People of Yemeni origin play full role in Indonesia's development
<p>People of Yemeni origin play full role in Indonesia's development</p><p>Indra Harsaputra, The Jakarta Post, Surabaya</p><p>Sewu wolungatus paetung puluhantahune<BR>
Nduk kampong Arab papan panggone<BR>
Gedhe dhukur njenggeret cakrike<BR>
Klumpukane wong ngendoni ati sumpege<BR>
Cikar Mandheg mapine manut<BR>
Landa ireng capital putih<BR>
Wong Arab turune hadramaut<BR>
Gremeng-Gremeng aras-arasen mulih.</p><p> This is how poet Trinil Sri Setyowati of Surabaya, born on
July 27, 1965, describes Ampel village in Surabaya, an area that
is home to locals whose forefathers came from Hadramaut, a
province of the Republic of Yemen, a state formed when North
Yemen (with Sana'a as its capital) and South Yemen (with Aden)
united as a single republic on May 21, 1990.</p><p>The village, which is located in the northern part of
Surabaya, is also known as Ampel village because it is located
near the grave of Sunan Ampel, who came from Campa, southern
Thailand, and was one of the nine pious leaders who first spread
Islam in Java.</p><p>According to locals of Yemeni origin, Hadramaut is derived
from the name of a descendant of Ya'rub, one of the Prophet Hud's
grandsons. Ya'rub was believed to have undertaken the clearing of
the dry and barren southern area of the Arab peninsula.</p><p>In the poem by Trinil, which is written in the Surabaya
dialect, locals of Yemeni origin are described as immigrants with
a knack for business.</p><p>After the initial introduction of Islam into what is today
Indonesia via Aceh many hundreds of years ago, followed later by
its spread in Java through Banten, the Yemeni people from
Hadramaut, who were very fond of chewing khat, a plant with
reputed aphrodisiac properties, came to Indonesia to do business
and propagate Islam. They had left their barren, impoverished
homeland to migrate overseas for a better life.</p><p>According to Van den Berg, a researcher who studied the people
from Hadramaut in Indonesia from 1884 until 1886, there was in
Batavia (as Jakarta was known during colonial times) quite a
popular imam from Hadramaut called Sayid Hussein bin Babubakar Al
Aidrus.</p><p>He preached in Batavia and was buried in Luar Batang when he
died in 1798. Another preacher from Hadramaut, for example, was
Salim bin Abdullah Somir.</p><p>Assimilation</p><p> In Surabaya, the immigrants from Hadramaut started up
businesses, married local women and raised families here. Hence
the presence of thousands of people of Hadramaut origin in Ampel
village, Surabaya.</p><p>Just like the communities of Hadramaut origin in Solo and
Jakarta, most of these people have continued the businesses that
have been passed down to them from earlier generations.</p><p>Some have joined the bureaucracy or become journalists and
academics, including Toriq Hadad, an editor of Tempo weekly, Alwi
Shihab, now coordinating minister for people's welfare, Ali
Alatas, a foreign minister from the Soeharto era and Munir, a
human rights activist who died after being poisoned on a flight
to The Netherlands.</p><p>Mohammad Anis Baraja, who is of Hadramaut origin and a senior
journalist in Surabaya, as well as being one of the founders of
the Alliance of Indonesian Journalists (AJI), said that
Indonesians of Hadramaut origin are better known as Indonesians
of Arab descent as they have a sharp, well-formed noses and enjoy
a higher standard of living than the people in Yemen.</p><p>Most of them are traders, moneylenders, owners of land that is
leased out or religious teachers. Some used to enjoy a degree of
clout over the former princely rulers, or sultans, in Indonesia
as they could claim to be descended from a prophet.</p><p>In Sumenep, Madura, for example, an imam from Hadramaut, Syid
Abdurrahman Al Baiti, served as an adviser to Sultan Paku
Natadiningrat. The sultan, who ruled over Sumenep between 1812
and 1854, hired him to teach his children and relatives.</p><p>Opting for politics</p><p> Today, Indonesians of Hadramaut origin usually opt to become
politicians rather than traders. Many of them have joined the
National Awakening Party (PKB) or other Islam-based political
parties affiliated to Nahdlatul Ulama (NU). Those who do not
believe that they are descended from a prophet usually join
Muhammadiyah, the National Mandate Party (PAN) or the Prosperous
Justice Party (PKS).</p><p>Some people of Hadramaut origin in Surabaya still maintain
their family names but, increasingly, younger people are
abandoning them.</p><p>Mohammad Anis, for example, no longer uses Baraja -- his
family name -- on his identity card. He is part of Surabaya and
is proud to be known as an Arek Suroboyo (Surabayan), he says.</p><p>"The bonds of family and clan are still maintained, though,"
said Anis, who was born in Solo and was formerly the executive
editor of Detik, a tabloid that was banned during the Soeharto
era.</p><p>The bonds of family and clan, he said, were something that did
not have to be clung to absolutely. A family name is only a
label, showing that someone is of Hadramaut origin in Indonesia,
he added.</p><p>"I'd give my name as Baraja only if someone asked me about
it," he said.</p><p>Abdullah Abdulkadir Alaydrus, who sells sarongs in Ampel
village, Surabaya, said that despite his use of his family name,
he was proud to be a Surabaya resident.</p><p>However, he regretted the discrimination still experienced
today by people of Hadramaut origin in Surabaya, all of whom were
born and bred in Surabaya. The government still considers them
citizens of foreign origin, not indigenous people.</p><p>"Once the administrative procedures in a hospital were made
difficult for me just because I was of foreign origin," he said.</p><p>Discrimination against people of Hadramaut origin in Indonesia
has been going on for quite a long time. In 1990, for example, a
local student of Hadramaut origin went to Yemen to study Arabic
for a few years and became a naturalized Yemeni. When he wanted
to return to Indonesia -- his birthplace -- he found it difficult
to get a visa to visit.</p><p>"Today, there is no longer a problem in obtaining such visas.
I hope the government does not discriminate against Indonesians
of Hadramaut origin because they, too, participate in advancing
the development of the places where they live," Abddillah said.</p>
Nduk kampong Arab papan panggone<BR>
Gedhe dhukur njenggeret cakrike<BR>
Klumpukane wong ngendoni ati sumpege<BR>
Cikar Mandheg mapine manut<BR>
Landa ireng capital putih<BR>
Wong Arab turune hadramaut<BR>
Gremeng-Gremeng aras-arasen mulih.</p><p> This is how poet Trinil Sri Setyowati of Surabaya, born on
July 27, 1965, describes Ampel village in Surabaya, an area that
is home to locals whose forefathers came from Hadramaut, a
province of the Republic of Yemen, a state formed when North
Yemen (with Sana'a as its capital) and South Yemen (with Aden)
united as a single republic on May 21, 1990.</p><p>The village, which is located in the northern part of
Surabaya, is also known as Ampel village because it is located
near the grave of Sunan Ampel, who came from Campa, southern
Thailand, and was one of the nine pious leaders who first spread
Islam in Java.</p><p>According to locals of Yemeni origin, Hadramaut is derived
from the name of a descendant of Ya'rub, one of the Prophet Hud's
grandsons. Ya'rub was believed to have undertaken the clearing of
the dry and barren southern area of the Arab peninsula.</p><p>In the poem by Trinil, which is written in the Surabaya
dialect, locals of Yemeni origin are described as immigrants with
a knack for business.</p><p>After the initial introduction of Islam into what is today
Indonesia via Aceh many hundreds of years ago, followed later by
its spread in Java through Banten, the Yemeni people from
Hadramaut, who were very fond of chewing khat, a plant with
reputed aphrodisiac properties, came to Indonesia to do business
and propagate Islam. They had left their barren, impoverished
homeland to migrate overseas for a better life.</p><p>According to Van den Berg, a researcher who studied the people
from Hadramaut in Indonesia from 1884 until 1886, there was in
Batavia (as Jakarta was known during colonial times) quite a
popular imam from Hadramaut called Sayid Hussein bin Babubakar Al
Aidrus.</p><p>He preached in Batavia and was buried in Luar Batang when he
died in 1798. Another preacher from Hadramaut, for example, was
Salim bin Abdullah Somir.</p><p>Assimilation</p><p> In Surabaya, the immigrants from Hadramaut started up
businesses, married local women and raised families here. Hence
the presence of thousands of people of Hadramaut origin in Ampel
village, Surabaya.</p><p>Just like the communities of Hadramaut origin in Solo and
Jakarta, most of these people have continued the businesses that
have been passed down to them from earlier generations.</p><p>Some have joined the bureaucracy or become journalists and
academics, including Toriq Hadad, an editor of Tempo weekly, Alwi
Shihab, now coordinating minister for people's welfare, Ali
Alatas, a foreign minister from the Soeharto era and Munir, a
human rights activist who died after being poisoned on a flight
to The Netherlands.</p><p>Mohammad Anis Baraja, who is of Hadramaut origin and a senior
journalist in Surabaya, as well as being one of the founders of
the Alliance of Indonesian Journalists (AJI), said that
Indonesians of Hadramaut origin are better known as Indonesians
of Arab descent as they have a sharp, well-formed noses and enjoy
a higher standard of living than the people in Yemen.</p><p>Most of them are traders, moneylenders, owners of land that is
leased out or religious teachers. Some used to enjoy a degree of
clout over the former princely rulers, or sultans, in Indonesia
as they could claim to be descended from a prophet.</p><p>In Sumenep, Madura, for example, an imam from Hadramaut, Syid
Abdurrahman Al Baiti, served as an adviser to Sultan Paku
Natadiningrat. The sultan, who ruled over Sumenep between 1812
and 1854, hired him to teach his children and relatives.</p><p>Opting for politics</p><p> Today, Indonesians of Hadramaut origin usually opt to become
politicians rather than traders. Many of them have joined the
National Awakening Party (PKB) or other Islam-based political
parties affiliated to Nahdlatul Ulama (NU). Those who do not
believe that they are descended from a prophet usually join
Muhammadiyah, the National Mandate Party (PAN) or the Prosperous
Justice Party (PKS).</p><p>Some people of Hadramaut origin in Surabaya still maintain
their family names but, increasingly, younger people are
abandoning them.</p><p>Mohammad Anis, for example, no longer uses Baraja -- his
family name -- on his identity card. He is part of Surabaya and
is proud to be known as an Arek Suroboyo (Surabayan), he says.</p><p>"The bonds of family and clan are still maintained, though,"
said Anis, who was born in Solo and was formerly the executive
editor of Detik, a tabloid that was banned during the Soeharto
era.</p><p>The bonds of family and clan, he said, were something that did
not have to be clung to absolutely. A family name is only a
label, showing that someone is of Hadramaut origin in Indonesia,
he added.</p><p>"I'd give my name as Baraja only if someone asked me about
it," he said.</p><p>Abdullah Abdulkadir Alaydrus, who sells sarongs in Ampel
village, Surabaya, said that despite his use of his family name,
he was proud to be a Surabaya resident.</p><p>However, he regretted the discrimination still experienced
today by people of Hadramaut origin in Surabaya, all of whom were
born and bred in Surabaya. The government still considers them
citizens of foreign origin, not indigenous people.</p><p>"Once the administrative procedures in a hospital were made
difficult for me just because I was of foreign origin," he said.</p><p>Discrimination against people of Hadramaut origin in Indonesia
has been going on for quite a long time. In 1990, for example, a
local student of Hadramaut origin went to Yemen to study Arabic
for a few years and became a naturalized Yemeni. When he wanted
to return to Indonesia -- his birthplace -- he found it difficult
to get a visa to visit.</p><p>"Today, there is no longer a problem in obtaining such visas.
I hope the government does not discriminate against Indonesians
of Hadramaut origin because they, too, participate in advancing
the development of the places where they live," Abddillah said.</p>