Fighting prejudice against Indonesia’s ethnic Chinese, museum uses literature to show their role in country’s history
Set up by a Muslim former student activist, the Chinese Indonesian Literature Museum fills an information gap in the history of ethnic Chinese people in Indonesia with its treasure trove of books, newspapers and other documents
In May 1998, pro-democracy activist Azmi Abubakar joined thousands of other university students in a blockade of the Serpong area, situated just to the west of Indonesia’s capital city, Jakarta.
Their mission was to prevent looting during riots sparked by food shortages and high unemployment, amid protests demanding the resignation of Indonesian president Suharto after more than three decades in power.
The riots had a profound effect on Azmi, a Jakarta-born Acehnese Muslim and father of four. He was living in Serpong, which is today part of South Tangerang city. The area has a large ethnic Chinese population, and Chinese Indonesian homes and businesses had become the target of looters.
The dogs fighting wild boars in illegal pits in Indonesia
The events concerned Azmi, but also sparked in him an interest in the history of the Chinese in the country. He began to collect all manner of related written materials pertaining to the Chinese community.
Fourteen years later, in 2012, he established the Museum Pustaka Peranakan Tionghoa (Chinese Indonesian Literature Museum), which he runs with other former student activists.
Located in a two-storey shophouse on South Tangerang’s Golden Road complex, the museum is a treasure trove of more than 30,000 books, newspapers, comics and other documents.
Its book collection spans genres ranging from politics and sport to cuisine, wuxia – martial arts fiction – and medical texts. The museum’s oldest exhibit dates back to 1891.
