Denmark’s Footprint on Nias Makes an Impression in a Photo Exhibition

JAKARTA, mataberita.co.id__ Denmark’s footprint on Nias makes an impression in a Photo Exhibition. Of course, this was poured in Photo Exhibition that held at Tuesday (06/12/2022) in Indonesia National Museum. It was done by The Embassy of Denmark in Jakarta who was in collaboration with Indonesia National Museum. This was realized thanks to the collaboration between HIMNI, the NIAS Foundation, the Indonesian National Museum, the Danish Embassy for Indonesia and so on. There was a thrilling atmosphere to witness a series of photo exhibition events. Moreover opened with a dance to welcome the guest of honor. This dancing was Nias Sekapur Sirih.

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It’s attended of many guests of honor. Among others were Alpius Sarumaha as Head Division Law Service of Ministry of Law and Human Rights in Lampung, Hilmar Farid as Director-General of Culture, Ministry of Education and Culture in Indonesia, Lars Bo Larsen as Ambassador of Denmark to Indonesia, Arota Lase as Vice Regent of Nias, Sri Hartini as Acting Director of Indonesia National Museum, Marinus Gea as Chairperson of HIMNI and Legislative Person, Nataalui Duha as Director of Nias Heritage Museum, Jesper Kurt as Leader of National Museum of Denmark, Bente Wolff as Consultant to the Danish Institute for Culture and etc.

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The atmosphere was lifelier. Because one by one person of guests of honor gave admiration appreciation for this event. They felt so thankful to be invited to the event. It was like Lars Bo Larsen. He said that he was so impressed to see many photo about Nias. He was very sure that it could be useful material for scientific, culture, historical and technology education about Nias. “So I have great honor from the host, opening the photo exhibition of the picture taking Nias almost two hundred years ago. And I think, it can be a window for understanding culture and also some historical of the years which is a lot of beautiful. I see that then i’m impressed,” said him.

“I think Nias, it’s showing a lot of culture and technology that people should want to learn about culture and i hope the people keep remember a lot of cultural. And it was very forceful way. You see, they were very strong people of different characteristics and some of the richer about something. And we through more than 100 years, i hope you guys can really be getting of a good economics of life. Keep remember,” finally of Lars Bo Larsen. After that, Alpius Sarumaha who represented Ministry of Law and Human Rights Yasonna H. Laoly to open this event saying. The activities held today according to further exhibition of Denmark food each in Nias, action mark is between Denmark and Indonesia.

“This picture served approved that Indonesia and Denmark has be friend for a long time. This organization of the photo exhibition regarding the life of the Nias people in the early 1900’s occuried out by Danish embassy within collaboration Indonesia National Museum,” told Alpius. Then he said. That Indonesia would follow up this for the bilateral cooperation and realized harmony at mutual understanding each other. The same thing was also conveyed by Marinus Gea. He said that it’s initiative of Danish Embassy. They initiated to hold photo exhibition. They asked us through NIAS Foundation to be able to support at their wishes to show off this.

Certainly, Marinus continued, it could make the people of Denmark deepen their knowledge of Nias culture. “They had artifact of Nias. But they didn’t know about the meaning of the artifact. Because the carrier of artifact was died. But maybe, that carrier had given about historical of its exhibition. The carrier was Dr. Agner Moller. That was a man who married a Nias girl. Then Danish Embassy had a strong will to know Nias culture. Because of that, Danish Museum asked order to invite Nias people and also Indonesia seeing this photo through exbition. But, that moment becomes a way part to build cooperation between Indonesia and Denmark.

“As a follow up to this activity, of course, from Denmark through the Embassy, ​​we will build communication. So that tourism in Nias can be visited by Danes through the Government of Indonesia. Because this is a policy between countries. I think it’s a good space to work together. Let’s treat it well. We must also prepare how to accept the culture of the Danes who want to know our culture. We also have to study. Because they also study hard about Nias. It is proven. That someone who was a Dane had done research. Which made Nias a place for his research to support his Doctoral degree,” said Marinus Gea.

A man who has surname Gea told again. That someone from Denmark who had conducted the research often came to Nias and haf even lived in South Nias for a long time. “He knew all the ways to deal with Nias people, the Nias culture that is there and more or less he knows about the characters. Even the language, he had learned too. So that language which was our cultural asset could be more a part that could be used as a tourist object. In fact, the Nias language had its own characteristics in Indonesia, especially in the world, as its own wealth,” told him in finally. And then Nataalui Duha also told. That this event make many benefit for all especially Nias.

“This event is so beneficial. Naturally it show uniqueness and superiority of Nias culture and historical. If people don’t recognize this, so they don’t love it. I see that so far people just see the dark side, but they don’t understand the bright side of Nias. Accordingly, it’s very great to promote of bright side which has high value. This is a pride for me. Because Denmark has a large collection of Nias. Have many artifacts and documents about Nias. The Danish Embassy didn’t sink it either. They didn’t just save it. But promoting it as part of strengthening cooperative relations between Indonesia and Denmark,” Nataalui Duha said.

Nataalui Duha then also said. This also started with the marriage between Nias Indonesia and Denmark. “So that Nias becomes an intermediary medium to strengthen cooperative relations between Denmark and Indonesia,” finally of said him. The next, Beesokhi Ndruru who is a Builder of NIAS Foundation that also attend said. This is really good. It’s also shock for him. “It turns out, there is one of country which is so love about Nias culture. Surely, it told Denmark having pretty strong bond with Nias. Not only having marriage bond. So as becoming a bond to kinship. I wish that it could be a important part successing cooperation,” told him.

Disiplin Manao who is a High Judge of the State Administrative High Court and the HIMNI Advisory Board also comes there and feel the same way. He said that he feels so surprised. Denmark and Indonesia have long standing kinship relationship. “There was a marriage between Dr. Agner Moller and princess of Nias. It showed that culture assimilation happening in a long time. It was good thing to making sure Denmark to cooperate with Indonesia. Because a marriage is not only about a man and a woman. But it is family relation each other. This is an extraordinary event that can benefit both countries, Denmark and Indonesia.

According to Manao, indeed quite a lot of foreign people like Denmark comes to Nias. But so far he has been seeing Danes or even from other countries such as Germany or the Netherlands coming to Nias more for the purpose of bringing good news. And also, they came because attracted about culture. “Actually it should not be just that. Yes, even though we know that most of Nias people work as farmers, that certainly gives a different impression. So our hoping, that its event awakes all of us actually Nias people should be able to build relation and communication with Denmark. Presumably there will be cultural exchanges, information technology, especially in the digital era, which must be mastered,” said him.

“Because I really feel proud. Even though Nias can be said to be geographically a bit marginalized, left behind and the poorest, but keeping in the heart of the embassy. That means they have a heart and love for Nias. Is there a love that exceeds people outside Nias? That is the challenge for the sons and daughters of Nias, both in the diaspora and in their hometowns, to have a shared passion for developing Nias. If not us, who else? For this reason, I urge the people of Nias to unite and join hands in the spirit of mutual cooperation to build the Nias Islands, Nias Island of Dreams, an island that we all love and care for together,” finally of told him.

Besides being filled with dance and welcome from guests of honor, there was also the Baluse dance performed by Nias men. They were so energic appear that dancing. For your information, its event going on in Gedung A 2^nd floor, from 7 until 20 December 2022. There are historical photos on display. The story, in the early 1900s, the Nias culture attracted the head curator of the Ethnographical Collections at Museum National of Denmark, Thomas Thomsen.  And in the beginning of the 1920s, he contacted the Danish Medical Doctor Agner Moller who worked for the Dutch military. He began to purchase objects from the local villagers.

Then Agner Moller sent them to the National Museum in Copenhagen. His success was partly based on the fact that he learned the local language. And later married a local girl Zoeri. He became more integrated with the local community. He collaborated with a Chinese photographer named Ho Teng Lin to take photographs of the society. The photographs are today a unique testimony of the traditional culture on Nias. The photographs are also a documentation of Indonesia and Danish common heritage. And not least, the huge fascination of Indonesia cultural splendor and diversity, that has been present in Denmark since the late 19^th century.