TV soap operas portray Betawi folk as dumb: Pundit

TV soap operas portray Betawi folk as dumb: Pundit

Bambang Nurbianto, Jakarta

Many sinetron (TV soap operas) portray Betawi people in a bad
light, and mislead viewers, because they only show one aspect of
the native Jakartan, an expert says.

Head of the Anthropology Department at the University of
Indonesia (UI), Yasmine Shahab, told a press conference on
Wednesday that nearly all TV dramas on Betawi people and their
culture depict them as stupid and backward.

"When people watch those TV dramas, they will think that
Betawi people are stupid and uneducated. Betawi culture is also
often described as static and not dynamic," she said.

The UI and the Jakarta Culture and Museum Agency will organize
a seminar entitled Betawi and Jakarta: A Cultural Perspective at
UI campus in Depok on June 28 and June 29.

Yasmine cited many episodes of Si Doel Anak Sekolahan (Doel,
the schoolboy) that showed scenes where Mandra, an uneducated
Betawi, always swallowed whatever Karyo, his Javanese neighbor,
said.

She also named other TV series that exploit the Betawi people
in a negative way.

Yasmine regretted that those dramas did not explore the real
lives of many Betawi people, who are modern and progressive. She
pointed to the emergence of organizations established by Betawi
people and the fact that many of them have held strong position
in the administration.

"In the past, it was difficult to find a Betawi as a
subdistrict chief. Now we have many Betawi figures holding
important positions such as Pak Fauzi Bowo (deputy governor),"
she said.

The seminar steering committee chairwoman, Edy Sedyawati, said
that sinetron on Betawi people would be among the topics to be
discussed in the two-day seminar. Other important topics will
include Betawi history, Betawi arts, Betawi language, Betawi
literature and the contemporary Betawi people. A number of
cultural experts and observers are also expected to attend.

Edy said there was still controversy over the elements that
led to the Betawi culture and she promised that this topic would
be one of the most interesting.

Old literature says that the Betawi people are is a mix of
various other ethnic groups from Indonesia and other countries,
who were used by the Dutch colonial administration as workers in
Jakarta.

The Betawi people are said to have Malay, Balinese, Sasak,
Chinese, Arab, Dutch, Sundanese and Javanese ancestry.