'Prahara Budaya' puts history in perspective
'Prahara Budaya' puts history in perspective
JAKARTA (JP): Minister of Education and Culture Wardiman Djojonegoro welcomed yesterday Prahara Budaya, or Cultural Calamity, saying the new book "straightens out history."
The controversial Prahara Budaya discusses the political rivalry between Indonesia's pro- and anti-communist intellectuals during the 1960-1965 period of guided democracy under former Indonesian president Sukarno.
"The events only occurred 30 years ago but people are already trying to turn the facts around," he said.
Wardiman was addressing a ceremony in which the state oil company Pertamina symbolically presented 5,000 copies of the book to the rectors of University of Indonesia, the Jakarta Teacher Education and Training Institute (IKIP), the Syarif Hidayatullah Institute of Islamic Studies (IAIN) and the Consultative Board for Indonesian Private Universities.
"History books in schools have the mission of educating children. All of it is aimed at securing national unity," Wardiman said.
Noted intellectual Taufiq Ismail, who co-wrote the book with D.S. Moeljanto, said it was necessary to "straighten out history" as there had lately been "attempts by certain people and groups of people... to deny that socialistic realism was related to communism and the LEKRA (pro-communist People's Cultural Institute) group during the 1960s".
"I am only straightening out the facts. I don't like lies," he said.
As communism rose to its heyday at that time, intellectuals were divided into the pro-communist LEKRA group, on one hand, and an anti-communist group associated with the concept of Manikebu, or a "Cultural Manifesto", on the other. Taufiq and Moeljanto were members of the latter group.
In 1965, the coup attempt by the Indonesian Communist Party (PKI) was crushed and many of its leaders, alleged activists and writers were jailed.
While some critics praise the book for being "very balanced", others say it has opened up old wounds and that the authors are "seeking revenge".
Taufiq, however, denied seeking revenge through the book.
"If people read the book, they can see that there is no attempt to get back at LEKRA. For one, 29 years is much too long for us to still be seeking revenge," he said.
Taufiq said that when the tables were turned following the fall of the communists, his colleagues associated with Manikebu did not try to burn the books written by LEKRA members, nor did they urge the government to ban their books and art exhibitions, as LEKRA had done when the communists had the upper hand.
"We actually enjoy the works of LEKRA authors because many of them are very good. But sometimes the performance of their works declined because of politics," he said.
A senior journalist who claimed to be a witness to certain events of the 1960s countered that claim, saying he had seen hundreds of books scattered and destroyed on Jl. Kramat Raya in Central Jakarta by anti-communist groups.
"But I am talking here about literature," Taufiq responded. "That must have been the work of other groups, not of the men of letters associated with Manikebu," he said.
Taufiq said that he had tried to be balanced in the book, adding that "the one error that several Manikebu-signatories committed," which was apologizing to the government for one of their writings.
"But we understand the situation they were in at the time, although we cannot agree with what they did," he said.
Asked about the situation at that time compared with present times, Taufiq said the prevalence of physical terror and repression of writers were the most distinguishing factors.
"I'm not saying that present times are paradise, but there's no perfect country... Even in the most democratic countries there are bannings of books," he said.
"I gladly welcome any book which attempts to counter this book," Taufiq said. (pwn)