What is Special in Pematang Siantar?
This was a famous city during the colonial time for it had a lot of newspapers of various backgrounds, publishers, and people of many ethnics. Even today, we can still find this plurality through temples of many background, foods, and culture. Many protestant churches central offices are located in this city as well such as: GKPS (Simalungun Protestant Christian Church), HKI (Indonesian Christian Church), GKPI (Indonesian Protestant Christian Church) - are those of Protestant mainstream, member of PGI (Indonesian Community Churches). Besides these churches, there are also HKBP (Protestant Batak Christian Church), Catholic and some other Protestant denominations. People of Pematangsiantar of different cultural and religious backgrounds are living side by side. Right on this city it is easy to find churches, mosques, and temples. They have been interacting so at least since the end of the 19th century. As of ethnic, here we can find: Simalungun, Toba, Karo, Angkola, Pakpak, Chinese, Indian, Nias, Padang , Javanese, Menado, Dayak, and some others. At the beginning of the 20th century, the colonial government brought Toba people to Simalungun to work on the rice field. At that time, the plantation was booming in East Sumatra (Pematangsiantar area including). Many labors came out side of this area; they needed rice. Toba people were more advanced in cultivating rice field compare to Simalungun which used to cultivate at dry-land at that time. So the village like Panombean where SBY came last year to harvest paddy is a village of a Toba people majority. Here in this city we also can find beca-Siantar, the still only one in the world as they say. What a half-awake city Based on its historical background and the reality of today, there are much potency that people of Pematangsiantar can develop so that this city can become a living-city. As far as I can see, cultural works are quite few in number as well as in quality here. Last October, Grace Siregar, a painter and owner of Tondi Gallery in Medan brought tens of art-workers to exhibit their art-works in Pematangsiantar, precisely at Pusat Latihan Opera Batak (PLOT) at Jl. Lingga. However, since people of Pematangsiantar have been living somehow far away from such this art-works, their attention is low; they way they respect and value art-works is also relatively poor. Several educated as well as activists here (pastor, lawyer, lecturer) once came to see the exhibition at Jl. Lingga. Through their comment after seeing the exhibition, I noticed how the relation between not-having arts works as part of the city-life and the poor appreciation of people on seeing art-works. If educated people do not have such a good capability on respecting art-work, what else then we can expect from people in general? Those people told me, to my surprised how they felt uncomfortable to see the colors of black, weird-installation with somehow paganism-things attached. They way they see the art-works is too swallowing, mainly reach the skin not the seed. It is difficult to find art-works in Pematangsiantar as one of American who lived here for months told me. The potency is truly there but who are responsible people who can manage and have skill to deal with it? The local government seems to be powerless. Look at the tourist department which is also mainly deal with the skin not the seed of the rich local culture here. The tourist department then limits the movement and growth of culture seems to be intentionally since they are lack on skill and knowledge . The clearest example I can mention is how Pesta Rondang Bintang. It literally means a cultural event set up during the season when stars fill the sky at night; this used to organize by young generation with the consultation and supervision of the elders. This Rondang Bintang, the Simalungun cultural heritage for generations is getting unfamiliar to today Simalungun people themselves. Why? For the last three decades, for the sake of tourist-ends, hand in hand with business, this once-belongs-to-people cultural heritage has been taken away from them. As now, Simalungun people are powerless and have no enough skill to claim this powerful and educated cultural event back to them. There has been a setback, unfortunately. For sure, people with no living and progressive cultural-works are people who already falling apart; having no strong identity and bargaining position. Therefore, they are getting weaker and powerless. How to wake this city up? As I have been living in Pematangsiantar these past 10 months, I come to see clearer how rich this second largest city of North Sumatra is. It does rich in culture and religion. It will be powerfully inspiring if local Pematangsiantar people can hand in hand with diasporas ones who live out side of this city to think and act seriously of how to build this city not only in term of infrastructure (road, building, facility) but also on cultural and religious building. Everything in our life is interconnecting and interdependent; we truly can not separate culture from religion, economy from art, politic from identity, etc. Therefore, we do need to cooperate so that we can build our better society; cooperation (dialogue) is the guarantee for our future. To do so, we need people with knowledge, wisdom, as well capacity; we need inspiring-people to take the first steps. These steps can be started from any side either by the churches here, the local government, the journalists, as well as those who have willingness on how to enliven this city culturally. To enliven a city culturally better and has to be the works of the people since it is the only guarantee that it belongs to them. Only a sense of belonging can secure a culture too. By running two events recently in Pematangsiantar inviting mainly young generation to participate, I come to see an inspiring-hope of how possible this cultural building in this city is. First, on Jan 19, 2009, I invited young people to participate on how to run website with instructors from Telkom Pematangsiantar. Second, on Feb. 2, 2009 inviting people, mainly young generation as well to come to a literature and cultural discussion with the main speaker, Ayu Utami, one of the best writers in Indonesia today. The young generations here in Pematangsiantar are optimistic, willing to learn and participate. The problem, as I notice, has been lack of opportunity and skill. Therefore we need more people here with enough capability and willingness to work on this cultural building. They are here; they only need to set up time to meet to sharpen the way the need to work. *** Regards, Adela Kristine PT. Thiess Contractors Indonesia Jl. Mulawarman RT.002 RW.01 No.01 Batakan Kecil, Manggar (KM. 16) Balikpapan - East Kalimantan 76115 Indonesia T +62 542 520-000 F +62 542 520-001 E anainggo...@thiess.co.id <mailto:anainggo...@thiess.co.id> W www.thiess.co.id <http://www.thiess.co.id/> _____________________________________________________________________ IMPORTANT - This email and any attachments may be confidential and privileged. If received in error, please contact Thiess and delete all copies. You may not rely on advice and documents received by email unless confirmed by a signed Thiess letter. 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