M Iqbal Shukri, Blora – A plan by the Blora regency government (Pemkab) in Central Java to immortalise Indonesian literary writer Pramoedya Ananta Toer by naming a street after him has been rejected by the social organisation (ormas) Pancasila Youth (PP).
This became known after a rejection letter circulated on social media via WhatsApp. The letter, with the letterhead of the Blora Pancasila Youth Branch Leadership Council (MPC), contained a request that the naming of Jalan Pramoedya Ananta Toer be postponed and reviewed.
The letter, dated February 3, 2025, was addressed to the regent of Blora and signed by the chairperson of the Blora Pancasila Youth MPC, Munaji.
The emergence of the letter is suspected to be the reason why Blora Regent Arief Rohman has postponed the inauguration of Jalan Pramoedya Ananta Toer, which was to be held at the same time as the start of the Century of Pramoedya Ananta Toer (#Seabadpram) Festival in Pramoedya's hometown of Blora on Thursday February 6.
In the initial plan, the road inauguration was carried out by Minister of Culture Fadli Zon from President Prabowo Subianto's Greater Indonesia Movement Party (Gerindra).
Pramoedya Ananta Toer's name will be attached to an alternative road from Beran Village in Blora district. Jalan Pramoedya Ananta Toer will have a length of 1.7 kilometres with a width of five meters. Currently, the road is new, is not fully paved and does not have a name.
Why Pancasila Youth objects
When sought for comment, Munaji confirmed issuing the rejection letter. According to Munaji, Pramoedya is considered unworthy of being immortalised in a street name because he is suspected of being involved in the Indonesian Communist Party (PKI) during his time.
"Our reason, yes there is an element of alleged involvement of C [category] communists. If you don't believe it, you can ask BIN [State Intelligence Agency] or BAIS [Army's Strategic Intelligence Agency] at the TNI Mabes [Indonesian Military Headquarters], or you can visit to the Blora Kodim [District Military Command]".
"What is clear is that we don't want, we must not allow communist or radical links to grow in Blora, that's not allowed", he said at the Pancasila Youth Blora Headquarters on Friday February 7.
Munaji said that there are several other choices of indigenous Blora figures who could be immortalised as street names.
"Like, Samin Surosentiko, that's possible. Samin Surosentiko was extraordinary, a hero of independence who fought against the colonialists, using the method of not paying taxes, that's extraordinary, it didn't have to be a bloody war, it didn’t have to be", he said.
In addition to this, there is Tirto Adhi Soerjo, the father of the national press, who was also born in Blora. "There is also someone who was born in Blora, that is Tirto Adhi Soerjo, as the father of journalism", he said.
Munaji welcomed the move by Rohman to postpone the inauguration of Jalan Pramoedya Ananta Toer.
"We appreciate it, especially the Blora regent, that in relation to the road it will be reviewed. If perhaps later the local government wants to make a regulation, that's no problem, in relation to the road naming, because it is indeed the authority of the local government. As for the central government, it only needs to be accepted", he explained.
Regulation not ready yet
Meanwhile, Arief Rohman said that the postponement of the inauguration of Jalan Pramoedya Ananta Toer was due the regulation not being ready.
"We are indeed currently drafting a regulation on the naming of the road (Jalan Pramoedya Ananta Toer). We have sought references from several other regions, which already have such regional regulations."
"The goal is so that later, in terms of legality and so on, it will be more complete. So, we are completing this, we are reviewing it in order to complete the regulation", he explained at Blora Creative Space (BCS) Thursday February 6.
Rohman also emphasised that the inauguration of the naming of Jalan Pramoedya Ananta Toer has only been postponed and not cancelled.
"So it's been postponed, yes, this is only because the regulation is not ready, we're preparing it first. We're currently drafting a regional regulation regarding the road", he explained.
"The location remains at the new road, but first we'll draft a regulation with the DPRD [Regional House of Representatives] so that later the regulation will be more complete", he explained.
Authority of local government
Fadli Zon has also responded to the postponement of the inauguration of Jalan Pramoedya Ananta Toer. Regarding the social organisation in Blora that does not agree with the inauguration of Jalan Pram, Zon does not have a problem with this.
"I think it's normal, I think the Pak [Mr] regent already has a mechanism for it", he said speaking at the Blora regency hall after opening the Century of Pramoedya Ananta Toer Festival in Blora on Thursday.
Furthermore, Zon considers the name Pramoedya Ananta Toer to be very worthy to be used as one of the street names in Blora.
"But I think it is very appropriate, Jalan Pramoedya Ananta Toer in Blora because he's a son of Blora. Moreover, I heard from the Pak regent, it will be used as a centre for culture or a kind of enclave, a cultural pocket, I think", he explained.
Zon said that the naming of the was the authority of the Blora regency government. "That is the right of the regional government, right, we really support it, so maybe it's just a matter of regulatory mechanisms with the DPRD, I think that's enough in a local regency government, for example making a regional regulation", he explained.
Notes
The Pemuda Pancasila (Pancasila Youth, PP) was established by the army in October 1959, ostensibly to uphold the state ideology of Pancasila. During the 1965-66 anti-communist purge the group took an active part in the slaughter of Indonesian Communist Party (PKI) members and sympathisers. Under Suharto's New Order dictatorship the organisation became an association of notorious thugs and petty criminals who carried out the regime's dirty work. It still has close ties with factions of the military and police and has been linked to criminal activities such as racketeering and extortion. In recent years it has been involved in a number of violent turf wars with other vigilante groups and attacks on leftist groups and events that it deems to be "pro-communist" or "anti-Pancasila".
[Translated by James Balowski. The original title of the article was "Alasan Pemuda Pancasila Tolak Penamaan Jalan Pramoedya Ananta Toer di Blora: Diduga Terlibat Komunis".]
