Hot stone feast highlights Papua Independence Day celebrations

Nethy Dharma Somba, The Jakarta Post/Jayapura

Arso community in Keerom regency here cooked a meal using hot stones on Thursday, which they shared together in celebration of Independence Day on August 17.

The community prayed to God at the event for safety and prosperity.

"The communal meal also creates an opportunity for us to come together. We rarely meet one another, in this way we can share light moments and trade stories about our families," said Rev. Edi Togoti, who is from Wamena regency.

The function was attended by some 60 people originally from eight regencies Papua-wide outside Keerom, including Wamena, Jayawijaya, Mimika, Puncak Jaya. They had been living for years in Arso area, Keerom regency, some 60 kilometers east of Jayapura, the capital of Papua.

"The event is also aimed at strengthening ties among people from the eight regencies, who hail from different religious and cultural backgrounds," said Edi.

The 60 people, who are all leading figures from the eight regencies located in the central mountainous area of Papua, are but a few among thousands of people from the eight regencies who have for years been living in Keerom regency. The people held similar events in their respective hometowns before they departed for Arso, Keerom and Thursday's communal meal brought back memories for them.

"When I lived in Wamena, various foods were served at these 'hot stone' events, which were one of the main attractions for those in attendance," said Edi.

Various kinds of food were served during the function on Thursday. As witnessed by The Jakarta Post, the participants heated the stones before placing them in a 30-centimeter-deep hole and covering them with banana leaves and grass.

The food -- including pork, bananas, cassava, corn and vegetables -- was covered with more banana leafs and on top of the banana leafs, other foods were placed and so forth.

"The food is cooked with steam from the hot stones. We call the event burning the stones," said a participant, Rutin Murib.

In order to check whether the food is well-cooked, the steam from the stones is carefully observed. If the smoke and steam is decreasing in volume, this means the food is ready to be consumed. "It usually takes one or two hours," said Murib.

After the food is ready, the men pulled out the stones with a wooden staff, the tip of which had been cut in half to pinch the stones. The women then served the food, including cutting into pieces the meat.

"The food is not served with sauces, however it tastes good. People often call it dry food as it is not cooked with water or fire," said Murib.