MALAYSIA NOT TO CLAIM TOR-TOR DANCE AS ITS OWN?

By Andi Abdussalam

Jakarta, June 21 (ANTARA) - The Indonesian people have often been upset when Malaysia claims some aspects of their culture as its own, yet the neighbouring country continues to do so.          This time, Malaysia has reportedly incorporated the Tor-Tor dance and Gordang Sembilan music - indigenous to the Mandailing community in North Sumatra - in its National Heritage Law. Therefore, on Wednesday, students staged a protest outside the Malaysian Embassy in Jakarta.          Rais Yatim, Malaysia's minister of communication and culture, was quoted by Malaysian state news agency Bernama on Thursday as saying that the Tor-Tor dance and Gordang Sambilan music would be added to the country's National Heritage Law.          Malaysia had made similar claims in the past, too. Almost three years ago, in August 2009, the Indonesian people were furious over Malaysia's claim on the "pendet" dance of the Indonesian island resort of Bali.          "This is outrageous. Malaysia has claimed not only the pendet dance, but also paintings or Batik designs and the copyrights of several national songs," said Ida Ayu Agung Mas, a member of the Regional Representatives Council (DPD), at that time.           A "Visit Malaysia Year" commercial, developed to boost the country's attractiveness to the world, had featured the pendet dance as if the dance was indigenously Malaysian. The ad was broadcast by a number of local and overseas television stations.           "We have all heard how some aspects of the Indonesian culture have been claimed by Malaysia as its own, such as 'wayang' (Javanese puppet) and 'reog Ponorogo' (masked dance from East Java)," Ida said.          Now, it is the turn of Tor-Tor dance. The Indonesian people are highly suspicious that Malaysia will claim the dance as its own, even though an Indonesian diplomat and a Malaysian consul general have already declared that it was a misunderstanding.          "This is only a misunderstanding," said Suryana Sastradiredja, the Head of Information, Social, and Cultural Affairs of the Indonesian Embassy in Kuala Lumpur.          Suryana stated that he was contacted by the Malaysian Ministry of Information, Communication, Culture and the Union of Mandailing community in Malaysia and was told that they had no intentions of claiming the Tor-Tor dance and Gondang Sambilan music as their own.          He said the art forms would be registered as a cultural heritage of Malaysia's Mandailing community, which originally came from Mandailing, North Sumatra, Indonesia.          "The deed on national heritage only records the origin [of the art forms] and does not claim that Mandailing culture comes from Malaysia," Suryana explained.          The Mandailing people, he said, came to Malaysia hundreds of years ago and their descendants wanted to promote their art and culture in the country.          The community wants its culture to be given an equal standing with other Indonesian cultures that have long existed in Malaysia, such as Javanese, Bugis or Minang.          Norlin Binti Othman, the Malaysian Consul General in Medan, North Sumatra, agreed with Suryana. She said the controversy about Malaysia's claim over the Tor-Tor dance and Paluan Gondang Sembilan music has arisen only as a result of misunderstanding.     Norlin noted that the term "diperakui" (recognised) or "memperakui" (to recognise) in Malaysia was meant to connote adoption, endorsement or approval; it did not imply ownership over the art forms.          However, Hikmahanto Juwana, an international law observer from the University of Indonesia warned that the government and the people of Indonesia should not be deceived by such a statement. "The government and people should not be fooled by the statement of Consul General Norlin," he said.              In the Malaysian National Heritage Law, Hikmahanto explained, there were no such terms as ¿diperakui" or "memperakui", adding that what existed was the term "to declare" a cultural heritage as a national heritage.          "So, it is not clear what article or section of the Malaysian National Heritage Law the Malaysian consul general was referring to when she said 'diperakui' or 'memperakui'," he said.         Hikmahanto added that the consul general "invented" the statement to deceive the people of Indonesia, because she did not refer to the other articles of the law, particularly articles 69 and 70, which could hurt the people of Indonesia.              He said Article 69 was titled "Ownership", while Article 70 had "The Change of Ownership of National Heritage" as its title.              "Therefore, based on articles 69 and 70 of the National Heritage Act of Malaysia, it is not right that the two art forms from Batak be registered by the government of Malaysia," Hikmahanto stated.          Based on Article 70, the change of ownership can happen in two ways - through heritage or a sale-purchase deal. Therefore, many Indonesians suspect, Malaysia is claiming ownership of the art forms.          According to clause two of Article 70, Hikmahanto noted, if a national heritage is to be sold, it must first be offered to the National Heritage Commission.         He expressed support for the efforts of Deputy Minister of Education and Culture Windu Nuryanti, who sought a clarification from Malaysia.          Earlier, Windu said Indonesia had asked for a written explanation from Malaysia regarding its claim over the Mandailing traditional dance and music.           "We have communicated with the Malaysian ambassador to Indonesia, who said that it was actually not a claim but only a note. We want clarification regarding the category under which that note is. They have promised to provide an explanation tomorrow," she stated.           Windu added that her office had referred the case to the foreign ministry, which then communicated with the Malaysian minister of information, communication and culture.           "They said because there are members of Mandailing community living in Malaysia, the Malaysian government is obliged to protect their culture with a preservation programme," she explained.         Windu said Malaysia had already confirmed that it did not claim Tor-Tor and Gordang Sambilan as its cultural heritage.          "Indonesia's stance is clear. We will ask for a written statement and, based on that, we will follow it up. It is all right if Indonesian culture is promoted anywhere, but the origins must be clearly explained," she stated.***1*** (T.A014/a/INE/a014) 21-06-2012 17:56:

MALAYSIA TO REPRIMAND PENDET DANCE CLIP PRODUCER

By Andi Abdussalam

Jakarta, Aug 25 (ANTARA) - The Malaysian government has promised to reprimand a Singapore-based production house which produced an advertisement for its tourism promotion that led to strong protests in Indonesia because it used the Balinese pendet dance without official permit from the Indonesian government.

        "They have promised to reprimand the production house which produced the advertisement," Minister of Culture and Tourism Jero Wacik said on Tuesday.

        A series of strong protests have been launched at home against the depiction of the pendet dance in the Malaysian tourism advertisement broadcast in the Discovery Channel program under the title "Enigmatic Malaysia".

        The welcome dance performed by women in Balinese costume appeared in a "Visit Malaysia Year" advertisement and was broadcast many times.

        On Monday, the minister summoned Malaysia's deputy ambassador to Indonesia, Amran Mohammad Zin with regard to the advertisement. During the meeting the Malaysian side explained that the ad was produced by a private production house.

        The Malaysian side promised to reprimand the production house.

        In the meantime, a Malaysian official said from Kuala Lumpur on Tuesday said that the advertisement was not produced by Malaysia's culture and tourism ministry (KRU) but by the Singapore-based Discovery Channel.

        "The ad which is part of a documentary film series of Enigmatic Malaysia program were not produced by us but by the Singapore-based Discovery Channel," President and Chief Executive Officer of KRU Group Norman Abdul Halim said.

        Halim, who was accompanied by Ketut Wiryadinata of the Indonesian Ministry of Tourism and Culture, was explaining the matter to the Indonesian press at the Indonesian embassy in Kuala Lumpur.

        "We knew that the ad had sparked protests and anger in Indonesia only after we were contacted by Indonesian newsmen yesterday," Halim said.

        He said that his side had contacted the Discovery Channel, which he said had also withdrawn the promotion ad and replaced it with a new one.

        KRU has produced six documentary films on Enigmatic Malaysia which were broadcast by 23 countries throughout the world. The themes of the documentary films are "The Malakan Portuguese - Preserving Their Heritate," "Bajau Laut - Nomad of The Sea", "Keris - The Myth & the Magic," "Kellie's Castle - Myth & Mystery", "Batik" and "Wau".

        "In the Batik (traditional Javanese cloth), the documentary film clearly explained that Malaysian batik originates from the Javanese batik," Halim, who claimed his parents are descendants from North Sumatra, said.

        Ketut Wiryadinata admitted he had watched the documentary film on batik. He said that the documentary film produced revealed the fact that the Malaysian batik originated from Java.

        "Our meeting today (with Halim) has cleared the point of misunderstanding on the issue where Malaysia allegedly has claimed Bali's pendet dance. This is not true at all because the promotional ad was made by the Singapore-based Discovery Channel for the promotion of a documentary film in the Enigmatic Malaysia program. We will report this to the minister," he said.

        The Discovery Channel meanwhile admitted that it had made a mistake and promised to apologize directly to the Indonesian minister for culture and tourism, Jero Wacik.

        In a letter sent through e-mail to the Indonesian director general for arts, culture and film affairs, the Discovery Channel explained that the promotional advertisement in the documentary film was not produced by KRU.

        Discovery Channel's regional director for advertising sales, Angie Santa Maria admitted that the production of the ad which depicted the Balinese pendet dance was a mistake done by the Discovery Channel promotional staffs. Therefore, she promised to apologize directly to the Indonesian minister of culture and tourism.

        The appearance of the pendet dance in the Malaysia Visit Year promotion program has in the past several days sparked protests in Indonesia and become the focus of attention of the media in the country.

        Tourism and Culture Minister Jero Wacik therefore thanked the country's press and artists for their concern and greatest attention. "I have to thank them for their greatest attention to the matter," the minister said .

        He said that the press efforts to defend the nation was clearly seen when the pendet dance was used by Malaysia in its tourism promotion without permission from Indonesia. "It is reasonable for us to be upset but we should not take anarchic actions. We should show that we are a civilized nation. So, we should react in a respectable and civilized way," the minister said.

        Indonesia has sent a letter to the Malaysian government to ask for explanations on the use of Balinese traditional pendet dance in promoting its tourism industry.

        According to an Indonesian cultural official, Indonesia has sent a letter not to protest but to ask for an explanation or clarification from the Malaysian government.

        "This is not a protest note but a letter requesting a clarification from the Malaysian government," Ketut Wiryadinata, a special emissary from Indonesia's culture and tourism ministry, said in Kuala Lumpur on Tuesday.***5*** (T.A014/A/HAJM/20:05/a014) (T.A014/A/A014/A/A014) 25-08-2009 20:41:30

MALAYSIA'S PENDET DANCE AD SPARKS INDONESIAN PROTEST

By Andi Abdussalam

Jakarta, Aug 25 (ANTARA) - After recently claiming the 'reog Ponorogo' dance of East Java as its own, Malaysia is once again under fire for allegedly using the Balinese 'pendet' dance as a promotional means in its tourism advertisement.         The Malaysian move is seen as another attempt to claim the pendet dance, which originates from the Indonesian tourist resort island of Bali, as its own.         While strong protests are being made by a number of quarters, the Indonesian government called on the public not to be provoked by and react excessively to the pendet dance issue. After all, the Malaysian side has said the dance advertisement is not an official production of the Malaysian government.         "We should look into the case first. We should not be provoked easily," Foreign Ministry Spokesman Teuku Faizasyah said on Monday. Therefore, he called on the Indonesian people not to be provoked by the presence of the pendet dance in the Malaysia Visit Year ad.         The Foreign Ministry spokesman said he had not yet known in detail about the pendet dance issue, but promised the foreign ministry would follow up the case through its representatives in Malaysia.         In the meantime, the Malaysian side was reported to have said that the Balinese pendet dance in the advertisement was not the official production of the Malaysian government.         "In our meeting with the Malaysian side, they explained that the ad has nothing to do with the official tourism advertisement of the Malaysian government," Indonesian Tourism and Culture Minister Jero Wacik said on Monday.         Strong protests have been launched at home against the depiction of the dance in the Malaysian tourism advertisement broadcast in the Discovery Channel program under the title "Enigmatic Malaysia."         Tens of Balinese artists staged a demonstration in Denpasar over the weekend protesting the Malaysian tourism advertisement suggesting the Balinese "pendet" dance was part of indigenous Malaysian culture.         The artist crowd in front of Denpasar's Cultural Park was led by Prof Wayan Dibia MA of the Indonesian Institute of Arts. During the rally , Wayan Dibia presented a written statement expressing the Balinese artists' sentiments to Ida Ayu Agung Mas, a member of the Regional Representatives Council.         The welcome dance performed by women in Balinese costume appeared in a "Visit Malaysia Year" advertisement that was broadcast many times. Dibia said the dance was a cultural heritage of the Balinese people.         "Based upon our observation, the dancers shown in the Malaysian ad were in fact two graduates from the Indonesian Institute of Arts in Denpasar, named Lusia and Wiwik. The picture was taken by Bali Record two or three years ago," he said.         On Monday, Bali's artist community is urging the government to take appropriate action to defend the Balinese "pendet" dance as part of Indonesia's cultural heritage.         "We hope the Indonesian government will be able to take appropriate measures to maintain the pendet dance as a part of Indonesian culture after the recent Malaysian claim on the dance which has been part of Balinese traditional culture for many generations," said Ida Ayu Agung Mas, a member of the Regional Representatives Council (DPD) .         He said the Regional Representatives Council would convey the Balinese artists' demand as soon as possible to the government for further steps to be taken to prevent this nation from another loss in the cultural field.         "We have all heard of some aspect of the Indonesian culture that has been claimed by Malaysia as theirs, such as 'wayang' (Javanese puppet) and 'reog Ponorogo' (masked dance from East Java)," he.         "This is outrageous, Malaysia has claimed not only the pendet dance, but also paintings or Batik designs and several national song copyrights," he said.         A "Visit Malaysia Year" commercial had shown the pendet dance to illustrate the country's attractiveness to the international world as if the dance was something indigenously Malaysian. The ad was broadcast by a number of local and overseas television stations.         Denpasar Art Institute (ISI) Professor Wayan Dibia MA said that based on his observation, the dancers shown in the Malaysian ad were in reality two Balinese women. "The women who performed the dance in the television commercial were graduates from ISI Denpasar named Lusia and Wiwik. Meanwhile the video shooting was done in Bali by Bali Record two or three years ago," he said.         According to Yusron Ihza Mahendra, deputy chairman of the House of Representatives (DPR)'s Commission I for foreign affairs, Malaysia has repeatedly committed similar acts without feeling guilty and a sense of dignity.         The use of an Indonesian cultural product by Malaysia for a commercial purpose cannot be tolerated and hurts Indonesia, he said. "After all, Malaysia has repeatedly committed similar acts. The government should teach Malaysia a lesson to stop its dishonorable behavior," Yusron Ihza Mahendra said.         Virtually, according to Mahendra, Malaysia is not unaware of its wrong acts like when it claimed ownership over the Ambalat Block in the Sulawesi Sea. "That's why we need now a firm and concrete action," he said.         Mahendra suggested that Indonesia should use a political means to settle the problem because legal steps were no longer effective, always complicated and took a long time.         "The government should use a political means. It can exert diplomatic pressures such as withdrawing its ambassador from Malaysia or asking the Malaysian ambassador to leave the country," he said. The government can also reduce investment opportunities for Malaysia in Indonesia or revoke some of its business concessions, he said.         On diplomatic channels, Tourism and Culture Minister Jero Wacik said that he had officially invited the Malaysian ambassador to Indonesia in order to explain the inclusion of the Balinese pendet dance into Malaysia's tourism promotion ad.         On Monday, the minister met with Malaysia's Deputy Ambassdor to Indonesia Amran Mohammad Zin. During the meeting the Malaysian side explained that the advertisement was made by a private advertisement production house. Therefore, it has nothing to do with the Malaysian government's tourism ads.         According to the minister, the Malaysian government has promised to reprimand the production housein question. Indonesia also urged the Malaysian government to withdraw and stop the advertisement immediately.***5*** (T.A014/A/H-NG/A014) (T.A014/A/A014/A/A014) 25-08-2009 11:56:25