From 2002 onwards, Imlek was not only celebrated by Indonesians of Chinese descent but also those who are non-Chinese descents.
A Chinese New Year atmosphere at a shop in Indonesia. (Photo source: pegipegi.com)
In-Depth
Jakarta, GIVnews.com – The Chinese New Year is still about two weeks away, but in Indonesia the festivity atmosphere of what is locally known as ‘Imlek Holiday’ is already strongly felt not only in large cities but also in small towns across the archipelago.
In the past two weeks, for example, rising supplies of cakes, cookies, clothes and many other unique items for the Chinese New Year were on offer at a large shopping centers and several mini-malls, which are located less than two hundred meters from the State Palace in Central Jakarta. And last week, GIV already witnessed a lot of hustle and bustle at those marketplaces, at the southern end of Jakarta’s China Town.
This year’s Imlek falls on Monday, 8 February, which is a national holiday. As such, especially for most office workers across the country, it will only mean a longer weekend.
Media reports on imlek
The visibly busy shopping activities are not the only illustrious sign that Imlek is drawing near. News stories over the past weeks have helped set an upbeat mood for this year’s Chinese New Year celebration.
Numerous media outlets in Indonesia have carried lots of information and promotional stories about various activities surrounding the Imlek celebration. They include the countless promotions about ‘special price discounts’ at shopping centers across the country. One instance is found in the East Kalimantan city of Balikpapan, where T-shirts with ‘Imlek logo’ at a local marketplace are reportedly offered at up to 75 percent discounts.
Some news reports also carried sensational stories that are relevant to the celebration. Among these headlines include “This is the Agenda of Imlek Celebrations in Jokowi’s Kampong of Birth”; “Imlek in Indonesia, Here are the Must-Visit Places”; “In Greeting Imlek 2016, Shaolion Warriors are Now on Theater Stage”; “Imlek 2016, Tourism Minister Arief Yahya Reaps Tourists from China”; “Greeting Imlek 2016, Medan Holds Large Imlek Fair”; and “Lively Imlek Performances of Chinese Harps and Barongsai at Hotel Indonesia”.
Meanwhile, as reported by Liputan6.com, thousands of lampions and other ornament items will be installed at the renowned Pasar Gede traditional marketplace in Solo, which will uniquely enliven the Chinese New Year atmosphere in one of the Central Java’s cultural centers. Solo is the birthplace of President Joko ‘Jokowi’ Widodo and First Lady Iriana.
Another news outlet carried quite a long information about “the must-visit places” around Imlek times like Festival Cap Go Meh Glodok 2016 in Jakarta’s China Town; Festival Cap Go Meh Singkawang 2016; Festival Lampion Pancaran Sinar Kemeriahan in Riau Islands; Imlek at Pasar Semawis in Semarang; Cap Go Meh Street Festival in Bogor; and a barongsai performance at Vihara Dharma Bakti in Peunayong, Aceh.
Shaolin Warriors in Jakarta
In Jakarta and its surrounding area, Chinese culture enthusiasts can enjoy ‘Shaolin Warriors’, a self-defense art performance by a world-renown art group from China this Febrary. The event will take place in Ciputra Artpreneur Theater at the compound of the prestigious Lotte Shopping Avenue in West Jakarta where the majority of Indonesians who are Chinese descent reside in the capital.
Ciputra Artpreneur president director Rina Ciputra said the ‘Shaolin Warriors’ group had performed in other countries like the United States, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the UK. As reported by Detik.com, Rina Ciputra estimated that ‘Shaolin Warriors’, scheduled to be staged for several days at the Lotte Shopping Avenue, will attract large numbers of enthusiasts from different backgrounds.
‘Shaolin Warriors’. (Photo source: beritasatu.com)
23,000 Chinese tourists
Meanwhile, Minister of Tourism Arief Yahya recently could not help hiding his upbeat mood. He said about 23,000 Chinese tourists would visit Indonesia, mainly Bali, around next month’s Chinese New Year period. Traveling from 11 largest cities in China, the Chinese visitors will use chartered aircraft including those from national carrier Garuda Indonesia. The 11 Chinese cities include Shenyang, Xi An, Tianjin, Ji Nan, Tai Yuan, Zhengzhou, Kunming, ChongQing, Hefei, Ningbo, and Chengdu, rri.co.id reported.
In Mataram, the West Nusa Tenggara (NTB) provincial capital on Lombok Island, an estimated 5,000 visitors from foreign countries and Indonesian provinces will attend a Chinese New Year festival. It will be hosted by the Mataram city administration in cooperation with the Chinese consulate-general in Denpasar.
The Mataram festival, the first ever held in that city, was scheduled to peak on 20 February 2016. It will be held on Jl. AA Gede Ngurah Cakranegara, Mataram’s China town. The street will be decorated with Chinese New Year-styled lampions and other related ornaments, and, besides art performances, it will also host charity activities like blood donation and the distribution of staple items to needy city dwellers.
Barongsai & Catholic Church
In Indonesia, Chinese New Year was declared a national holiday in 2002 by then president Abdurrahman Wahid. Even much earlier he had been known as a prominent champion of a pluralistic Indonesia.
From 2002 onwards, Imlek was not only celebrated by Indonesians of Chinese descent but also those who are non-Chinese descents. Initially, barongsai and liong performances were held in shopping malls and other buildings, but later they were staged outdoor even with artists including native Indonesians from different ethnic and religious backgrounds.
Children dancing at the offertory procession during an Imlek Holy Mass in a Catholic church in West Jakarta. (Photo source: sathora.or.id)
Meanwhile, a fact less publicly exposed is the consistent role played by the Indonesian Catholic Church in supporting ethnic Chinese and Chinese traditions as part of the Indonesian make-up.
Catholic bishops in Indonesia allow and even promote the holding of Imlek Holy Mass at parishes. Some elements of the liturgy on such occasions are typically ‘Imlek,’ including the decoration of the church hall, the color of priests’ and altar boys’ dresses, the liturgical songs and the procession of the offertory gifts.
Not surprisingly, in Jakarta, for example, such a Holy Mass is opened or ended with chants like He Xin Nian. At some churches, the choir and the whole congregation sing Wo Yau Yung Yung Yen Ai Ce Yesu in the middle of their prayer meetings. This is despite the fact what some said that most of the participants do not really understand its lyrics and that their pronunciation sounds “terrible.”
Another delightful moment in such church prayer meetings comes when the priests, while seeing off the congregation at the church terrace, hand out to them orange fruits and angpao. In some parishes, barongsai or liong dances are performed at the church compound after the Holy Mass. Such dance groups are normally brought in from external sources, at relatively high prices.
Dream of young Indonesians of Chinese descent
Admittedly, like many of Indonesia’s current generation from the other ethnic groups, many young Indonesians of Chinese descent are said to also know little about the in-depth meaning traditional events such as the Chinese New Year. But, for them, it is thought that Imlek celebration provides a clear sign that Indonesia is making significant leaps towards pluralism in real life. That is the dream of former president Abdurrahman Wahid and all his successors including President Jokowi and other top figures like Jakarta Governor Basuki ‘Ahok’ Tjahaja Purnama, himself a Chinese descent.