March 1, 2005 edition
THE holy day of Idul Adha this year witnessed the extinction of a tradition in Lamno, Aceh Jaya. Each year, during this holy day of the feast of Korban or sacrifice, the Seumuleueng ceremony is customarily celebrated to honor the king who proselytized Islam, Po Teumeurehom.
The 525th Seumuleueng was supposed to have been commemorated in February 2005. Usually following the ritual, unmarried young men would look forward to the custom of pursuing the young women of Lamno, beautiful blue-eyed girls of Portuguese descent. But the tsunami disaster of December 26, 2004, has eliminated everything. Practically everyone in Lamno, along with its traditions, disappeared in an instant into the holes of the past.
Tempo journalists Akmal Nasery Basral, Nurlis E. Meuko, and Philipus Parera wrote this report, with the assistance of Nurdin Kalim and Abdi Purnomo.
THE holy day of Idul Adha this year witnessed the extinction of a tradition in Lamno, Aceh Jaya. Each year, during this holy day of the feast of Korban or sacrifice, the Seumuleueng ceremony is customarily celebrated to honor the king who proselytized Islam, Po Teumeurehom.
The 525th Seumuleueng was supposed to have been commemorated in February 2005. Usually following the ritual, unmarried young men would look forward to the custom of pursuing the young women of Lamno, beautiful blue-eyed girls of Portuguese descent. But the tsunami disaster of December 26, 2004, has eliminated everything. Practically everyone in Lamno, along with its traditions, disappeared in an instant into the holes of the past.
Tempo journalists Akmal Nasery Basral, Nurlis E. Meuko, and Philipus Parera wrote this report, with the assistance of Nurdin Kalim and Abdi Purnomo.
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More Intermezzo articles in other editions
February 15, 2005 edition
TWENTY-SIX years have passed since Chinese leader, Deng Xiaoping, uttered his stirring speech. "To be rich is glorious," he said. China then changed: free trade was implemented, villages were transformed into modern cities. Economy became the commander in chief, while ideology and history became souvenirs.
At the end of last November, Tempo reporter Arif Zulkifli visited Beijing, Qinghai, and Xiamen in Fujian Province and discovered a China with an altered face.
TWENTY-SIX years have passed since Chinese leader, Deng Xiaoping, uttered his stirring speech. "To be rich is glorious," he said. China then changed: free trade was implemented, villages were transformed into modern cities. Economy became the commander in chief, while ideology and history became souvenirs.
At the end of last November, Tempo reporter Arif Zulkifli visited Beijing, Qinghai, and Xiamen in Fujian Province and discovered a China with an altered face.
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January 25, 2005 edition
January 11, 2005 edition
FOR three decades, the north coast of Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam Province thrived on natural gas. Some 17.1 trillion cubic feet of gas lies within the bowels of Aceh. This buried treasure sustained the gas industry, as well as a number of other industries that rely on natural gas, such as fertilizers and pulp. The north coast of Aceh was like a magnet for thousands of jobseekers in the country as well as abroad. But the reserves of natural gas are disappearing. Some factories are now on their last legs. Thousands of workers are jobless, and thousands of others are on the verge of losing their jobs. The formerly lively gas towns are now faded, dead, and poor. For two weeks, Tempo reporter Ali Anwar documented life on the Aceh north coast that has now lost its glorious mantle of gas. The following is his report.
FOR three decades, the north coast of Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam Province thrived on natural gas. Some 17.1 trillion cubic feet of gas lies within the bowels of Aceh. This buried treasure sustained the gas industry, as well as a number of other industries that rely on natural gas, such as fertilizers and pulp. The north coast of Aceh was like a magnet for thousands of jobseekers in the country as well as abroad. But the reserves of natural gas are disappearing. Some factories are now on their last legs. Thousands of workers are jobless, and thousands of others are on the verge of losing their jobs. The formerly lively gas towns are now faded, dead, and poor. For two weeks, Tempo reporter Ali Anwar documented life on the Aceh north coast that has now lost its glorious mantle of gas. The following is his report.