THE POLITICS OF IDENTITY CONSTRUCTION:
THE CASE OF THE MANDAILING PEOPLE
ABDUR-RAZZAQ LUBIS
Sumatra Heritage Trust, Malaysia
Sumatra Heritage Trust, Malaysia
IDENTITY
The
issue of our time, the survival of human beings with individuated consciousness
and communal ties, is in peril…. Freedom, then, is the path to this new life. A
freedom which begins with the individual, confirms him in his place with his
people and his language and his culture, yet by that specific location of his
being there, grants him a world perspective to recognise his brothers and
sisters elsewhere in their ʻdifferentnessʼand their challenge (The World Crisis).
INTRODUCTION:
BACKGROUND AND AIMS
The
Mandailing people inhabit as their homeland the southwestern corner of the
province of North Sumatra on the island of Sumatra, Indonesia. For centuries
they have migrated throughout the Indonesian archipelago and Peninsular West
Malaysia. They have made enormous contributions to politics, society, music,
literature and the press both in Indonesia and Malaysia. Their social and
cultural markers include the markoum sisolkot, the patrilineal clan-based
Mandailing social structure governed by customary law (adat)1; the urup
tulak-tulak (Mandailing
script); the tradition of consultative governance as embodied in the judicial
assembly of Namora-Natoras (traditional institution of
Mandailing governance); the totem sculpture Sangkalon, a symbol of justice; the Gordang Sambilan (nine great drums), the
ritualistic Mandailing music; theAbit Godang, the ceremonial shawl; the Bindu gable that represents the
Mandailing’s philosophy of life; and the rarangan (protected areas) in
environmentally challenging times.
Yet
the Mandailings have been culturally marginalized in Indonesia and Malaysia.
Academic works have subsumed them as an appendix of the Angkola, Batak and
Malay. In Malaysia, racial politics and statesponsored social engineering in
the name of nation building, backed by the academia, have resulted in the
acculturation of the Mandailings into the dominant Malay racial category. In
Indonesia, the Mandailings have been lumped into the dominant Batak group since
the Dutch colonial era.
Recently,
Malaysian politicians from UMNO (United Malay National Organisation) and
politician-academics from Gapena (Gabungan Penulis-Penulis Nasional/ Union of
National Writers) have been travelling to Indonesia, as well as sponsoring
Indonesian scholars to ‘Malay World’ conferences, to promote the idea of Melayu inklusif (inclusive Malay identity) – an
idea based on the colonial perception that the native people of the Indonesian
archipelago and Malaysia are of the Malay race/stock (rumpun Melayu).2
The
basic human right of the Mandailings – and of other cultural communities and
indigenous peoples – to define themselves has been overlooked by most Malaysian
and Indonesian intellectuals and the academia who have accepted the state’s
discourse on ethnicity. Responding to threats of endangered human diversity,
indigenous people all over the world are reviving traditional forms of
governance, communicating their cultural identity, and using modern information
technology for networking and building international alliances. Of late,
interest in Mandailing identity and cultural heritage in Malaysia and Indonesia
has intensified owing to increased networking and the use of the Internet among
concerned Mandailings. Furthermore, Mandailing scholars are part of regional
movements to deconstruct mainstream history and state-constructed ethnic
categories.
OUTCOMES
OF GLOBALISATION
This
project represents an effort in the same direction. In the course of the API
Fellowship, the author carried out several activities to gain further
understanding of the dilemmas facing Mandailing identity, and to engage others
in valuing that identity. Several activities were academic: the author
presented papers in symposia and colloquia, wrote articles for journals and the
popular press, facilitated workshops, prepared cultural heritage guides, and
accepted interviews from leading Indonesian dailies.3
But
a great part of the effort was also non-academic, some of which the author
would like to highlight in this paper. These are efforts related to the
movement for cultural identity, the promotion of cultural pilgrimage, regional
autonomy and the devolution of power, environmental management, cultural
performance, the promotion of indigenised ‘Mandailing-Islam’, the promotion of
alternative currencies, the improvement of the Mandailing website, and the
holding of a photographic exhibition.
All
these tasks must be seen as part of a broader concern to construct a
socio-cultural and political identity for the Mandailing people, the purposes
of which are: first, to strengthen Mandailing community and civil society
through the development of cultural heritage resources and environmental
stewardship; and second, to mobilize the Mandailing community towards increased
selfdetermination through public participation, cultural heritage and
environmental activism.
METHODOLOGY
AND APPROACH
The
author took a participatory observer approach in addition to doing library and
archival research. In Jakarta, he was mainly engaged in library research, and
most of the relevant material was obtained from the two libraries of Lembaga
Ilmu Pengetahuan Indonesia (LIPI/ Indonesian Institute of Sciences) and
Perpustakaan Nasional (National Library) as well as from bookshops (secondhand
ones especially) and private collections such as that of Basyral Hamidy
Harahap.
He
managed to obtain substantial background material on Indonesia’s modern
history, some of which was used for his paper presentations. There is
potentially more material on the Mandailings in Dutch records of the 19th
century, but unfortunately the author will have to get assistance in
translation as the language is inaccessible to the author.4 In Jakarta, the
author’s host was Yayasan Pelestarian Budaya Indonesia (Indonesian Heritage
Foundation).
Medan
disproved the author’s earlier fears that there is a paucity of material
written in Bahasa Indonesia and the Mandailing language concerning the
Mandailings. For years the author had been led by his fellow Indonesian
scholars to believe that there was not much written on the Mandailings.
Archival and library research in Medan shows that there is a substantial amount
of material on and by the Mandailings. A bibliography of these works should be
done to facilitate further studies of the Mandailings.
In
Medan, library research was conducted at the various faculty libraries as well
as the main library of Universitas Sumatera Utara (USU), the major government
university in Medan. The library research at USU proved the most productive.
USU has the most Bachelors’ theses (skripsi), Masters’ theses and
research reports (laporan penelitian) on the Mandailings, albeit mainly
on Mandailing literature.
Library
research continued at Universitas HKBP Nommensen (private, Protestant
Christian-based university), Perpustakaan Daerah Sumatera Utara (North Sumatra
Provincial Library), Badan Warisan Sumatra (Sumatra Heritage Trust) and from
private collections. The author’s host in Medan was Badan Warisan Sumatra
(Sumatra Heritage Trust). The Universitas HKPB Nommensen’s Pusat Dokumentasi
dan Pengkajian Kebudayaan Batak (Batak Documentation and Cultural Research
Centre, previously known as Pusat Batakologi/Batakology Centre) has arguably
the best collection on the Batak including some written in Dutch and German.
However, the amount of materials in the collection has remained static over the
last few years for lack of funding.
While
in Jakarta, Medan and in the Mandailing homeland, the author conducted selected
interviews to gauge perceptions of history, culture, architecture, identity,
etc. Mandailing personalities, academicians, activists and conservationists
(both environmental and cultural) were interviewed. These interviews were done
formally as well as informally. In the course of his research, the author made
two visits to the Mandailing homeland to participate in adat (customary) ceremonies as well as
in a photographic expedition.
SUMMARY
OF ACTIVITIES
Nine
key activities were undertaken to promote Mandailing ethnic identity. These
were: Movement for cultural identity. Over the last few years, the
author has sought out and nurtured a network of Mandailing scholars and
intellectuals from organisations such as the Yayasan Pengkajian Budaya
Mandailing (Yapebuma), Ikatan Kebajikan Mandailing Malaysia (IMAN), Himpunan
Keluarga Besar Mandailing (HIKMA) and Bindu Matogu, a Mandailing environmental
non governmental organisation (NGO). Yapebuma and Bindu Matogu are based in
Medan and HIKMA in Jakarta with branches in Medan and Mandailing, whilst IMAN
is based in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. All the groups mentioned above
are directly engaged in activities promoting Mandailing cultural identity. These
and other associations such as student bodies with the same objectives, are
linked together through the Mandailing website. Internationally, the author
maintains a network of friends and supporters, especially amongst academic and
activist communities, particularly through the use of the Internet.
Promotion
of cultural pilgrimage. In the early 19th century, many
Mandailings left their homelands to seek their fortunes in the rantau (outside the homeland),
especially in Minangkabau (province of West Sumatra today). After the Padri War
(1820-1833), many fled to the west coast of the Malay Peninsula (West Malaysia
today) via Riau and Jambi. In the late 19th century, Mandailings started to
migrate to Medan when the east coast of Sumatra was opened up for plantations
by the Dutch. In the early 20th century, Mandailing migrants to
the west coast states of Peninsular Malaysia arrived via Medan.5 Consequently
today there are substantial Mandailing communities in Medan and along the east
coast of Sumatra.
Many
Mandailing sojourners to West Malaysia returned to their Mandailing homeland
regularly. For example, the author’s family and relations have been visiting
their homeland since the 19th century, interrupted only by the Second World
War, the Independence Revolution and Konfrontasi (Confrontation) against the
formation of the Malaysia. However, many of the present-day Malaysian
Mandailings who know only the names of their ancestral settlements, have never
set foot in Mandailing itself.
In
Malaysia, the focus of Mandailing activities is in the west coast states of
Perak and Selangor, where most Mandailing migrants settled. Many
well-to-do Mandailings are concentrated in Kuala Lumpur, the federal
capital of Malaysia. Malaysian Mandailings do make the trip to the homeland, usually
travelling via Medan, a trip that takes 12 hours by coach. The journey can now
be shortened as flights are now available from Kuala Lumpur to Padang, the
capital of the province of West Sumatra, Indonesia, making it possible to
travel to Mandailing via Padang in only 6 hours. Having explored Mandailing
over the years, the author is now of the view that the Mandailing homeland is
suitable for the promotion of cultural pilgrimage amongst Malaysian and
Indonesian Mandailings. The cultural and natural attractions in Mandailing
include pre-Islamic (‘animistic’, Hindu and Buddhist) sites; traditional sites,
such assipelebegu graveyards; Islamic sites, such
as the waqf; colonial influences
(Portuguese, Dutch, Japanese, etc.); sites where there were anti-colonial struggles
such as the burial site of Raja Mangkutur; sites significant for the
Independence movement such as the birth-place of General Abdul Haris Nasution;
scenic terraced paddy fields; cultural performances includingGordang
Sambilan performances;
active volcanic mountains (such as Sorik Marapi and its surrounding
hot-springs); hundred-year-old rubber trees, the seeds of which came from 19th
century ‘British Malaya’6; and extensive man-made irrigation systems (bondar
saba).
In
view of Mandailing’s cultural tourism potential, a guide book that captures and
promotes the cultural and natural attractions should be prepared. Cultural
tourism can help build bridges between Malaysian and Indonesian Mandailings to
restore and rebuild relationships that were sundered by colonialism,
nationalism and regionalism. It is likely that Indonesian Mandailings can
benefit from an access to a wider range of resources and expertise, while the
Malaysian Mandailings can recover their roots and identity.
Regional
autonomy and devolution of power
During
the colonial period, Sumatra was carved up by arbitrary and artificial
administrative boundaries. There is a need to remap the frontiers of the
Mandailing homeland in West Sumatra and Riau along lines based on commonality
of culture, language, geography and a Volk. In the context of Indonesia’s
decentralisation, administrative units have been restructured all over the
archipelago, resulting in the formation of new Pemda (local governments) starting in
1999. Regional autonomy is considered potentially more democratic than a
centralised system as it favours pluralism and does not subject people to the
same standards. It prevents the accumulation of centralist power based on one
particular culture, religion, belief or ideology. The provision of ‘village
parliaments’ as provided in the UU (National Law) No. 22 of 1999, could enable
the traditional institution ofNamora-Natoras (Nobles and Elders) to be revived
and revitalised to play a critical role in the management of local affairs.
This
will help Mandailings recover their tradition of consultative governance, and
encourage them to challenge the newly-created district of Mandailing-Natal
(abbreviation Madina)7 to promote participatory planning and decision-making.
Although the original purview of the institutions of traditional Mandailing
governance covered all aspects of adat life, its functions now are
circumscribed to marriage and rites of passage. The call for regional autonomy
and devolution of powers within the Indonesian state has stimulated the people
to engage with their authorities. In this context, on 19 October 2000, a
seminar entitled Pembangunan
Mandailing-Natal (The Development of
Mandailing-Natal) was organised in Panyabungan, Lower Mandailing. Mohammed
Dolok Lubis, a young lecturer, organised the seminar, with financial backing
from USU and the cooperation of the newly constituted district of
Mandailing-Natal. The seminar had the objectives of ‘increasing the role of the
sons and daughters of the district in its development in order to promote a
civil, participatory Mandailing-Natal’. Mandailing scholars and activists from
Medan participated in the seminar.
The
general consensus of Mandailing people in Jakarta, Medan and Mandailing is that
the Pemda (the local authority) is ineffective
and possibly corrupt, reflecting the general sentiment of Indonesians towards
their governments. In May 2002, when Indonesian television aired a half-hour
programme on the state of kabupaten (district of) Mandailing-Natal,
Mandailings from all over Indonesia called in criticizing the district’s
bureaucracy. This is a case of Mandailing rakyat (people) criticizing Mandailing
civil authorities. Many vocal Mandailings say that the present line-up should
be replaced with a new set of more honest officers. To foster transparency and
local consultation, locallocal dialogues could be conducted to explore areas of
multi-sectoral collaboration and capacity building as well as making
local-global links with experts and resource centres for good governance and
environmental management. The objectives would be to strengthen the Mandailing
people as stakeholders in national and regional development, allowing them to
better realize their options in the post-modern world.
Stewardship
of the Mandailing environment
The
process of Indonesianisation has resulted in lands, forests and minerals being
usurped as national resources to be exploited by the state and its cronies,
Mandailings included. The granting of concessions to national and international
logging and mining companies is part of Indonesianisation. In this way, kabupatenMandailing-Natal’s natural
resources were appropriated in the name of national development. In consequence
many urgent issues facing Mandailing today are environment related, in
particular illegal logging, the harvesting of bird’s nests, and water
management. Illegal logging, which has been taking place for over a decade, is
the most pressing of these issues. In October 2002, the author, together with
Dr.Zulkifli Lubis, an ecologist, held a series of meetings with environmental
NGOs, including the North Sumatran branch of Wahana Lingkungan Hidup Indonesia
(WALHI, or Indonesian Forum for Environment), the leading Indonesian
environmental NGO, to discuss the course of action to be taken to address the
issue of illegal logging in Natal. It was decided that a second field trip
should be conducted from 26 to 30 October, to verify the seriousness of the
situation. The first field trip was organised in March 2002, the result of
which was subsequently released to the media.8
In
contrast to the forestry situation, where there is virtually no organised
action at the local level, initiatives have been made in fisheries and water
management. For centuries, communities in the district of Mandailing-Natal have
managed their own watersheds and river resources under their adat. In the 1970s, this was
formalised into river protection I(lubuk larangan) schemes by local
committees. The Mandailing-Natal district with 29 local committees has the
largest number of such schemes in the province of North Sumatra.9 The practice
prohibits the harvesting of river resources close to human settlements for 6 to
12 months in a year.
Come
‘harvesting’ time, a small fee is charged to residents and sojourners10 alike
to catch the fish. The income derived is then used to pay for the development
of social facilities such as schools, roads and mosques, and to provide
educational scholarships and administrative salaries and grants to orphans,
poor families and invalids. Given the unstable political and economic
situation in Indonesia, where remote communities cannot depend on governmental
funding for development, this income-generating exercise is beneficial to the
community. It instils confidence and financial selfreliance. However, much
still needs to be done to overcome over-exploitation of certain species, and to
gain the full cooperation of the Dinas Perikanan (Fisheries Authority). The
following are suggested in addressing the problem of environmental management
in the Mandailing-Natal district:
- Empowering adat or local communities in making
equitable ‘public policies’ which utilise local indigenous knowledge in
the management of natural and cultural resources;
- Formulating an ideology of
environmental stewardship in keeping with Mandailing adat and Islamic principles for
customary lands, waqf (Islamic endowments) andharangan (Mandailing term for
prohibited zones);
● Introducing
organic farming practices; and
● International
marketing of eco-friendly products.
Throughout
Mandailing, rivers are treated as ‘sewers’ for rubbish: in the past this posed
no immediate environmental problems in view of the organic nature of the
wastes, but with plastic packaging and other inorganic wastes, continued
dumping could eventually endanger Mandailing riverine environments.
In
order to address this pressing issue, a ‘model’ project has to be implemented
for other settlements to follow suit. Maga has been identified as a possible
site for a pilot composting project.
Gordang
Sambilan Competition
The
performance of the Gordang
Sambilan,
a traditional set of nine drums, has ritualistic functions in adat ceremonies such as weddings, installations
of nobles (namora-mora, plural for raja or chief), receptions of dignitaries,
and funerals of rajas. They were also played to mark the death of a tiger,
regarded by Mandailings as the king of the forest. The drums are made from old
Meranti trees that have hollow centres. Meranti, or Ingol in Mandailing
language, refers to a group of hardwood species found in native forests. The
conservation of these trees for drum making is another good reason to preserve
the diminishing Mandailing forestlands. It takes a skilled craftsman one to two
months to make a completely new set of the nine drums.
Formerly,
the performance of the Gordang Sambilan had to be approved by the huta
(settlement) leaders, the Namora-Natoras, and a buffalo had to be
slaughtered for each occasion on which they were used.
A
performance of the drums requires five to seven drummers and usually lasts
about half an hour. The performance of
the drums is physically quite exhausting for the drummers, some of whom enter
into a trance-like state while playing. The cost of the drum performance plus
the shortage of buffaloes eventually led to the drums falling silent as
ordinary Mandailing families did not have the means to pay for such
‘extravagances’.
In
order to revive the Gordang
Sambilan,
HIKMA (All Mandailing Clans Assembly) has pushed for the relaxation of
customary conditions for their performance. Initially there was resistance from
the conservative namora-mora, but this was eventually
surmounted. Thus since the 1970s, the Gordang Sambilan has come to be considered as one
of the performing arts of the Mandailing people. Gordang Sambilan troupes from the many settlements
in Mandailing compete with each other in an annual Gordang Sambilan festival.11
During
the author’s last visit he discovered that the Gordang Sambilan has resumed its prominent place in
Mandailing society. The fact that there are new commissions for the rather
expensive sets of Gordang
Sambilan indicates
that this performing art is making a comeback. The settlement of Tamiang in
Upper Mandailing was well known for its Gordang Sambilan craftsmanship. Now Manambin and
other settlements have their own Gordang Sambilan craftsmen. The Gordang Sambilan set is displayed prominently in
many settlements.
In
view of the fact that the Gordang Sambilan is unique to Mandailing music, it
has become the cultural marker of Mandailing identity. In the state of
Selangor, West Malaysia, where there are significant numbers of Mandailings,
IMAN has successfully lobbied for the Gordang Sambilan to be made the official state
musical ensemble albeit compromised by subsuming it under the Malay identity.
In 2001, the Pesta
Pulau Pinang (Penang
Fair) in Malaysia was officially opened with a performance of Gordang Sambilan by a troupe from Mandailing, Indonesia.
The playing of the Gordang Sambilan during the Malaysian Independence Day on 31
August 2002 is perhaps the highest recognition to date for these fantastic
drums.
Indigenised
Mandailing Islam
The
first encounter between Islam and Mandailings in the interior was probably
through the port of Natal, on the west coast or by traders coming up the Batang
Gadis River from Singkuang (Chinese for New Light) river north of Natal. There
are indications that Islam also entered Mandailing from the east coast of
Sumatra. More significantly, Mandailing society was historically transformed by
a radical brand of Islam – Wahabbite Islam brought by Padris in their white
garb from Minangkabau (the province of West Sumatra today). This brand of
Islam, now backed by puritan Arab states and the western intelligence
community, is still a menace even today! The Padri episode was one in a series
of historical incursions by Minangkabau into the Mandailing homeland, and
during this time many Mandailings embraced Islam at the point of the sword.12
The
coming of Islam brought with it many values from this universal religion and
its global culture. In conversations with Dr. Nur Fadhil Lubis, who is also an
API Fellow, it was revealed to the author that no one has studied the phenomena
of ‘Mandailing Islam’. The author then visited tombs/mausoleums of Mandailing
religious leaders, pesantren (Islamic schools), historic
mosques and waqf (Islamic endowments). Previously,
he had visited cultural heritage sites like tombs/mausoleums of the progenitors
of Mandailing clans, sopo godang(council house), and bagas godang (dwelling of the raja).
The
author and his travelling companions had the fortune of being treated with a zikir13 session by Raja Syahbudin at
his home in Maga, where he and his companions were stationed during their stay
in Mandailing. The author also attended a zikir session marking a wedding
ceremony in Maga in September 2002. This latest visit gave the author a glimpse
into the practice of Islam in Mandailing society, a subject that has been
largely ignored by Mandailing scholars themselves.
In
stark contrast with many Islamic settlements or towns where the mosque takes
centre-stage, in traditional Mandailing settlements, the most prominent
buildings are the traditional bagas godang and sopo godang buildings. The indigenous
architecture of Mandailing rajas’ tombs do not conform to the
appearance of typical Islamic gravestones found throughout Indonesia and
Malaysia.
However,
the traditional architecture of Mandailing mosques is presently giving way to
globalised Islamic architecture, that is, the Moghul-style mosque of domes and
minarets. Likewise, the same pattern is observed with gravestones – even the
dead are not spared from the imposition of globalised Islamic culture. The author’s
preliminary impression is that Islam has been indigenised and harmoniously
integrated into Mandailing adat, culture and way of life. That
is to say, the interpretation and application of Islam in Mandailing is very
different from that of the Minangkabau. The Minangs are matrilineal and adopt a
position of custom based on Islamic law (adat basandi syarak), while the
Mandailings are patrilineal and adopt a position of adat on par with Islamic law. This is
reflected in the maxim ombar do adat ugamo, that is, the adat is on equal footing with Islamic
law.
The
latter understanding is closer to the Madinan tradition (amal of Madina)14than to the
Shaf’ie madhhab
(school
of thought) dominant today in Malaysia and the Indonesian archipelago. In the
Madinan tradition local custom urf is regarded as part of public
benefit or public good and is to be encouraged so long as it does not go
against Islamic law. Traditionally, Islam is expressed in Mandailing terms and
not in Arabic terms as with Malay-Islam. Of late, Middle-Eastern, Indonesian
and Malaysian brands of Islam appear to be making headway. Thus, there is a
need to promote an understanding of an indigenized Islam distinct from
globalised Islamic trends promoted through the mass media and through global Islamic
publications such as annual calendars. Madinan Islam offers a critique of the
present situation in which Muslims find themselves and also a way out of this
predicament. The challenge of traditional Mandailing leadership is to retain
this unique way of maintaining and reconciling traditional customs with the
Islamic religion in the face of globalised revisionist-modernist Wahhabite
(Arab)- Islam and regional statist Malay-Islam.
Alternative
economic and development models
Concerned
citizens, interest groups and communities the world over are looking at
alternative models of economics and development. Over the past two decades,
there has been a flood of literature about organic farming, natural medicines,
back-to-nature lifestyles and so on. Interestingly, the initial four-year
development plans for the Mandailing-Natal district prepared by consultants
that included academics took ‘green’ approaches into account in their
developmentmodule.15
In
this regard, the author himself has written works particularly on the
re-introduction of bi-metallic currency and commodity trading as a means of
exchange. The author has been actively promoting this at the regional and
international level. In Malaysia, the Prime Minister, Dr. Mahathir Mohamed, has
taken this on and adopted bi-metallic currency as a parallel currency to the US
dollar.
Since
the translation and publication of the author’s Jerat Utang IMF (1998) and Dinar Emas Solusi Krisis Moneter (2001) in Bahasa Indonesia, the
movement to promote these alternative currencies has gained greater momentum.
Nusantara Islamic Mint in Bandung and Yayasan Dinar-Dirham (Dinar-Dirham
Foundation) in Medan have been set up to promote the minting, and the usage of
gold and silver currencies respectively. In fact, Logam Mulia(literally Noble Metal), the
Indonesian government mint, has already minted gold and silver dinar and dirham coins.
Recognising
that the district of Mandailing-Natal has been a gold-producing region since
time immemorial, the author initiated talks with Dr. Helmi Thalib, a founding
member of Yayasan Dinar-Dirham on the possibilities of setting up aWakala (clearing house) in the district
for the purchase of gold nuggets procured by the local population through dulang (panning) washing as well as for
putting gold coins into circulation. A proposal is being prepared for
sponsorship by Bank Muamalat, to be followed by a field survey in
Mandailing-Natal district.
The
Yayasan will also approach the local government for its support in this
project. The idea is to explore the possibilities of introducing a distinct
currency for the Mandailing-Natal district in the light of regional autonomy
and of making it a distinctive part of the Mandailing identity. In order to
address the question of poverty in Mandailing-Natal district, the author has
been told by Dr. Rizali H. Nasution, a Mandailing and the chairman of Yayasan
Pokmas Mandiri (Foundation for Self Reliance of Groups of [Poor] People), a
micro-finance institution (MFI), about plans to introduce microcredit in Mandailing
starting in mid-2003.
A
Mandailing website/database
Currently the dual-language
(Bahasa Indonesia/Malaysia and English) Mandailing website has around 200 pages
of text and pictures, and has on average of 20,000 hits monthly. The Toyota
Foundation gave seed funding to set up the site in 1998. The author has been
maintaining it at his own expense since then, for it serves as a database of
Mandailing studies as well as a gateway for cultural tourism to the Mandailing
area. Mike Ionescu, who is currently upgrading and updating the Mandailing
website, has suggested that the capacity be increased ten-fold from its current
capacity and to host it on another server. At the moment the website is being
hosted on a server based in Malaysia.
The
benefits of increasing the website’s capacity as well as changing its server
will be to make it faster, to allow for the posting of photographs suitable for
making reports and for general expansion. Mike has also suggested that the
contents of the website be converted into Microsoft Word document format and
sold as CDs. Arbain Rambey, one of Indonesia’s leading photojournalists and
national daily Kompas bureau chief for the province of Aceh, North Sumatra,
West Sumatra and Riau (Sumbagut), has offered the use of his photographs for
the website.
Mandailing
photographic exhibition
From 14 to 30 September 2002, the author went
with Arbain on a photographic expedition to the district of Mandailing-Natal.
In this exercise, he acted as a guide while Arbain captured Mandailing and
Natal in pictures. All in all, Arbain took 42 rolls of both colour, and black
and white photographs, for the purposes of documentation as well as exhibition.
Arbain took pictures of the remains of the pre-Islamic (sipelebegu–
traditional faith of ancestral reverence, Hinduism and Buddhism), Islamic,
Dutch and Japanese as well as post- Merdeka periods. One of Arbain’s photos
of a traditional dentist in Pasar Maga, Mandailing was featured in Kompas.16
On
12 October 2002, an exhibition of Arbain Rambey’s photographs from this
expedition was launched at Gallery One in Medan. Ibrahim Champion, a long time
friend of the Mandailings, owns the gallery. The exhibition entitled Jejak Mandailing (literally, Mandailing Trails)
displayed a total of 53 frames and was to run for one month.17 In conjunction with the
exhibition, a group discussion was held on the question of Mandailing identity,
with a panel including Prof. (Emeritus) Dr. M. Solly Lubis, Dr. Zulkifli Lubis
and the author himself. The exhibition was very well received by Mandailings as
well as non-Mandailings. One of Medan’s leading dailies, Analisa,18 carried
full-page exclusive coverage of the exhibition. The exhibition had a visible
impact on those who visited it. Many visitors interviewed at the exhibition
showed that they did not know that Mandailing held such cultural treasures. The
organisers received many queries on how to get there. For Mandailings who grew
up in the homeland, Arbain’s pictures gave them fresh insight into the
Mandailing world which they previously took for granted. They could now see
Mandailing with different eyes and in that sense, the exhibition was very
successful.
The
organisers, including the author, are now in the midst of trying to interest
certain parties to bring the exhibition to Malaysia. The author assumes that
the exhibition will be well-received by Malaysian Mandailings, many of whom
have never laid eyes on their ancestral homeland, and this hopefully will
trigger visits, and in the long run, sustained cultural pilgrimages.
RECOMMENDATIONS
In
order to promote Mandailing studies and cultural identity, research on
Mandailing cultural heritage including architecture should be sustained and a
strategy developed for an ecological and cultural base development
approach/model that is sustainable and environmentally friendly. As such, the
author proposes that the following recommendations be considered as a follow-up
to the Fellowship:
§ Translate selected materials from
the Mandailing language (in Mandailing script tulak-tulak or Romanised Mandailing) into
Bahasa Indonesia. This is critical for the study of Mandailing, simplybecause
many Mandailing, including the author, can no longer speak or write the old
Mandailinglanguage. In addition, translate source materials from Dutch into English
to make them accessibleto a wider range of scholars.
§ Compile and publish an annotated
bibliography of references regarding matters Mandailing topromote and
facilitate research.
§ Upgrade, update and maintain the
Mandailing website with the objective of it becoming aknowledge networking and
resource site to nurture and sustain interest in all things Mandailing as well
as to promote Mandailing studies.
§ A conference would be desirable
and timely to bring together community leaders, activists and scholars from
Malaysia, Indonesia and elsewhere to debate the issues and chart a future
directionfor Mandailing studies. The conference would act as a catalyst for
further initiatives in the followinglong-term goals:
1) Enhancing the
distinct cultural identity and worldview of the Mandailing people.
2) Recovering
language, culture and indigenous knowledge.
3) Establishing an
educational, cultural and environmental centre inkabupaten Mandailing-Natal.
4) Restoring
Mandailing traditions of governance to empower local communities and civil
societies to engage in public participation in the context of Indonesia’
decentralisationprocess.
5) Strengthening the
ties between Mandailings in Malaysia and Indonesia through the Internet,
cultural pilgrimages, exchange programmes and common projects.
NOTES
1. The key concepts are
marga
(patriclan), kahanggi (lineage), mora (wife-giving clan) and anak boru (wifereceiving clan) as well as tarombo(genealogy).
2. For a study of this,
see Anthony Reid, “Understanding Melayu (Malay) as a source of Diverse Modern
Identities,”Journal of Southeast Asian Studies 32.3 Oct. (2001): 295-313.
3. See Appendix on
Academic Activities.
4. Raymond Kennedy, Bibliography of Indonesian
Peoples and Cultures,
Southeast Asian Studies, Yale University, second revised edition 1974. First
published in 1945.
5. A good summary of
this migration is provided by Pande Maradjar, “Perpindahan Orang Mandailing” in
the magazine Mandailing, No 11, Tahoen ke 2, Chamis 29
Maart (1923): 2-3.
6. According to informants,
rubber was introduced into Upper Mandailing in 1918. See Donald Tugby, Cultural Change and Identity:
Mandailing Immigrants in West Malaysia, University of Queensland Press, 1977.
7. This new district
incorporated the Natal area on the west coast of the island of Sumatra and
Mandailing, into a new kabupaten (district) of Mandailing-Natal.
Natal adjacent to Mandailing, was never part of the Mandailing homeland but its
relationship with Mandailing spans a few centuries. Through Natal, Islam and
other foreign influences was introduced into Mandailing.
8. “WALHI blames
destruction of forests in North Sumatra on six firms,” Jakarta Post, 20 March 2002. See also <http://www.ecologyasia.com>.
9. Daftar Lubuk
Larangan di Proponsi Daerah Tingkat I Sumatera Utara, 1999.
10. Those who return to
the homeland from elsewhere in Indonesia and Malaysia for a short visit.
11. The performance of the
Gordang Sambilan troupe from Maga has been featured in the Pulse of the Planet
@NationalGeographic.Com(http://www.pulseplanet.com/current.html) in a write-up by
anthropologist Peter Zabielskis from New York University. The author assisted
Peter Zabielskis in this venture.
12. Dja Endar Moeda,
however, put the date of the spread of Islam in Mandailing as late as 1859. Dja
Endar Moeda, Riwajat
Poelau Sumatra,
N. Venn Snelspersdrukkerij “Insulinde,” Padang, 1903, 70.
13. Recitation in praise
of God and the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him.
14. For a critical
discussion favouring the Madinan school over the other madhhabs within the
Sunni school of thought, see Syakh Abdalqadir al-Murabit, Root Islamic Education, Madinah Press, 1993 (2nd ed.).
First edition published in 1982. On the Madinan amal, see Yasin Dutton, The Origins of Islamic Law, The
Qur’an, the Muwata and Madinan Amal, especially the chapter on “The ‘Amal of the People of Madina”,
Curzon, Surrey, 1999. 32-41
15. See Draft Propeda
Kabupaten Mandailing Natal 2001-5 and Pola Dasar Kabupaten Mandailing Natal
2001-5 published by Pemerintah Kabupaten Mandailing Natal.
16. Kompas, Kamis, 10 Oktober 2002, 11.
17. Gallery One is the
exhibition space on the second floor of Restaurant Number One at Jalan KH Wahid
Hasyim No. 1, Medan.
18. Analisa, Minggu, 13 October 2002, 12.
The paper featured seven (7) of Arbain Rambey’s photos as well as notes on the
author’s involvement in the exhibition.
REFERENCES
Analisa,
Minggu. 13 Oct. 2002.
Daftar Lubuk Larangan di Proponsi Daerah Tingkat I Sumatera
Utara.
1999.
Dutton,
Yasin. The
Origins of Islamic Law, the Qur’an, the Muwata and Madinan Amal. Surrey: Curzon, 1999.
Harahap,
Parada. “Dari Pantai Kepantai Perdjalanan Ke-Soematra.” Bintang Hindia Oct.-Dec. 1925 dan
Maart-Apr.
1926. Weltevreden: Itgevers Maatschappij,1926.
Jakarta Post. 20 March 2002.See also <http://www.ecologyasia.com>.
Kennedy,
Raymond. Bibliography
of Indonesian Peoplesand Cultures. Southeast Asian Studies. Yale University,1974.
Kompas, Kamis. 10 Oct. (2002): 11.
Lubis,
Abdur-Razzaq. “The Transformation of Traditional Mandailing Leadership in
Malaysia and
Indonesian
in the Age of Globalisation and Regional Autonomy.” Antropologi Indonesia, Indonesian Journal of Social
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Lubis,
Abdur-Razzaq. “Perceptions of Penang: Views from Across the Straits.” Penang
Story International Conference, 18-21 April 2001.
Lubis,
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Lubis,
Abdur-Razzaq. “Orang-Orang Indonesia di Pulau Pinang.” Pengkisahan Melayu Pulau Pinang. First Colloquium of the Penang
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Lubis,
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Lubis,
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Maradjar,
Pande. “Perpindahan Orang Mandailing.” Mandailing no. 11, Tahoen ke 2, Chamis 29
Maart (1923): 2-3.
Moeda,
Dja Endar. Riwajat
Poelau Sumatra.
Padang: N.Venn Snelspersdrukkerij ‘Insulinde’, 1903.
Pola Dasar Kabupaten Mandailing Natal 2001-5. Pemerintah Kabupaten Mandailing
Natal.
Propeda Kabupaten Mandailing Natal 2001-5. Pemerintah
Kabupaten
Mandailang Natal.
Pulse of the Planet @ NationalGeographic.Com<http://www.pulseplanet.com/current.html>.
Rambey,
Arbain, “Kerinduan Mandailing dari TanahSeberang: A Profile on Abdur-Razzaq
Lubis.” Kompas 3 Oct. 2001.
Reid,
Anthony. “Understanding Melayu (Malay) as a Source of Diverse Modern
Identities.” Journal
of Southeast Asian Studies 32.3 Oct. (2001): 295-313.
Syakh
Abdalqadir al-Murabit. Root Islamic Education.Madinah Press, 1993.
The Penang Story Project. <http://www.penangstory.net>.
Titian.
Media Komunikasi Masyarakat Indonesia di Wilayah Areditasi KJRI Penang, Edisi
Perdana, Volume 1 July 2002.
Tugby,
Donald. Cultural
Change and Identity: Mandailing Immigrants in West Malaysia, University of Queensland Press,
1977.
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