Festive 'Dero' no longer binds people in Poso

The Malino Meeting, held to bring leaders of the different warring factions together during the festive atmosphere of Idul Fitri, Christmas and the New Year, evoked sweet memories of the district's peaceful past. When peace reigned in Poso, there were good relationships and merriment among different religious and ethnic groups during the annual holidays.

During important religious holidays, the regency capital of Poso was the scene of great festivity. Idul Fitri was not only a happy day for Muslims but also for Christians. Likewise, at Christmas both Christians and Muslims had a good time. Poso residents would visit their neighbors of different religious persuasion. They would exchange presents and enjoy themselves.

"We used to live in one big melting pot," Benny, a resident of Kayamanya subdistrict, now a refugee in the village of Sedoa, Napu Valley, said, while reminiscing.

During the festive period of Idul Fitri, Christmas and New Year, an event called Dero would be held by Poso townfolk. At this art event, particular to Poso, a group of people - young and old, male and female - formed a circle. With the accompaniment of a local tune, these participants clasped one another's hands and swung their legs twice to the right and then once to the left, making the circle of people move around a central point.

If there were many participants, they would be divided into several circles, each having the same central point. So, there was a large circle and then several concentric circles with an increasingly shorter diameter. The event usually took place at night and ended at daybreak.

When you joined Dero, religious and ethnic boundaries, as well as social status, disappeared in the melodies of the accompanying music. What came to view was only the legs moving to the right and to the left and hips swaying to the same rhythm, making a circular movement within the same circle.

Philosophically, Dero manifests a popular saying of the Poso people: Sintuvu Maroso, which means "united and strong". Sintuvu means to be united in attitude, a reason why the people of Poso resort to deliberation before making a decision. Sintuvu is a principle applicable also to migrants, for example the Bugis people, the Javanese and the Balinese. Thanks to the wise saying of Sintuvu Maroso, during the Soeharto era, Poso was the pride of the regional administration in terms of religious harmony.

When rioting broke out in this black-wood-producing region, Poso was suddenly no longer the pride of the region.

Sintuvu Maroso seems to have been abandoned. The people of Poso do not seem to have any more time for their Dero. They no longer move in a circle following the tune. They just seem to walk in one direction, heading for safer areas as refugees. There is no longer any music. It has been replaced by the weeping of children, the complaints of tired old people and the cry of women in labor.

Husri Ahmad, chief editor of Poso Post, said there was something missing this year in the festivities, which are usually inherent during Idul Fitri, Christmas and New Year. Idul Fitri was celebrated by Muslims without the presence of their Christian friends. "My Christian friends and neighbors used to visit us earlier than other people to say 'Happy Idul Fitri' to us. This year, however, there seemed to be a distance between us," he said. He also said that he could no longer say "Merry Christmas" directly to his Christians acquaintances. "I hope we can be together again before long," he noted.

Lebron, secretary of the Calvary Church congregation in the village of Sangginore, Poso Pesisir district, had much to say about the sweet memories when peace reigned during religious holidays like Idul Fitri, Christmas and the New Year in the past. He said that at Idul Fitri he and his family and friends would go to Poso to bring Nasi Jaha (glutinous rice cooked in young bamboo) for their Muslim relatives and friends.

"I would stay in Poso for a week visiting my Muslim friends during Idul Fitri," he said.

He added that at Christmas, his Muslim friends and relatives would visit him. "They would come in groups and take with them some rice. Then we cooked Nasi Jaha together," he said. While waiting for Nasi Jaha to be served, they would usually perform Dero.

Before the riots broke out, the people of Poso were united, not only by the festive atmosphere of Idul Fitri, Christmas and New Year, but also by the atmosphere of Padungku, a customary rite usually performed after harvest time. "It is an expression of gratitude to God for the annual harvest," said Risman, one of the youth figures in Poso. Just like Dero, Padungku also involves different religions and ethnic groups in Poso.

Following the deployment of five army battalions with Sintuvu Maroso as their code of operation and the conclusion of the Malino Meeting with a ten-point declaration toward the restoration of peace, Idul Fitri, Christmas and New Year, the celebrations this year did not seem to lose any of their merriment and festive spirit.

Dero was performed as usual but this time it was neither a circle nor did it have several smaller concentric circles.

The Dero held by the Christian community was not attended by Muslims and vice versa. One Dero circle was performed in the town of Poso and the other in Tentena. These two circles were very clearly separated, and there appeared little hope of them being reconciled soon.