Mixed-ethnic Chinese literature

Most of us would think that Chinese-Indonesians know nothing other than trade, and they are even labeled quite often as "economic animals". Very interestingly, Mr. Leo Suryadinata writes in his book "The culture of the Chinese minority in Indonesia" (as shown in French scholar, Ms. Claudine Salmon's bibliography of literature in Malay by the Chinese of Indonesia) that actually, literary works by Chinese in Malay since colonial Dutch times to the end of World War II were much more than those of indigenous Indonesian writers as identified by professor A. Teeuw.

Salmon identified 806 authors and translators and gathered 2,646 titles (73 plays, 183 poems, 233 translations of western works, 759 translation of Chinese works and 1,398 original novels and short stories). She also held the view that several dozen mixed-ethnic novels are of excellent quality and were comparable to the best Indonesian writings.

Mr. Suryadinata further added that nevertheless, the rich literature of the mixed ethnic Chinese was largely ignored by most of the western (especially Dutch) Indonesianists and critics and Dutch-sponsored Balai Pustaka (a publisher) for two reasons. One was that it was considered Melayu rendah (low Malay), different from Balai Pustaka's Melayu tinggi (high Malay). But actually, the low Malay was the working language of Indonesians and was even used by the press then.

The other reason was political, and by calling them low quality and not having them published by Balai Pustaka, the Dutch hoped to purge undesired ideas from creeping into the minds of the population at large.

The 1920s and 1930s were said to be the golden eras for mixed- ethnic Chinese literature, and the most famous writers are, among others, Tjoe Bou San (Hauw San Liang); Kwee Tek Hoay: Drama dari Boven Digoel (Drama from Boven Digoel) etc.; Liem Khing Ho: Berdjoeang (Struggle); Soe Lie Piet: Jadi Pendita (Becoming a Priest); Pouw Kioe An; Ong Ping Lok; Njoo Cheong Seng and Tan Tek Ho.

After the war, the mixed-ethnic Chinese language became Indonesianized as standard Bahasa Indonesia, and the number of writers was small. In the 1960s, there was Soe Hok Djien, now known as Arief Budiman, son of Soe Lie Piet. For the period after 1965, there are Marga T., Mira W. Basuki Soejatmiko, The Eng Gie and Abdul Hadi W.M., a mixed-ethnic Chinese Moslem from Madura who won the Southeast Asia Writers award for Indonesia in 1985.

Last but not least, there is popular Kho Ping Ho. Actually, many of Marga T's and Mira W's novels were made into films.

Mr. Suryadinata's study shows that besides being "economic animals", these descendants of coolies, farmers, middlemen and artisans have literature and culture, too; beyond those stereotyped and much romanticized from-rages-to-riches stories of those who barely finished high school.

But most importantly, they have shown a very high degree of integration into the population at large and have also contributed significantly to enrich local literature.

SIA KA MOU

Jakarta