'Silver Town' sees silver lining slip away
'Silver Town' sees silver lining slip away
By Gin Kurniawan
YOGYAKARTA (JP): A former seat of the ancient Mataram Kingdom,
Kotagede to the southeast of downtown Yogyakarta is dubbed
"Silver Town" because the majority of its residents are
silversmiths.
True to its nickname, Kotagede offers a host of silverware,
from jewelry of rings, delicate filigree necklaces, earrings and
bracelets, to household appliances and ornaments.
Data compiled by the Yogyakarta Production Cooperative of
Silverware Entrepreneurs reveals that about 4,000 families work
in the sector. Each family usually employs five to eight people,
and most live in the areas of Keboan, Jagalan, Prenggan,
Tegalgendu and Moyan.
According to cooperative chairman Samsudimulyo, silvercrafts
in the town date back to the 16th century during Mataram's
heyday, when palace artisans made silver jewelry for the royal
family.
Over time, people living outside the court learned the craft.
After the royal court moved on, many community members developed
silverware into a professional craft and produced articles to
meet the market demand. In 1933, local silversmiths set up the
Foundation for the Promotion of Arts in Yogyakarta, which was
later popularly known as Pakaryan Yogyakarta.
The foundation launched various guidance and assistance
programs designed to intensify the development of ventures of
local silversmiths. Gradually, the silversmiths gained national
and international recognition.
Kotagede silverware has been exhibited internationally in
Japan, the United States, the Netherlands and other European
countries. As the items achieved international popularity, the
welfare of the silversmiths rose.
Unfortunately, like for so many Indonesians, the crisis has
done much to undo the gains of the past.
"At first there was a decline in our orders. Then the price of
the raw materials soared. Finally, we could no longer continue
making silverware," said silversmith Jumiran from Jagalan.
Last year, a kilogram of silver cost Rp 300,000; today, the
price ranges from Rp 2.8 million to Rp 3 million. The numbing
price rise is an inevitable consequence of the rupiah's crash;
the metal's price is pegged to the U.S. dollar, following the
standard set by the London Metal Exchange.
Silversmiths must also pay a 10 percent value-added tax, as
stipulated in Presidential Decree No. 37/1998 issued in April.
To make matters worse, the prices of other materials used in
the silvercrafts have also soared. For example, velvet has risen
from Rp 6,000 to Rp 18,000 per meter and the price of glue has
increased from Rp 8,500 to Rp 40,000 a can. Even the production
cost, formerly an average Rp 250 per gram, has gone up to Rp 500
to Rp 600.
Production costs can be offset by increasing prices, but the
risk is high when people have new priorities. "In the present
situation, people prefer to buy food to silver," said Lasmanu
Sukriyanto, owner of Ira Silver's.
Silversmiths have been hit hard on all sides. Foreign tourists
are traditionally the main purchasers of the items, but their
numbers have plunged following the forest fires in Kalimantan
over the past year and the May riots which were worst in Jakarta
and Yogyakarta's sister city of Surakarta.
"In some cases, we received orders from abroad but in others
foreign buyers came here to buy large quantities of silvercrafts.
However, because they doubt the security situation in the
country, many foreigners have canceled their plans to visit the
town," said Sunarti of Narti's Silver.
In the last three months, she said exports had dropped. She
attributed the downturn to the considerable increase in the price
of Indonesian silver and the fact that many overseas buyers of
Kotagede silver products were on holiday.
Sunarti said the soaring price of silver rendered the cost of
silvercraft articles uncompetitive. "The price of our silver is
much higher than that of Thailand."
She argued the Indonesian's silverware was superior because it
was handmade. But for foreign buyers, where the bottom line is
the major concern, the less expensive Thai products are proving a
bargain, even if their craftsmanship is lower.
"Thai silvercraft articles are indeed lower in price than ours
because the silver raw material is cheaper and the cost of
production, mechanical in some respects, can be considerably cut
down," she added.
Narti's Silver has not laid off its workers even though about
30 employees in the retail division have virtually nothing to do.
"Although retail sales are practically naught and our exports
have also dropped significantly, thank God we can still pay these
retail people from our export earnings," Sunarti said.
But many other companies, like Tom's Silver, have been forced
to lay off some of their employees.
Bima Silver now needs about five kg of silver monthly, a big
drop from the previous amount of 40 kg . Ira Silver now requires
only 2 kg of silver a month instead of 25 kg.
"Our average sales volume used to amount to Rp 200 million,
but now it is only Rp 15 million," Lasmanu complained.
The once bustling hives of activity have been silenced in the
crisis. Furnaces, engraving tools and workshop tables stand idle.
To survive, the silversmiths sell vegetables, rear chickens,
work as parking attendants or even run food stalls. Thousands are
still searching for a living. They have been forced to look for
new jobs in professions far removed from their own gifts and
skills.
Samsuhadi expressed pessimism over whether the silversmiths
could succeed in their new business undertakings. He said it was
due not only to the problems besetting all business sectors, but
also because the silversmiths were accustomed only to their time-
honored profession.
Will the fame and glory of Kotagede silver craftsmen and the
label of the Silver Town become obsolete? The Kotagede people do
not know the answer, just as they do not know when the crisis
will finally end.