Gunem Catur in the Sunda region of West Java : indigenous communication on MAC plant knowledge and practice within the Arisan in Lembang, Indonesia Djen Amar, S.C. Citation Djen Amar, S. C. (2010, October 19). Gunem Catur in the Sunda region of West Java : indigenous communication on MAC plant knowledge and practice within the Arisan in Lembang, Indonesia. Leiden Ethnosystems and Development Programme Studies. Retrieved from https://hdl.handle.net/1887/16092 Version: Corrected Publisher’s Version Licence agreement concerning inclusion of doctoral thesis in the License: Institutional Repository of the University of Leiden Downloaded from: https://hdl.handle.net/1887/16092 Note: To cite this publication please use the final published version (if applicable). GUNEM CATUR IN THE SUNDA REGION OF WEST JAVA: INDIGENOUS COMMUNICATION ON THE MAC PLANT KNOWLEDGE AND PRACTICE WITHIN THE ARISAN IN LEMBANG, INDONESIA Siti Chaerani Djen Amar ii Gunem Catur in the Sunda Region of West Java: Indigenous Communication on MAC Plant Knowledge and Practice within the Arisan in Lembang, Indonesia iii iv Gunem Catur in the Sunda Region of West Java: Indigenous Communication on MAC Plant Knowledge and Practice within the Arisan in Lembang, Indonesia Proefschrift ter verkrijging van de graad van Doctor aan de Universiteit Leiden op gezag van de Rector Magnificus prof.mr.dr. P.F. van der Heijden, volgens besluit van het College voor Promoties te verdedigen op dinsdag 19 oktober 2010 klokke 16.15 uur door Siti Chaerani Djen Amar geboren te Bandung, Indonesia in 1941 v Promotiecommisie: Promotor: Prof. Dr. L.J. Slikkerveer Overige leden: Prof.Dr. A.H. Wargahadibrata (Universitas Padjadjaran, Indonesia) Prof.Dr. C. Lionis (University of Crete, Greece) Prof.Dr. G.A. Persoon Dr. B.A. Reith vi Gunem Catur in the Sunda Region of West Java: Indigenous Communication on MAC Plant Knowledge and Practice within the Arisan in Lembang, Indonesia Siti Chaerani Djen Amar Leiden Ethnosystems and Development Programme (LEAD) Studies No. 6 Leiden University, The Netherlands vii ‘Most definitions of indigenous knowledge refer to the accumulation of experience and the passing down of information from one generation to the next within a society (Wang 1982, CIKARD 1988). Yet, despite frequent expressions of concern for enculturation, little attention has been given to how knowledge is accumulated and shared within local societies’. Paul A. Mundy & J. Lin Compton (1995: 112) Cover design by Mrs. Santi Ross. Printed by Wöhrmann Print Service, Zutphen. Copyright © Mrs. Siti Chaerani Djen Amar, October 2010. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or utilised in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or by any information storage system, without the written permission from the copyright owner. viii This dissertation is dedicated to the memory of my late beloved husband Djen Amar, who was my greatest inspiration for this study. ix x Preface The writing of this dissertation was partly inspired by experience during my childhood. I grew up between two cultures, when I was ill at one time I was treated with western medicine, and at another with traditional medicine which was often administered forcibly. This was due to its unpleasant bitter taste, especially those herbal medicines for the promotion of health and the treatment of certain ailments. Nevertheless, one thing remains the same, jamu and medicinal, aromatic and cosmetic (MAC) plants are nearly always available for health and beauty at home. The MAC plants were picked from the garden or bought from the market, and preparations were made in accordance to knowledge obtained from my grandmother. Lately, the use of traditional medicine, especially made from medicinal plants has grown largely due to the increasing price of modern medicine which is becoming rather unreachable for people from the lower socio-economic class. Numerous studies on medicinal plants and jamu have been conducted by scholars from several disciplines, and still many questions require an answer. Although the electronic and non-electronic media paid much attention to the utilisation of traditional herbal medicine, the process of how local people in rural areas get their information on the use of MAC plant knowledge has barely been documented and analysed, particularly since the elder generation is encountering growing difficulties in transferring their knowledge and practice of MAC plants to the younger generation as invaluable local wisdom. In Lembang, a sub-district in the Bandung regency, health service has not yet reached all the local people in the rural areas. The essence of Primary Health Care is that it should be available to all community members who should take responsibility for their own health and well-being, including self-care. Moreover, involving community members in the provision of their own health care has shown to promote the community’s self-reliance. Apart from the appropriate cultural context of jamu, the inaccessibility of modern medicine has further encouraged local people to continue to rely on their traditional medicine. Also, those community members who possess the knowledge of medicinal plants and herbs tend to choose to be treated with traditional medicine, largely because of prolonged treatment by modern medicine does not always show positive results. This interesting and complicated situation has motivated me to study the process of communication on knowledge and practice of medicinal, aromatic and cosmetic (MAC) plants among the members of arisan institutions, which are found in almost every community, both in rural as well as in urban areas in Indonesia, especially in the Island of Java. I am privileged to have the opportunity to use the methodology which has been developed at Leiden University as an appropriate instrument to explore, measure - both qualitatively and quantitatively - and analyse the interactions among various factors involved in the actual communication behaviour of the arisan members with a view to provide a contribution to the understanding of the social process of communication on MAC plant knowledge and practice in the research area. Hopefully, the results of this study on indigenous communication within local institutions will contribute to the sustainable preservation of local peoples’ invaluable knowledge and practice on the use and conservation of MAC plants in the Sunda Region of West Java Province, and in Indonesia and beyond. xi Acknowledgements The finalisation of this dissertation would not have been possible without the unceasing support of a large number of individuals contributing to the study of Indigenous Communication on MAC Plant Knowledge and Practice within the Arisan in Lembang, Indonesia. Firstly, I would like to thank the Director-General of Higher Eucation, the Ministry of National Education of Indonesia, who has made it possible for me to embark on this study. I wish to acknowledge Prof. Dr. Ganjar Kurnia, Rector of Universitas Padjadjaran for his great support for my study. Equally, I would like to thank Prof. Dr. A. Himendra Wargahadibrata, former Rector of Universitas Padjadjaran, Prof. Dr. Deddy Mulyana, Dean of the Faculty of Communication Science, as well as Prof. Dr. Soeganda Prijatna the former Dean of the Faculty of Communication Science of Universitas Padjadjaran for their continuing support from the time that I embarked on this study. My gratitude also goes to Professor Husein H. Bahti, Vice-Rector for Academic Affairs; Prof. Dr. Rina Indiastuti, Vice- Rector for General Administration; Prof. Dr. Tb. Zulrizka Iskandar, Vice-Rector for Cooperation and Prof. Ir. Tarkus Suganda, Vice-Rector for Planning Information System and Supervision of Universitas Padjadjaran. Also, I am especially grateful to Dr. Ramdan Panigoro, Director for International Cooperation of Universitas Padjadjaran and I would like to thank Prof. Dr. Ponpon Idjradinata, Mrs. dr. Hanny P. Idjradinata MPH and Mrs. dr. Sharon Gondodiputro MARS for the advice and support I have received during my study. To Mr. Yunus Winoto MPd and his very helpful field assistants Ms. Nuning Kurniasih MHum; Mr. Nurmaya Prahatmaja SSos, MSi; Mr. Asep Saeful Rohman SSos and Mr. Priyo Subekti SSos, MSi goes the credit of assisting me in gathering the data embodying the raw material for this study. I also wish to express my gratitude for the constructive comments of all my colleagues at the Faculty of Communication Science, Universitas Padjadjaran. Although it is impossible to mention all those individuals in the Lembang sub-district who contributed to the success of the study, I wish especially to express my gratitude to the officials of the Bandung Regency Government and the Lembang sub-district, as well as to the people of the four communities, namely Gudangkahuripan, Kayuambon, Cibogo and Jayagiri who have generously cooperated in the surveys and interviews, patiently giving so much of their time. My sincere gratitude goes to Prof. Dr. L.J. Slikkerveer for the invaluable guidance and support through the duration of my PhD study at Universiteit Leiden. My special thanks go to Mrs. Drs. M.K.L. Slikkerveer MA for her great support and attention, especially during my stay in Leiden. Also, I am grateful to Prof.Dr. C. Lionis HonFRCGP, Prof.Dr. E.F. Smets, Prof.Dr. G.A. Persoon, Dr. B.A. Reith and Drs. G.J. van Helden for their support. I wish to thank the Staff of the Faculty of Science and the Leiden University Branch of the National Herbarium of The Netherlands for their great support. I am indebted to Mrs. Dr. Liesbeth Leurs for her patience and the enormous time she put into the discussions for the construction of the questionnaires. Similarly, I am indebted to the Board of the Leiden Ethnosystems and Development Programme (LEAD) for its support and the opportunity to work in the LEAD room with colleagues: Dr. Alfreda K. Ibui; Mrs. Drs. Diana Bosch MA; Mrs. Meira Ratnasari xii MA; Ms. Judith Aiglsperger MA; Mr. M. Chirangi MA; Ms.