Tough times ahead for Indonesian art world

By Rita A. Widiadana

The constraints of bans, some imposed without clear reasons, closures and censorship continue to haunt the organizers and presenters of local art and cultural activities. Creative freedom among Indonesian artists has been curbed in the name of the nation's stability and security. This runs counter to the State Policy Guidelines, which state that the support of art as a cultural expression of the people is devoted to the development of artistic creativity, the improvement of the public's appreciation of art and their involvement with it.

JAKARTA (JP): "Only God and the government know exactly what will happen to the Indonesian art world in the future," says scholar Salim Said.

Such a comment is understandable, given the current political atmosphere which precludes clear guidelines for artists to follow. Most of the time they have to rely on their instincts to avoid a ban or censorship because the criteria vary from one place to another, from yesterday to today.

Tough censorship moves inflicted for often unstated or unclear reasons have affected many art and cultural activities -- music, dance, film, theater, fine art and literary events -- for the last 25 years in particular.

Data at the Jakarta Arts Council (DKJ) reveal that dozens of the banned cultural performances were heavy with social criticism. The banned works include Mastodon dan Burung Kondor (l971), Lysistrata and Perjuangan Suku Naga (l975), all by poet- playwright W.S. Rendra, and Lho (l975), a play by Putu Wijaya, which was considered pornographic due to the nudity involved. The works of Teater Koma have often been subjected to government bans. Teater Koma's Sam Pek Eng Tay (l988) was banned only in Medan, North Sumatra, for its potential to expose Chinese culture to the Indonesian people. The group's other works including Opera Kecoa, and Suksesi have also faced bans because of their satirical content.

Bitterness

People in the film, music, dance and other entertainment industries have also had a taste of the bitterness of these restrictions. A number of films, such as Saija dan Adinda, (l977), Romusha (l974) and Nusa Penida (l990) were banned (see box). Dancers Sardono W. Kusumo and Farida Feisal have had bad experiences when their works were banned for containing erotic scenes. The ban on the performances of Teater Buruh Indonesia and two rock concerts by Iwan Fals and Harry Roesli are the most recent examples.

"Many government officials still consider artists as contaminators, who will pollute the life of the public. The government is often suspicious that the artists's creations will bring a negative impact to the public and to the nation in general. This is crazy," according to Salim Said, who is chairman of the Jakarta Art Council.

Salim is of the opinion that local arts will sooner or later die if the government and the artists fail to bridge their sharp differences on the meaning of the arts in society.

"The banning or prohibition against any artistic work not only hampers creative freedom, but also prevents us from holding a mutually beneficial dialog with the government," Salim noted. It also reflects the government's unwillingness to learn to understand the contents of art works, he lamented.

Salim added that many government officials ban artistic works without even seeing or reading them first. There have never been precise, understandable criteria on what type or quality of cultural event might create social unrest, he complained. The affected artists have never been informed about the "sins" committed in their artistic works. The art council, a respected art think tank and "home" to many of Indonesia's best known intellectuals, has been consulted about such matters.

"We want to know exactly which part of a play or a scene in a film or lyrics in a song that are viewed as having the potential to rock the nation," Salim said.

Persistent bans on performing arts will certainly affect artists and intellectuals, he added. "They are currently haunted with fear whenever they want to exercise their rights to freedom of expression," Salim explained.

Salim insisted there is no way that a play or other art activity can trigger a "revolution", as some official seem to think.

The frequent bans on cultural activities illustrate just how wide the gap between artists and those in power is, said poet Emha Ainun Nadjib, whose work Pak Kanjeng was banned by the East Java authorities.

"To the authorities, art is subordinate to power. If this goes on, we will have whole generations unable to appreciate art," Emha added.

Emha continued that such censorship or banning is common in a developing country like Indonesia. Therefore, no ample room for freedom of expression seems forthcoming in the near future.

Nano Riantiarno, leader of Teater Koma, said that the government's banning should not discourage artists from continuing to produce. "I'm not saying that these bans have not affected our lives and our theatrical activities. They did cause severe wounds deep in our hearts. But, do we have to give up?" he asked in frustration.

Nano went on to say he is now adopting the philosophy that "water flows every where it can".

"I try to remain active regardless of the fact that existing conditions are not conducive," he said. Presently, he is busy preparing his latest play, Semar Gugat, which is scheduled to be staged at the Graha Bhakti Budaya, Taman Ismail Marzuki (TIM) Arts Center, in November. Nano and his group will also take part at the international festival on contemporary theater in Cairo in September.

Nano said he personally does not object to censorship as long as it is transparent. "But, the authorities should view our works with clearer and positive minds. We don't want to destroy our own country. If the government considers our works too critical, it is just because we love the country. We want to arouse a sense of awareness among the authorities and the public as well that something wrong is happening around us," he explained.

He believes that a play or drama actually provides us with a chance to maintain a healthy dialog -- with ourselves, with our conscience, and subsequently, with other people. It is through such dialogs that we can reach better mutual understanding and avoid conflicts, all of which serves for the betterment of our society. It is a pity that such a path for dialog is being kept closed, he said.

Actually, a series of meetings between bureaucrats and artists have been held and proved to be able to build a dialog between the two parties.

Salim explained that in l988, former coordinating minister for political affairs and security, Sudomo, had given assurances to the art council that there would be no bans on artistic and cultural performances. Sudomo said that the government would consult the council before banning any cultural event. "That was the deal which has never been realized," Salim said.

In October l994, Minister/State Secretary Moerdiono gave another solemn guarantee that "no plays will be banned, either today or tomorrow". Many people welcomed the promise as a refreshing breath of air.

Understandably, quite a number of people have viewed Moerdiono's statement with considerable reservations. Although they do not have the slightest reason to doubt Moerdiono's integrity, several experiences have shown that coordination between the upper and lower echelons of government has often been wanting, particularly whenever the issue of security is at stake.

Despite assurances from these two high-ranking officials, the banning of performing arts presentations still goes on. Early this year, the East Java authority banned the performance of Pak Kanjeng, a satirical play by outspoken Emha. This Pak Kanjeng banning incident clearly shows how difficult it is to change a perception. It also reveals the poor coordination between the central and regional authorities.

Permits

Regardless of Moerdiono's assurance, cultural performances and intellectual meetings, including seminars and discussions have even been restricted.

Togi Sigalingging, public relations manager of TIM, explained that "very special permits" are required if TIM wants to organize performances by outspoken artists or scholars, including Guruh Sukarnoputra, son of Indonesia's first president, playwright and poet W.S. Rendra, Moslem scholar Abdurrahman Wahid and Teater Koma.

Previously, TIM needed only to apply for an annual permit for all the activities at the center. "Now, we have to apply for special permits for even a seminar or discussion, let alone for those people mentioned above. This is really a setback in our cultural life. The authorities trying to silence our freedom of creation and expression," Sigalingging commented.

According to the regulations, cultural performances, gatherings, including seminars, and talks need special permits from the police and other agencies.

"The processing of such permits is really time and money consuming. We have to give 'extra money' to at least 18 desks to obtain a permit," said an organizer who wants to remain anonymous.

A number of House members, including Krissantono from the government-backed Golkar faction, earlier revealed that the banning of cultural performances and other forms of gatherings will only make Indonesia a laughing stock in the international community.

The government has also risked public criticism by applying such an unpopular policy, he said.

Artist Franki Raden added that the cultural bans could become a boomerang for the government.

"The policy has smeared the government's image because it makes the people think the bureaucracy frowns on criticism," Franki said. Furthermore, government officials should realize that by banning one's work, they help the artist climb into stardom.