Ganesha helps promote local culture

Ganesha helps promote local culture

By Yenni Kwok

JAKARTA (JP): A cosmopolitan community can sometimes enhance
the appreciation of the local culture. How so? The Indonesian
Heritage Society is an example.

Known as Ganesha Volunteers until 1995 the Indonesian Heritage
Society is a nonprofit organization that promotes and generates
interest in Indonesian culture. It has attracted 500 members from
34 countries.

"We are truly a local organization that represents the
international community in Jakarta," membership co-chairperson
Pat Cottrell said.

Commenting on Indonesians making up only 10 percent of the
membership, tour guide co-chairperson Moira Morgan said it was
not strange. The situation in her home country, England, is no
different. There interest in English culture and history comes
mostly from foreigners.

Different backgrounds is an advantage, especially in the
society's museum section. This section allows members to give
public guided tours of Museum Nasional in their native languages:
English, Japanese, German, French, Dutch, Sweden and even
Finnish.

Not every member can give a guided tour. They need to complete
an 11-week training program before they earn a badge, said museum
section chairperson Mizue Hara. The training demands extensive
study and research of Indonesian history and culture.

"Just like at a university," said Cottrell, who recently
earned her badge and gave her first tour last week.

For Morgan, who has led a tour a month since last year, it
gives her a chance to tell people what she knows about Indonesia.
"I really love it," she said.

Besides giving tours, other museum section activities are
helping with the inventory of artifacts, producing an English
guide book for the museum, translating old Dutch documents into
English and teaching museum staff foreign languages. They even
have an office in the Museum complex.

Collaboration with the museum has come a long way. In fact,
Museum Nasional has been its focus since the society was
established in 1970.

They changed the name to Indonesian Heritage Society when one
of the founders, who held the rights to the "Ganesha Volunteers"
name left the organization and took the name with her.

Explorer

Besides the museum section, there are other sections like
exploration, study tours, school programs, study groups and
evening lectures.

The exploration section allows a group of less than 20 people
to visit and research one area like Sunda Kelapa harbor or the
Maritime Museum in North Jakarta. Two members of the group, who
do so preparatory research, lead the group.

Last November Cottrell led a group to Bogor's Presidential
Palace in West Java, where they were given the rare opportunity
of looking inside.

The exploration section has become the most popular section.
Participants in this section are limited to 100 people and it is
full.

But there is a waiting list and it is relatively still easy
for new members to join because most members are expatriates and
eventually leave Indonesia, Cottrell said.

The situation is similar with the exploration and study tours.
The difference is study tour participants go to more remote areas
and stay longer. In the past, study tours have gone to Mt. Bromo
in East Java, Sumba in East Nusa Tenggara and Irian Jaya. Some
members have even gone to West Java and stayed with the Outer
Badui people.

The school programs allow members to give presentations to
students, generally at international schools like the Jakarta
International School, the Japanese School and the British
International School.

The topic of volcanoes is usually popular among young
students, especially since the Mt. Merapi eruption, Cottrell
said.

Other popular topics are Balinese rituals, especially the
toothfilling ceremony, and also Jakarta: Then and Now.

The study groups consist of smaller groups of 10 to 20 people.
Members of the smaller groups take turns researching a chosen
topic and then present it to the group. The society has small
library in south Jakarta where members can research their topics.

Lectures

Tuesday nights' evening lectures at Erasmus Huis is the only
activity nonmembers can enjoy. The society holds two eight-week
courses a year. The first session is around February and the
second around October.

The current February session, which ends March 25, covers a
range of topics from Indonesian rituals and culture to nature and
adventure.

Not all speakers are society members and experts are invited
to speak.

English is the society's main language but there are also
Japanese and French sections. In these sections, Japanese and
French people can organize exploration tours or study group
programs in their native languages. But non-native speakers who
are fluent in either language can join, Cottrell said.

Membership usually starts in September and expires in August
but people can join any time. There is an annual fee of Rp 85,000
which lets members use the library to look at the slides,
pamphlets and magazines. It also permits them to participate in
society activities.

Besides being fun and educational the Indonesian Heritage
Society is a source of indirect support for expatriates. Morgan
said knowing about Indonesian culture has helped her adjust to
living here. "It is almost like drawing a veil through your
eyes," she said.

The Indonesian Heritage Society can be reached at 381-1551
ext. 17 or 719-1947.