Introduction
The culture of Indonesia has been shaped by long
interaction between original indigenous customs and multiple foreign
influences. Indonesia is centrally-located along ancient trading routes between
the Far East, South Asia and the Middle East, resulting in many cultural
practices being strongly influenced by a multitude of religions, including Hinduism,
Buddhism, Confucianism, Islam and Christianity, all strong in the major trading
cities. The result is a complex cultural mixture very different from the
original indigenous cultures.
Examples of cultural fusion include the fusion of
Islam with Hindu in Javanese Abangan belief, the fusion of Hinduism, Buddhism
and animism in Bodha, and the fusion of Hinduism and animism in Kaharingan;
others could be cited.
Balinese dances have stories about ancient Buddhist
and Hindu kingdoms, while Islamic art forms and architecture are present in
Sumatra, especially in the Minangkabau and Aceh regions. Traditional art, music
and sport are combined in a martial art form called Pencak Silat.
Western culture has greatly influenced Indonesia in
science, technology and modern entertainment such as television shows, film and
music, as well as political system and issues.
Even though Indonesia has 300 ethnics and all ethnics
have different tradition and culture, but only one traditional culture which
has big effect to modern communication in Indonesia. It will be discuss on this paper.
Religion in Indonesia
The majority (about 88%) of the population follows
Islam. In fact, Indonesia is the nation with largest Muslim population.
However, freedom of religion is provided by the Indonesian Constitution, which
is defined in the First Principle of the State Philosophy “Pancasila”, which
upholds a “Belief in One Supreme God”. Others religions followed in Indonesia
are Christianity, Hinduism and Buddhism.
Eid al-Fitr (Idul Fitri)
Eid-al-Fitr (Eid al-Fitr, Eid ul-Fitr, Id-Ul-Fitr,
Eid) is the first day of the Islamic month of Shawwal. It marks the end of
Ramadan, which is a month of fasting and prayer. Many Muslims attend communal
prayers, listen to a khutba (sermon)
and give zakat al-fitr (charity in
the form of food) during Eid al-Fitr.
Idul Fitri, more commonly referred to in Indonesia as
Lebaran, is the celebration that comes at the end of the Muslim month of
fasting, Ramadan. The Arabic meaning of Idul Fitri is “becoming holy again”.
The dates of the ninth month of the Muslim calendar,
Ramadan, vary from year to year, as the Muslim calendar (Hijrah) is based on a
lunar cycle of 29 or 30 days. The exact date is determined by the sighting of
the new moon. These lunar calculations lead to an official announcement by the
government on the eve of Ramadan and Idul Fitri so that the faithful know when
to begin and end of the fasting month.
Ramadan
To understand the significance of Lebaran, an
understanding about the fasting month of Ramadan is important. During the month
of Ramadan, Muslims must refrain from eating, drinking, smoking, marital
relations or getting angry during the daylight hours. In addition, those
fasting are supposed to refrain from bad habits – lying, getting angry, and
using bad language as well as to be more diligent in prayer and give to
charities. It is believe that fasting heightens spirituality and develops
self-control.
The fast begins in the morning just before sunrise, at
imsak, and is broken at maghrib which falls at sunset. Fasting
during the month of Ramadan is one of the five pillars of Islam and an
obligation for devout Muslims.
Those who are expected to fast include: adults
(defined as those who have reached the age of puberty) and those who are sane.
Those who are not expected to fast include: children, women having their
period, travelers, the sick, those with long-term illnesses, pregnant or
breastfeeding women and the mentally ill.
The faithful who fast awaken early in the morning to
have a meal before subuh. In order to
awaken the faithful, the call to prayer is sounded from neighborhood mosques.
In addition, groups of young boys walk around neighborhoods beating on drums
and other noise makers to awaken the faithful (and their neighbors) yelling out
“sahur, sahur”.
The breaking of the fast at sunset is a very social
occasion for which special foods are prepared for gatherings with family or
friends. Upon hearing the sound of the bedug
drum on the television or the call to prayer from the neighborhood mosque at
sunset, the faithful know it’s time to break their fast, or buka puasa. This is usually done with a
very sweet drink and sweet snacks. Maghrib
prayers are made before a full meal is served. Taraweh congregational prayers are held in neighborhood mosques and
at gatherings every evening at about 7:30 pm. These prayers are not compulsory,
but they are enjoyed by many.
The schedule for imsak
and maghrib is posted in major
newspapers and on the television throughout Indonesia, as well as published in
handouts by major religious organizations.
While it is expected that people will keep to their
normal activities during the fast, needless to say the lack of liquid and food
during the day and the unusual sleep and meal schedule soon take their toll.
After the first week you may see that sleep and food deprivation cause those
fasting to have reduced energy levels as well as finding it more difficult to
concentrate on tasks.
TV Show during Ramadan
Ramadan has brought more eyeballs to TV, particularly
at dawn when people started their fasting day. The highest increase is mainly
occurred in early morning (2 to 5 am). Many special programs offered at dawn (sahur time) had helped boost the
audience.
During early morning, national TV stations add their
broadcast time on entertainment programs from 67 hours to 241 hours and on
religious programs from 108 hours to 173 hours. Viewers also spend more time to
watch entertainment program, in particular comedy and variety show, in early
morning. Their watching time increases from only 30 minutes to nearly 4.5 hours
during Ramadan. They also watch serial (sinetron) for one more hour into two
hours and religious program for almost half hour into 1,5 hours. However the
most watched programs in early morning are still dominated by sport program.
|
Program
Type
|
Average
Number of Audience
|
Rating (%)
|
|
Sport:
Match
|
1,800,000
|
3.4
|
|
Entertainment:
Variety Show
|
1,642,000
|
3.1
|
|
Series:
Drama
|
1,498,000
|
2.9
|
|
Sport:
Match
|
1,485,000
|
2.8
|
|
Sport:
Match
|
1,305,000
|
2.5
|
The number of potential audience also increases quite
high in the afternoon (4 to 7 pm) which grows 17% to 20.3 million people. In
the afternoon, national TV stations increase their broadcast time, especially
for religious programs from only 9 hours to 133 hours. Viewers also spend 1.5
more hours into 1 hour 38 minutes to watch religious program. Still the most
watched program is children program.
|
Program
Type
|
Average
Number of Audience
|
Rating (%)
|
|
Children:
Series Animation/Puppet
|
2,301,000
|
4.4
|
|
Religious:
Preach/Dialogue
|
2,167,000
|
4.2
|
|
Sport:
Match
|
2,064,000
|
4.0
|
|
Series:
Drama
|
1,916,000
|
3.7
|
|
Movie:
Animation/Puppet
|
1,862,000
|
3.6
|
Conclusion
In this holy month, the potential audience (aged 5+)
higher than regular days.
All through the day during Ramadan, entertainment and
religious programs dominated. The portion of entertainment programs (such as
comedy, variety show, reality show, or a quiz) increased. The increment was
mainly contributed by a variety of entertainment programs broadcast during sahur time.
Meanwhile, the increase portion of religious programs
from 3% to 6% was followed by the increase in time spent viewing from just 1%
to 4%. They spent approximately five minutes per day to watch this program at
fasting break time. Although religious programs showed bigger portion as well
as the time spent viewing, reality shows and soap operas still ruled TV
viewing.
