawa) in Chili. Often termed "the Devil's Mountain" because of unpredictable weather and snow storms that can last for days in the area, Aconcagua was among the destinations on the Seven Summit expedition of Mapala UI.
Known for his power and speed, Norman, a member of Mapala UI since 1977 who had extensive experience and education in caving, mountain climbing, sailing, rafting and rescue efforts from Irian Jaya, Kalimantan to Africa, Canada, Russia and the Himalayas, led the Aconcagua expedition with Didiek as his deputy, Rudy "Becak" Nurcahyo, Mohamad Fayez and Dian Hapsari, the only woman climber in the group.
Before the trip, few would have doubted that Norman, who worked a journalist for Kompas daily, would make it home, considering his escape from many dangerous experiences during his 15 years of nature sport experience.
The body of Didiek, who worked for the now defunct Jakarta Jakarta magazine, was found first around March 23 to March 24, 1992, after other climbers reported last seeing Norman, 37, and Didiek, 31, together at an altitude of 6,400 meters, only a few hundred meters from the summit.
It was said that they were both were very ill: Norman had just lost parts of his fingers due to frostbite, and Didiek had eye problems (it was probably snow blindness, a temporary loss of vision due to rays of the sun at high altitude, as it is believed his goggles were damaged).
Norman's body was found several days after and both bodies were evacuated to Jakarta on April 21, 1992. Media reports months later cited poor equipment as the cause of the accidents.
Before the Aconcagua incident, Mapala UI had managed to scale four mountains of the seven: Cartenz Pyramid (4,884 meters) in Irian Jaya; McKinley (6,194 meters) in Alaska, United States; Kilimanjaro (5,894 meters) in Tanzania; and Elbrus (5,633 meters) in the former Soviet Union.
The next year after the tragedy, Mapala UI's Tantyo Bangun and Ripto Mulyono completed the unfinished expedition and scaled Aconcagua. In 1994, the group changed the title of the expedition into the University of Indonesia Expedition and tried csacle Vinson Massif (4,887 meters) in the South Pole and Everest in the Himalayas, but failed.
Mapala UI is lifetime membership for students, and therefore any qualified individual in the group can join the expedition long after they have graduated.
"We would love to continue to the last two destinations in the seven summit expedition. In 1997, Mapala UI joined the National Mt. Everest expedition in collaboration with Kopassus (the Army's Special Force) and Wanadri, and the Indonesian team managed to reach the peak of Everest and the sumitters were both soldiers, Asmujiono and Misirin," said Rudy "Becak" Nurcahyo, member of Indonesian National Team to Everest who lost parts of his fingers due to frostbite in Aconcagua expedition.
"But, after 1997, the economic crisis hit the country and with the rough reforms period which followed soon after.. automatically there has been no extensive mountain expedition
"Well, at least we have tried the best possible thing ... Norman and Didiek will be smiling up there."
For Norman's wife Karina Arifin and now 17-year-old daughter Melati, there will always be the memories of their warm and eccentric loved one. Norman would bring Melati along on outdoor activities, including a trip to Irian Jaya, when she was still small.
"Norman had a progressive view compared to those climbers in the 1970s and 1980s. He respected women, and he believed that women can do a better job than men, because women are more thorough and concerned for safety, such as in caving," recalled Karina, also a nature-sport activist who returned from Australia last year and lectures at the archeology department in the University of Indonesia.
"Norman said that women nature activists are relatively calm and could handle an emergency situation quite well compare to men and they do not easily panic. He was funny and full of life. He's also very close to Didiek.
Karina was on the same team with Norman that climbed Irian Jaya's Cartenz expedition in 1981.
Karina, who is still striving to finish her doctorate from Australian National University and had to return to Indonesia after her scholarship ran out, expressed support for daughter Melati, who is now also interested in outdoor activities such as wall climbing.
"Melati is so much like her father. In her teens, she seems mature and wise. One thing that I've learned is that the most important thing in high-risk nature sport is that we aren't out there to conquer the wild. We are there to conquer ourselves, our ego and learn our limitations.
"Climbing Everest, for instance, needs a relatively mature climber with wisdom and experience. Every climber has to know when to push forward and when to stop and return for safety.
"Never do it because you want to get famous... This trait is what I feel is happening also in Mapala UI. Some of them are in it for the fame, not because of pure dedication."
Melati who is completing her final year of high school at Dickson College in Canberra, Australia, recounted the fun she had rafting with her father.
"We shouted 'Bonus!!' everytime we were about to pass a huge river stream.. I love sports and now I'm studying karate and wall climbing. Dad inspired me with courage, and that we mustn't have doubts about trying high-risk sports.
"I'm proud to have him as my dad, even though it was for a very short time," Melati said in a phone interview from Canberra.
Besides sports, Melati is very fond of films, and has made several. She hopes to study at either the Jakarta Institute of Art of UI, with future hopes to become a journalist.
Becak and Ripto remembered the lessons they learned from their friends and climbing partners Norman and Didiek.
"Both Norman and Didiek were lucky that they had a job that suited their craze for climbing and outdoor sports. Their extraordinary achievement and determination are the legacies and inspirations to other Indonesian climbers... not to mention their humor and bravery to risk their lives for other climbers," Ripto said. (Edith Hartanto)