North Sulawesi spearheaded birth of Indonesian press

North Sulawesi spearheaded birth of Indonesian press

By Rudy L. Badil

MANADO, North Sulawesi (JP): The length of the list of local
newspapers, weeklies, magazines and bulletins that have appeared
and still appear in North Sulawesi may surprise many: It contains
at least 93 titles.

As we commemorate our 11th National Press Day in Manado today,
Feb. 9, it is worth recalling that as early as in 1886 -- 109
years ago -- a bulletin by the name of Tjahaja Siang (Light of
Day) appeared in Tanawangko, although its circulation was
limited.

This first "newspaper" to appear in North Sulawesi was
published by N. Graafland, a Dutch missionary and anthropologist
whose aim was to spread the gospel in a language which the local
population would easily understand. Hence the use of the local
Malay dialect. By comparison, the first Malay-language newspaper
in this country, the Bintang Soerabaja, appeared only a little
more than two decades earlier, in 1861.

In 1923 the bulletin Tjahaja Siang became a newspaper and its
name was changed to Minahassa Courant (1923-1934). A second
bulletin, titled Manado Courant, was in existence at around the
same time as Tjahaja Siang but was apparently short-lived.
Records show that it did not last beyond 1909-1910.

"Between 1890-1900 there was already a printing plant, owned
by the Manadosche Drukkerij. Later there were several others. The
one owned by Liem Boen Yat, which operated from 1926 to 1944, was
the most important because it was a letter press, not a hand
setting machine," says Chris A. Rondonuwu, who is general manager
and chief editor of the Obor Pancasila (Pancasila Torch) weekly
newspaper and a member of the SPS national association of
newspaper publishers as well as a student of the history of the
press in North Sulawesi.

During the heyday of the Indonesian nationalist movement in
the 1930s, the press in Minahasa was closely associated with the
movement. The mass media became the channel for its political
aspirations and journalists were generally firmly opposed to
Dutch colonial rule. For example, there were noted journalists
and nationalists Dr. Sam Ratulangi, A.B. Waworuntu, A. Durant, M.
Linuh, G. Dauhan, H.M. Taulu, O.H. Pantauw, A.A. Maramis, J.
Sariowan and O.F. Pua.

The Manado Courant, Aldibra, Persatuan (Unity), Radikal,
Pertimbangan (Judgment), Gerakan (Movement), Menara (Tower) and
others were all newspapers which opposed colonial rule. At that
time the nationalists and the religious organizations played a
significant role, according to Rondonuwu.

During the Japanese occupation the newspaper Matahari Terbit
(Rising Sun) appeared as a mouthpiece of the Japanese
authorities. After Indonesia proclaimed its national independence
and the armed struggle against the Dutch began, the newspaper
Menara (Tower) reappeared, its circulation reaching about 20,000
in the 1950s.

At around the same period many other newspapers appeared, most
of them serving the interests of specific political groups such
as the nationalists and the socialists.

At the end of the 1950s a rather gloomy period set in over
North Sulawesi. The Permesta secessionist rebellion against the
central government in Jakarta rocked the country. A number of
newspapers did their share of heating up the political situation
in the interest of the Permesta secessionists.

However, a few independent and education-oriented newspapers
continued to exist, among them Taman Ibu (Women's Garden), led by
a noted local leader Mrs. Walanda Maramis, Guru (Teacher) and
Suara Guru Minahasa (Voice of Minahasa Teachers).

During the period of the Permesta secessionist rebellion not a
single newspaper of the previous period survived. To fill the
void the local military command published the newspapers
Genderang Prajurit (Soldier's Drum) and Warta Amurang (Amurang
News). The revival occurred only at the beginning of the 1960s,
during the period of Guided Democracy, when the bulletin Merdeka
(Freedom), and the newspapers Harian Sadar (Awakening Daily
Newspaper), Suluh Merdeka (Torch of Freedom), Pancasila, Nusa
Putera (Son of the Country), Suluh Bhakti (Service Torch) and
others appeared.

A refreshing breeze came for the media after the Basic Press
Law of 1966 came into effect," says Rondonuwu, who has led Obor
Pancasila since 1961. Although its capacity was limited, the
state printing plant served all the 25 press publications as best
it could on a rotation basis. This printing by letter press
lasted until 1978.

In the meantime newspapers perished one after the other until,
after a few mergers, only several were left. These mergers were
necessary because of the shortage in both printing capacity and
materials. Chris Rondonuwu still remembers how he was forced to
have his newspaper, Obor Pancasila, printed in Jakarta. Warta
Utara (News of the North) fared the same fate.

"Only in the early 1980s did we have adequate offset printing
facilities, which was provided by a plant owned by the PT Golden
Webb company in Manado. This situation lasted for one year,"
recalls Rondonuwu. "In 1984, the year when the system of press
publishing permits (SIUPP) was introduced, another offset
printing plant opened, this one owned by Toko Lima. Then a few
newspapers, among them Lensa Utara (Lens of the North), brought
in their own printing equipment."

In a workshop under the theme The Press in Eastern Indonesia,
which was held in Manado in October 1987, the North Sulawesi
media was represented by the Manado Pos, Cahaya Siang, Warta
Utara, Obor Pancasila, Wibawa (Authority) and a number of other
publications, including Bogani, which appeared in Kotamobagu.

The North Sulawesi printed media, meanwhile achieved
considerable progress by cooperating with newspapers in Jakarta
and Surabaya. Cahaya Siang, for example, for some time
collaborated with Media Indonesia and the Manado Pos with Jawa
Pos.

The circulation which the local newspapers enjoy in North
Sulawesi is quite satisfactory, considering the fact that the
province has a population of only 2.5 million people. In addition
almost all the major media publications published outside the
province also circulate in Manado and other major cities in the
province.

"But among the constraints that emerged is capital. Another
restriction concerns the incomes of those who are involved in
media publication. The average salary for journalists here is Rp
150,000 a month. The difficulty of getting local advertisements
is yet another constraint," says Rondonuwu, who admits that
because of these problems his supposedly weekly newspaper Obor
Pancasila is having difficulties appearing regularly. "Another
serious problem is that some government officials prefer to
subscribe to journalists rather than to local weeklies or daily
newspapers.

"Because our reporters are not paid enough they are tempted to
accept pay-offs. Some reporters show those officials clippings of
their reports in the hope that they will get something in return
for it. This is disgraceful but that is the reality," says
Rondonuwu.

Rondonuwu hopes National Press Day, 1995, will mark the dawn
of a brighter future for the press in North Sulawesi.

"It is an undeniable fact that the publication of Tjahaja
Siang near the end of the last century places North Sulawesi in
the ranks of pioneers of the Indonesian press. But we must admit
that the situation in which the North Sulawesi media is at
present operating, facilities and capital included, is actually
still quite dim and certainly not as bright as the name of the
first bulletin would suggest," he says.