- Mochtar Lubis
-
Mochtar Lubis 
Mochtar Lubis (unknown year)Born 7 March 1922
Padang, West Sumatra, IndonesiaDied 2 July 2004 (aged 82)
Jakarta, IndonesiaCitizenship Indonesian Awards - Ramon Magsaysay Award (1950, shared with Robert Dick), World Association of Newspapers' Golden Pen of Freedom Award, (1967)
Mochtar Lubis ([moxˈtar luˈbɪs]; Padang, Indonesia March 7, 1922[1] – July 2, 2004, Jakarta) was an Indonesian Batak journalist and novelist who co-founded Indonesia Raya. His novel Senja di Jakarta (Twilight in Jakarta in English) was the first Indonesian novel to be translated into English. He was a critic of Sukarno and was imprisoned by him.[2] He has been described as a "renaissance man par excellence."
Contents
Biography
Lubis was born on March 7, 1922 in Padang, West Sumatra to Raja Pandapotan Lubis, a high-ranking civil servant, and his wife.[3] He was the sixth child of twelve.[4]
As a child, Lubis wrote children's stories which were published in Sinar Deli, a Medan-based newspaper.[3] When he was an adolescent, Mochtar Lubis often trekked into the jungles of Sumatra. Lubis later wrote that two events during this period, seeing a well-built yet abandoned hut and having a close call with a tiger, served partly as his inspiration for Harimau! Harimau![5]
After graduating from high school, Lubis worked as a teacher in Nias, North Sumatra. However, after a year he left for Batavia, where he worked at a bank. When World War II broke out and the Japanese occupied Indonesia in 1942, Lubis began working for the Japanese, translating international news for the Japanese army.[3]
After Indonesia declared its independence in 1945, Lubis joined the Indonesian news agency Antara as a reporter.[6] With Antara, he covered the Asian Relations Conference in 1947. During this same period he wrote Jalan Tak Ada Ujung and joined the Indonesian Visual Artists Association.[3]
In 1949, Lubis cofounded Indonesia Raya, later serving as the daily's chief editor. His work with Indonesia Raya led to him being imprisoned numerous times for his critical writing, including in Madiun, East Java, from 1957 - 1966.[6]
On 4 February 1975, Lubis was arrested in relation to the 1974 riots during the visit of Japanese Prime Minister Kakuei Tanaka;[7] Indonesia Raya was also shut down not long after the riots due to their reporting of the Pertamina corruption scandal.[6] Lubis spent over two months in Nirbaya prison without trial and was released on 14 April 1975. He noted that other prisoners, such as former Indonesian Air Force chief Omar Dani, had been imprisoned without trial for years.[7]
Lubis founded and co-founded numerous magazines and foundations, including the Obor Indonesia Foundation in 1970,[3] Horison magazine, and the Indonesian Green Foundation.[4] Lubis was also outspoken about the need for freedom of the press in Indonesia[6] and gained a reputation as an honest, no-nonsense reporter.[3]
After a long struggle against Alzheimer's disease Lubis died in Medistra Hospital on 2 July 2004 at age 82.[8] He was buried with next to his wife in Jeruk Purut Cemetery.[7] His funeral was attended by hundreds, including journalists and writers Rosihan Anwar, Aristiddes Katoppo and Ramadhan KH.[8]
Personal life
Lubis was married to Siti Halimah, who died in 2001. Together they had three children, who produced eight grandchildren. During his time as a widower, Lubis said that he could never love another woman.[4]
Lubis was an avid practitioner of yoga,[4] which he started practicing in prison.[8]
Legacy
In 1958, Lubis shared the Ramon Magsaysay Award for Journalism, Literature, and the Creative Communication Arts with Robert Dick.[9]
Lubis's novel Harimau! Harimau! was named Best Book by Yayasan Buku Utama, a part of the Indonesian Ministry of Education and Culture, in 1975,[10] and an award from Yayasan Jaya Raya in 1979.[11]
Lubis has been described as a "renaissance man par excellence"[3] and a "press freedom champion".[8] Numerous publications have been written describing him and his works.[3]
Works
Novels
Year Title Title in English Notes 1950 Tidak Ada Esok[1] There is No Tomorrow 1952 Jalan Tak Ada Ujung The Never-ending Road Received an award from the Badan Musyawarah Kebudayaan Nasional [1] 1963 Senja di Jakarta Twilight in Jakarta Originally published in English; published in Malay in 1964.[1] 1966 Tanah Gersang Barren Land 1975 Harimau! Harimau! Tiger! Tiger! Nominated best book of the year by Yayasan Buku Utama.[1] 1971 Maut dan Cinta Death and Love Received an award from Yayasan Jaya Raya.[1] Short story collections
Year Title Title in English 1950 Si Jamal[1] The Beauty 1956 Perempuan[1] Women References
- ^ a b c d e f g h Lubis, Mochtar. Harimau! Harimau! Eighth printing. 2008. Yayasan Obor Indonesia: Jakarta. Pp. 213-214. ISBN 978-979-461-109-6.(Taken from the "About the Author" section) (In Indonesian)
- ^ Hill, David (2005-07-01). "Mochtar Lubis". Inside Indonesia. http://www.insideindonesia.org/edit83/p23_hill.html. Retrieved 2008-07-10.
- ^ a b c d e f g h Her Suheryanto (4 April 2010). "A Fresh look at the legacy of Mochtar Lubis". The Jakarta Post. http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2010/04/04/a-fresh-look-legacy-mochtar-lubis.html. Retrieved 9 July 2011.
- ^ a b c d A. Junaidi (16 August 2004). "Loyal, outspoken, loved: Mochtar's friends remember". The Jakarta Post. https://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2004/08/16/loyal-outspoken-loved-mochtar039s-friends-remember.html. Retrieved 9 July 2011.
- ^ Lubis & Lamoureux 1991, p. vii
- ^ a b c d A. Junaidi (3 July 2004). "Press freedom fighter, writer Mochtar Lubis passes away". The Jakarta Post. https://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2004/07/03/press-freedom-fighter-writer-mochtar-lubis-passes-away.html. Retrieved 9 July 2011.
- ^ a b c Warief Djajanto Basorie (9 September 2008). "The irrepressible and intimate Mochtar Lubis". The Jakarta Post. http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2008/09/21/the-irrepressible-and-intimate-mochtar-lubis.html. Retrieved 9 July 2011.
- ^ a b c d "Press freedom champion Mochtar 'only feared for his Juliet'". The Jakarta Post. 4 July 2004. https://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2004/07/04/press-freedom-champion-mochtar-039only-feared-his-juliet039.html. Retrieved 9 July 2011.
- ^ "The Ramon Magsaysay Awardees by Category - Journalism, Literature, and the Creative Communication Arts". Ramon Magsaysay Award. http://www.rmaf.org.ph/Awardees/category-JLCCA.htm. Retrieved 2008-07-10.
- ^ Mahayana, Sofyan & Dian 2007, p. 243
- ^ Eneste 2001, p. 61
Bibliography
- Eneste, Pamusuk (2001) (in Indonesian). Bibliografi Sastra Indonesia [Bibliography of Indonesian Literature]. Magelang, Indonesia: Yayasan Indonesiatera. ISBN 9799375177. http://books.google.ca/books?hl=en&lr=&id=6hApcTtOsQMC&oi=fnd&pg=PR5&dq=%22harimau!+Harimau!%22+mochtar+lubis&ots=IrJGVxUiXQ&sig=XDaisIkumuLjn6J5qX9RLf_tXWU#v=onepage&q=%22harimau!%20Harimau!%22%20&f=false.
- Lubis, Mochtar; Lamoureux, Florence (1991). Tiger!. Singapore: Select Books. ISBN 9810022654. http://books.google.ca/books?id=O5VkAAAAMAAJ&q=Florence+Lamoureux+Tiger!&dq=Florence+Lamoureux+Tiger!&hl=en&ei=yKYXTsbFDoXWrQfK7_3PAQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CC0Q6AEwAA.
- Mahayana, Maman S.; Sofyan, Oyon; Dian, Achmad (2007) (in Indonesian). Ringkasan dan ulasan novel Indonesia modern [Summaries and Commentary on Modern Indonesian Novels]. Grasindo. http://books.google.ca/books?hl=en&lr=&id=Bq8caP8yvqwC&oi=fnd&pg=PR9&dq=harimau!+Harimau!&ots=TK2M9gfv2y&sig=V68fli3QwSMF2vesj8EZheklSkU#v=onepage&q=harimau!%20Harimau!&f=false.
Categories:- 1922 births
- 2004 deaths
- Indonesian journalists
- Indonesian novelists
- Ramon Magsaysay Award winners
- Recipients of the World Association of Newspapers' Golden Pen of Freedom Award
- People from Padang, West Sumatra
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