Old buildings still have some spirit left

By Ida Indawati Khouw

JAKARTA (JP): "The Ministry of Finance will move its offices because ghosts have been seen roaming the building and scaring the staff," a newspaper reported in July.

And the person quoted by the newspaper was no other than then finance minister Bambang Sudibyo.

He was referring to the old Dutch colonial building of the National Development Planning Board (Bappenas), located on Jl. Diponegoro, Central Jakarta.

Bambang was quoted as saying that the building was haunted by several ghosts and frightened staff members had pressured the government to move.

Built in 1934, it was an "awful" building in the eyes of laymen at the time as it was the lodge of a secret society called the Freemasons, a worldwide brotherhood movement pioneered by masons who used certain symbols and rituals to teach the basic moral truth.

Further development of the moving plan is unclear now but the minister's statement indicated that ghosts played a big role, even in the decision-making process at a ministerial level.

Unfortunately, the minister did not describe further about the "identity" of the ghosts, for example, whether they were the spirits of Dutchmen who occupied the place in the past or members of the secret society.

But the "nationality" of the ghosts was sometimes not identical with those of former occupants.

An official at the Marine Museum, which is also home to several ghosts, believes that even though the museum was very Dutch, the ghost "leader" (looked like) an "Indian national".

"I have many times met with the spirits. There are many here, one of whom is the leader," said Sunarto, who is considered by many as a ghost expert.

The museum, located in North Jakarta, was built as a warehouse by the Vereenigde Oost-Indische Compagnie (VOC), the Dutch trading company which was in power here between 1619 and 1799.

Sunarto can point out the place where the ghost leader resides.

"He always stays in Block C," he said, referring to the edge of the museum which consists of three separate elongated two- story buildings.

Describing the ghost's appearance, Sunarto said he was like a dark Indian, about three meters tall.

People living nearby also believe in the ghost and they have named the spirit Pak Item (Mr. Black), whereas Sunarto said the entity does not have black skin.

But local residents are reluctant to say anything about Pak Item. "No, I don't want to comment on him. I am afraid something bad will occur," said a long-time resident.

Pak Item is described as a generous ghost who has a likable personality and never bothers humans.

But Sunarto could not explain why ghosts resided in the museum or why the leader looked like an Indian. "I can't communicate with them. The spirits just appear whenever they want. I once 'invited' Pak Item but he did not appear," he said, referring to a seance conducted with three other people.

Handoyo, one of Sunarto's colleagues who joined the seance, said they had fasted and stayed up late for four days.

"We wanted to communicate with the spirits but failed," he said.

Sometimes the ghosts cause illness to people who see them, such as what Yanto experienced last year when he was at the Jakarta Historical Museum, which is also known as the Fatahillah Museum, in West Jakarta.

"I became sick after seeing a group of 'soldiers' at the museum. First it became difficult for me to sleep because I always had a nightmare of being in a war," said Yanto, who is an employee at the Marine Museum.

In the past, many cruelties occurred in the museum complex, which was the old City Hall.

But some ghosts can be helpful.

An employee of PT Dharma Niaga trading company, Thomas Ataladjar, who between 1988 and 1993 wrote the history of Toko Merah (Red Shop), a 270-year-old building on Jl. Kali Besar in downtown Kota and now the trading company's offices, said he was helped by a ghost. He said the ghost was governor general G.W. von Imhoff, who built the estate.

"At that time I was sad because the story about Toko Merah was only briefly discussed, whereas there were many occurrences that happened within the house," he said.

Thomas said he needed confirmation on every detail regarding the building's history. "I was distressed as it was difficult to find books or other material which clearly mentioned that Toko Merah was built by von Imhoff.

"I once visited the Puppet Museum (in West Jakarta) where several old tombstones are, including that of von Imhoff. Amid my frustration I said abusive words in front of it, saying 'hey Imhoff if it is true that you built the house, show me where I can find the data' and I kicked the memorial stone," he said.

Thomas said that he does not believe in ghosts, and he was only venting his distress with von Imhoff's gravestone.

But von Imhoff's "spirit" then led him to an old Dutch book at the National Library in Central Jakarta, which clearly mentioned that it was the governor general who built the house.

"It was a very strange experience. The book was on display and placed within a glass box so no one could touch it. I made a librarian show me a certain page because I just had a feeling that there was a phrase confirming the information about von Imhoff, and sure enough there it was," he said.