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span class="inline inline-left">JP/Andi Hajramurni“All advanced cities or countries are always supported by communities with a literary tradition,” Lily Yulianti Farid, 40, the initiator and director of the mid-June Makassar International Writers Festival (MIWF) in Makassar, South Sulawesi, told The Jakarta Post last weekend.

The doctorate student of gender and media at the University of Melbourne has been active in organizing programs to induce a literary tradition or a culture of writing and reading, particularly literary works, at her birth place, Makassar. Lily is very eager to see the city imbued with a deep culture of literacy.

Her awareness of the importance of promoting this literary writing and reading tradition strengthened after the mother of one furthered her study in Melbourne in 2000 and attended festivals of writers in several countries like Singapore, Australia, France, Holland and Hongkong, beside similar events in Ubud, Bali, and Utan Kayu, Jakarta.

Lilys festival experience combined with her overseas study and occupation aroused her concern over the conditions in her hometown, where literary writing and reading was lacking, while South Sulawesi could still boast its masterpiece of ancestral literature, Sureq Galigo or the Galigo manuscript, said to be longer than the Hindu epic Mahabharata.

Galigo, which describes the origin of men in the land of South Sulawesi and their philosophy of life, is written in the region’s Lontaraq characters and represents the high civilization of indigenous ancestors.

Sadly, however, the literary tradition in the region was fading, as indicated by the lack of works, facilities and activities to boost local people’s literacy. “Many people must have been interested in writing and reading but the limitations and minimum space prevented their development,” said the woman, who was born in Makassar on July 16, 1971.

Consequently, in 2006, the agricultural engineering graduate of Makassar’s Hasanuddin University returned home and set up www.panyingkul.com, Indonesia’s first citizen journalism website, meant especially for South Sulawesi citizens wishing to write about various topics. The stories posted on the web were later published. “Local people turned out to need some media to channel their writing talent and read alternative works,” noted Lily.

With the success of the citizen-reporter-based portal, Lily produced three short-story collections, entitled Makkunrai, Maiasaura and Family Room — containing 15 stories translated into English by the Lontar Foundation, which were selected for the Modern Library of Indonesia series — and then established a culture house, Rumata Artspace, in 2010.

Rumata, the Bugis-Makassar word for our house, is a joint project of Lily and film director Riri Riza, who also comes from Makassar. It is expected to become an independent forum the development of arts and culture in the city. Now under construction, Rumata will be furnished with various facilities for such activities.

The Makassar International Writers Festival on June 13-17 marked the birth of Rumata Artspace, as a manifestation of Lily’s determination to encourage the reawakening of South Sulawesi’s literary tradition.

In cooperation with Writers Unlimited, The Hague, MIWF 2011 featured 25 writers and poets, eight of whom came from Egypt, Holland, Iraq and Australia, the rest being local and national delegates. On the festival agenda were visits to tourist spots, story-telling, workshops, discussions and debates.

According to Lily, the idea to hold MIWF arose after she became a participant of Ubud Writers and Readers Festival 2008 and Singapore Writers Festival in the same year. The idea crystalized as Lily more frequently joined similar festivals in several world cities and communicated with many writers as well as poets.

“I cherished the idea for four years. I learned from all the festivals I attended how to organize one. When I served as curator in Ubud last year, I felt better prepared to launch such an event in Makassar, after a brief halt because I, Riri and other peers were handling Rumata,” said the wife of Farid Ma’ruf Ibrahim.

Lily revealed some people considered the initiative to found Rumata and hold MIWF crazy — something never before realized in the South Sulawesi capital. “Alhamdulillah (praise be to God), thanks to the support of different circles, it did come true this year,” she pointed out.

The successful MIWF will be an annual program of Rumata Artspace, beside other arts and cultural events. These activities are expected to promote Makassar in the international arena and improve its image as a demo and rioting city.

“After leaving Makassar for 11 years I longed to return home to do something for the city’s advancement. And this is what I’ve chosen. An advanced and civilized city is one whose socio-political progress goes hand in hand and in complementarity with art, literary and cultural dynamism,” added the mother of Fawwaz Naufal Farid.

Lily began her literary career as a student in the School of Agriculture, Hasanuddin University, by joining the campus’ publication, Identitas. She wrote a lot of poems and short stories. After graduation, she was a reporter of the Kompas daily from 1996. Lily had to leave her job in 2000 to gain her master’s in gender and development from the University of Melbourne.

While in Melbourne she continued her journalism by working as producer of Radio Australia online in Melbourne in 2001-2004. Obtaining her master’s degree, Lily worked as a radio program specialist/producer of Radio Japan NHK Tokyo in 2004-2009, concurrently serving as a columnist for Nytid News Magazine, Norway, from 2006 up to the present. She also writes short stories and poems in various local and national publications.

Today, Lily and her small family live in Melbourne as she follows a doctorate program slated to be finished in 2014 at the University of Melbourne.