Monday, December 27, 2010

Banjarmasin retakes his royal history and culture



All Picture taken from Gusti Yulianitha Tick Facebook and Donald Tick's email.


From 10-12 december 2010 we saw the accumalation of a cultural revival process,t hat took place in Banjarmasin the last 10 years.
Then the bupati of Banjar was installed as the new raja muda/chief of the sultan's dynasty of Banjarmasin.
This royal installation was characterised by the facts, that really all was wished to be done perfect and complete.
The sultanate of Banjarmasin was abolished after a time of internal struggle on the 11th of june of 1860;so exactly 150 years ago.
Holland reorientated itself about the function of the Indonesian dynasties around 1939 and had then the plan to restore the sultanate of Banjarmasin and the nearby in the so-called Tanah Bumbu-area lying 7 principalities (abolished from 1905); strongly related to the Banjarmasin dynasty.
But the realisation of the plan was hampered by the WW II and the then following independence struggle in Indonesia.
The once very influential dynasty of Banjarmasin;being then one of the 5 main dynasties of the island of Kalimantan/Borneo;had always preserved as good as possible it's cultural heritage and knowledge of it's history.
The present dynastychief;then still called Gusti Khairul Saleh;was in 2000 still a high governmentofficial in the town of Banjarmasin,but then already had organised an organisation to preserve the cultural and historical heritage of the total Banjarmasin area.
It even published then already it's own magazine.
Also the fact, that the people of Banjarmasin;known for it's pietist religious life and the with that connected friendliness;kept their interest in the history, fascilitated the cultural revival of the area.
Yes, Unity in Diversity is the slogan of the coats of arms of Indonesia (Bhineka Tunggal Ika), so a more stronger sense of your own local culture means, that you also can stay more strong towards the national cause.
That was also the aim, that the sultan's dynasty and the local government had in the royal installation project.
Everything during these 3 days were perfect and complete.
Not only there were genuine installationceremonies,but also an unique photoexhibition of Indonesia kings in history. That also gave a good chance to all the people there to be educated about their own history.
That exhibition was sponsored by the National Council of Dutch Nobility (Nederlandse Adels Vereniging), who together with the European Union of National Nobility Councils (Cilane) has a project to exchange experiences with the Indonesian dynasties about their function in the so-called modern world and where it is possible to further support each other.
Very active for years in this project was their much active representative Drs. Ferdinand F. Baron de Smeth van Alphen, who was this year represented at this royal event by the in Holland based secretary of a documentation institute about the dynasties of Indonesia
(Pusaka);Mr. Donald Tick and by Drs. Gusti Yulianitha Tick;a direct descendant of the last locally recognized ruling sultan of Banjarmasin (Sultan Adam).
The in Indonesia still very lifely traditional culture and relative active functioning of the local royalty is a stimulating factor for the European nobility .
The very detailed archives and the philisophy of the European nobility about their functioning in the so-called modern world is a factor of learning also for the since ca. 10 years really cultural reviving of the Indonesian dynasties.
The perfect way, how the royal installation had been done can be described as an example for such matters in Indonesia.
The different branches of the dynasty with equal rights to the dignity of chief of the dynasty were also asked for some advise and also invited. All came.Also the general traditional and religious leaders and of course the civil government were asked for advice and invited.
Even a branch of the dynasty,living in Holland;was invited.
Because Banjarmasin was lying on an island (relative isolation) the history of Banjarmasin mainly happened on the island of Kalimantan, or Borneo.
So;much royal intermarriages and political bonds were made in history. Even some other principalities on the island were founded by sons of Banjarmasin sultans.
That is why the whole organisation first concentrated concerning the invitations to invite as much as possible the royal and princely families of the island itself. But of course also many dynasties, who represented the other ca. 250 dynasties of Indonesia.

Because it was already 150 years ago, that the dynasty really functioned as a ruling dynasty, the related dynasty of Kotawaringin (S-middle Kalimantan;founded by a son of a sultan of Banjarmasin), who functioned as a ruling dynasty until the end of active existence as such in the Dutch time(ca. 1949)was asked to control the plans for the installation.
And even really participated in the actual royal installation.
It was all a colourfull, interesting and quite elaborate royal cultural event, who was attended by a lot of dynasties from Indonesia,Malaysia and Brunei.
So you could see a diversity of displays of royal culture as well like the dynasties of Bulungan, Sambaliung, Gunung Tabur and Kutai (East-Kalimantan), Kotawaringin (S-middle Kalimantan), Tayan (representing the council of monarchs of West-Kalimantan, who were at that time very busy with their own cultural festival), Mamuju and Binuang from West-Sulawesi, Buton from SE-Sulawesi, Sanrabone from SW-Sulawesi, Badung-Pemecutan from Bali, Sile Dendeng from Lombok, Surakarta and Pakualaman from Java, Siak from East-Sumatra, Palembang from S-Sumatra, a representative of the S-Moluccan areas nobility in the person of the raja of Mamala, etc.,etc.
The Malaysia royal world sended a delegation from the sultan's dynasty of Selangor (founded by a prince from the Sulawesi kingdom of Luwu) and also the sultan's dynasty of Brunei was represented.
The whole installation project was also supported by the Indonesia organisation of representation of the Indonesian dynasties FSKN (Forum Silaturahmi Keraton se Nusantara) under the hardworking leadersship of Kanjeng Pangeran Haryo Gunarso Kusumodingrat;known generally as Pangeran Gunarso.
The present dynastychief of Banjarmasin;Pangeran Khairul Saleh,is a good person for the dignity of chief of the sultan's dynasty of Banjarmasin in this so-called modern time.
Being descendant of the brother of Sultan Adam (the last local recognized real ruling sultan) and married with a descendant of a Banjarmasin sultan as well,he already has the royal charisma(also not unimportant in Indonesia).
That combined with his true idealism to revive the love for the local culture and history he must be the good man/royal on the right place.
Most of the people are convinced of his honest and non-proud intentions towards it.
It is hoped,that the good God will preserve his total idealism in this way.
His next step in his realistic dreams is to rebuild the sultan's palace as a symbol of the local culture,but also as a eyecatcher for tourists.
The palace must be finished in 2011.
That is of course also to the interest of the Indonesian central government,who more and more has focussed themselves to the local culture as one of the main interests for the tourists. So hereby tourists can play a role in reinforcing the local feeling for it's own culture in a genuine way.

Mr. Jero Wacik;Indonesian minister of tourism and culture was because of all of that togerther with Governor Rudy Arifin of South-Kalimantan some of the most important guests at the events.

Hopefully this inspiring line will be followed in the general and royal cultural revival.

We will follow them all with interest.

D.P. Tick gRMK
I. Festivana

Thursday, December 23, 2010

I WOULD LIKE FOR ALL CHRISTIANS,THAT THEY HAVE A BLESSED CHRISTMAS.
THAT THE LESS WEALTHY AND ALSO LONELY PEOPLE WILL NOT BE FORGOTTEN.
FOR ALL THE PEOPLE ON THIS WORLD A VERY PLEASANT TURN OF THE YEAR AND ENOUGH HOPE FOR THE YEAR 2011.

THANK YOU FOR ALL YOUR ATTENTION IN THE YEAR 2010 AND THE WILLINGNESS TO COÖPERATE WITH US IN THE YEAR 2011.

YOURS SINCERELLY:

D.P. TICK gRMK

Friday, December 17, 2010

Sultan of Jailolo (North-Moluccans) deposed


Recently the news reached us,that one of the 4 sultans of the North-Moluccan;Sultan Abdullah Syah of Jailolo;has been deposed by his paramount overlord Sultan Mudafar Syah II of Ternate.
That happened 20-11-2010.
The story is like this:
Before Jailolo was an independent kingdom.
Ca. 1550 Jailolo came under the influence of Ternate. One source said,that the last descendant of the kings of Jailolo (then called a raja) died in exile on Ternate in 1715.
But the members of the direct line, or the Doa line claim, that with that fact the rights to the throne of Jailolo had not been ended. From 1715 the rights to the raja title went to a side line. From there the rulers of the restored Jailolo sultanate descended:Raja Muhammad Arif Bila, who helped ca. 1800 the rebellious Sultan Nuku of Tidore;a national Indonesian hero and later after him his 2 sons, who only could rule over a segment of the Jailolo people, who were allowed to resettle themselves in the north part of Ceram and after the last sultan of jailolo there was deposed went back to Jailolo in Halmahera totally.
The last sultan there was deposed 1832 (Sultan Muhammad Asgar;died 1839),because he not really coöperated with ending the piracy in the area. A descendant from that line;Dano Baba Hasan;was pretender sultan 1875-76 and his descendant;Dano Jaeuddin;also was pretender in 1914.
A descendant of Dano Baba Hasan was discovered in in Sumatra by Sultan Mudafar II Syah. He had a plan to make the system of 4 kings/Maloku Kie Raha;of again functioning to give stability again to the area.
So in januari 2002 Sultan Abdullah Syah was installed by the sultan of Ternate as a sultan, but in fact the paramount function of Ternate over Jailolo had not been ended then.
So in fact it was more a coöperation between the 2 sultan systems.
That functioned very good for a long time,but this year the sultan of Jailolo had a different choice for a bupati of a local district and that was not very much liked by the sultan and sultana of Ternate,who felt a sort of betrayed.
After the sultan of Jailolo was deposed, the functions were temporarily taken by an official called Ilham Dano Tokan.
No further real developments were noticed in this matter.

Some say, that the branch of the dynasty of which he belongs were always a bit seen as the Tidore branch. Tidore is in history the rival of Ternate.
Sultan Muhammad Arif was also pretender to the sultan's title of Tidore later.
The Doa line now hope, that there will be a chance to reclaim with succes their own rights to the sultan's title.

Like always we hope, that the harmony will be restored soon.

D. P. Tick
Festivi

Monday, December 13, 2010

Banjarmasin dynasty also has now it's chief again





The Banjarmasin area;once one of the 4 biggest kingdoms on the island of Borneo/Kalimantan has witnessed from 10-12 december 2010 the installation of it's new dynastychief;150 years after the Banjarmasin sultanate was abolished 11-6-1860.
The new dynastychief is Pangeran Khairul Saleh, who is now also having his 2nd term of office as bupati/districtchief of Banjar;the central part of Banjarmasin.
Not only the Indonesian government sended high officials for this royal installation like the minister of Culture and Tourism Mr. Jero Wacik, but also Governor Rudy Arifin of South Kalimantan (the province in which the kabupaten Banjar is lying) and other high local government officials were attending.
Apart from the civil government also many dynasties (as representatives of the dynasties of their areas) attended.
Also the chief of the council of South-Moluccan nobility clans were attending.
Of course the several branches of the sultan's dynasty itself was invited and all attended.Even the clan formed by the descendants of a son of the last sultan of Banjarmasin and a Dutch woman were to be seen at the ceremonies.
This Holland prince of Banjarmasin;Mister Dick Eysma from Kota Zoetermeer;went back again to the place, which he had seen for the last time 29 years ago.Then also he made a journey to commemorate his royal ancestors in the area where he was born 69 years ago and which he left in 1948.

The ceremonies took place in 3 days. The first day was concentrated on the baduduk, or ceremonial ritual cleansing ceremonies for the dynastychief and his most closest dynastic officials.
The 2nd day was concentrated around the arriving and greeting welcome of the high civil politicians and the dynasties from Indonesia, Malaysia and Brunei.
The 3rd day the actual installation and also the official confirmation of the pangeran title took place.
That last day was of course the most colourfull and intensive cultural event.
Also a little historical photo exhibition;sponsored by the Holland National Council of Nobility (Nederlandse Adels Vereniging);was then opened.
That organisation is normally represented at such royal occasions by Drs. Ferdinand F. Baron de Smeth van Alphen from Amsterdam,whose National Council of Dutch Nobility is trying to exchange experiences with the Indonesia royalty about their functioning in the so-called modern-time.
Because of health reasons the baron was represented by Gusti Yulianitha Tick from Balikpapan (descendant of the last local recognized ruling sultan of Banjarmasin;Sultan Adam Alwatzikubillah (1827-1857), who is also the wife of Donald Tick, the secretary of the Documentation Centre of the Indonesian Dynasties (Pusat Dokumentasi Kerajaan2 di Indonesia "Pusaka",who organised the exhibition.

Later,when the more detailed information about this 3 day royal installation will reach us together with the beautifull pictures around this important event, we shall put another article here about it.

D.P. Tick gRMK
I. Festivana

Note :
portrait: Pangeran Khairul Saleh;bupati of Banjar and Raja Muda of Banjarmasin (Taken from his FB).
other pictures from:
Gusti Yulianitha Tick SPd; secretary Kerabat Kesultanan Banjarmasin/section Balikpapan town.