Nama: Dian Kartika Intan (05)

NIM: 2032810047

Topeng Monyet, Monkey Attraction

and Its Two Opposite Sides

Wow, the monkey is so smart!

Have you heard such statements while watching Topeng Monyet? A monkey rides a
bike, holds an umbrella, or even dances with a gorilla mask. This attraction is still favored by
many people even though it has been banned in Indonesia on a legal basis, one of which is
the Criminal Code (KUHP) No. 302 which regulates acts of animal torture. The unique and
funny show may be considered entertaining for kids to adults. But in this era, being
entertained by an animal that may be suffering to death is beyond awful. Perhaps, the
monkeys are not that smart, they just, unfortunately, live surrounded by ignorants. By that,
here are some reasons why Topeng Monyet needs to stop.

Topeng Monyet is one of the familiar street attractions in Indonesia. People will
gather around hearing the special strain of Topeng Monyet’s gamelan sound. One or more
people usually take the monkey handler role, they will direct the monkey to do each Topeng
Monyet attraction one by one. A Topeng Monyet ‘team’ normally does the attraction for 10 to
15 minutes at each stop, from one village to another. At the end of the show, the monkey will
hold a box and walk around the crowd. “Please share your kindness, for the monkey’s meal,”
the handler's common sentence. Then, the box will not take a long time to be full of
donations. Perhaps we need to start asking ourselves, have we been misinterpreting
kindness all this time?

Topeng Monyet is a well-known cultural art in Indonesia. Research from the

International Institute for Asian Studies at Ohio University said that Topeng Monyet already
existed in India in the 19th century. The attraction was spread in Indonesia in the 1890s and
became a tradition. After more than a hundred years of living in Indonesian history, Topeng
Monyet has led many people to claim that it has become part of Indonesian culture and
needs to be preserved. The question is why do we need to preserve Topeng Monyet further?
According to the Great Indonesian Dictionary or KBBI, sustainability is a state that remains
as it was before or a state that does not change. In fact, the Long-tailed monkey ( Macaca
fascicularis) that is commonly trained for Topeng Monyet is in Appendix II of CITES
(Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora), which
means its sustainability is unsafe. At this point, we must doubt whether we want to preserve
a culture or an ego.

Based on a published article by Anton Lucanus from The University of Western

Australia about Topeng Monyet, several interviewed research participants did say that
Topeng Monyet is an act of exploitation, but some people did not agree with that. An
interviewee said that Topeng Monyet is not animal cruelty, as long as the handler treats
them well. Besides, stopping Topeng Monyet will put many monkey handler's economies
down deeper. The government did offer compensation of a million rupiah for each monkey,
but the monkey handler felt it was not worth it. However, giving these greedy monkey
handlers control is way more than not worth it. "If one monkey dies, all you have to do is buy
a new monkey and train them again,” Said a monkey handler in the same article. Giving
monkey handlers education and socialization might work, but how many monkeys do we
need to sacrifice? According to Kompas.com, improper care and handling may cause the
monkeys to be susceptible to stress and health problems. The Directorate General of
Natural Resources and Ecosystem Conservation (KSDAE) on their website also said that the
unclear source and maintenance of monkeys could be a trigger for zoonoses, the transfer of
disease from animals to humans, and vice versa. Dr. Diah Iskandriati, senior researcher and
biosafety officer at the Center for Primate Studies, Bogor Agricultural University (PSSP-IPB)
mentioned that many diseases can be transmitted between species, one of which is measles
and tuberculosis (TBC). Eventually, zoonoses is a health threat both for animals and
humans which could bring a worse economic condition for monkey handlers.

At the end of the day, discontinuation of Topeng Monyet is the best thing we could
do. We have to realize that some things are better unpreserved. You reap what you sow, we
have to start a change for a better environment in the future.

Ananda Marizka/02
- Overall your essay is very good and interesting for readers.
Radyana Arinda/19
- Your essay is really good and I think everyone will like it.
Sources:
1. Lucanus, Anton J. "Topeng Monyet: Kesenian Tradisional Indonesia Atau
Kekejaman terhadap Hewan?" University of Western Australia, 2014.
2. https://kumparan.com/kumparansains/topeng-monyet-dilarang-tampil-karena-
ancaman-zoonosis-apakah-itu/full
3. http://ksdae.menlhk.go.id/info/6532/zoonosis-di-balik-atraksi-topeng-monyet.html
4. https://sains.kompas.com/read/2013/10/23/1807011/
Tiga.Alasan.Mengapa.Topeng.Monyet.Memang.Harus.Dilarang
5. https://www.liputan6.com/news/read/727446/takut-ditertibkan-pemilik-monyet-
stop-ngamen
6. https://www.ugm.ac.id/id/berita/14790-pariwisata-berbasis-hewan-harus-bebas-
dari-eksploitasi
7. https://www.beritasatu.com/archive/28203/meski-hampir-punah-kera-topeng-
monyet-terus-diburu
8. https://www.alisson.id/topeng-monyet-antara-beban-ekonomi-dengan-langgar-
undang-undang/
9. https://news.okezone.com/read/2013/10/23/500/885625/mengintip-sejarah-
topeng-monyet
Outline:

> Penjelasan Topeng Monyet

+ Topeng Monyet is an art since long ago and has cultural value not only in Indonesia,
but in other countries
- It has to stop, we need to stop as it harms monkeys.

+ Many of topeng monyet performer treat the monkeys better these day///It’s a life for
some people
- The definition of a better treatment needs to be improved. zoonosis

+
- It has to stop. It is in the rules. Having a monkey living next to us with so called
‘better treatment’ could be a danger for us,

+ Topeng Monyet teach kids and adults to love animals as they could see and interact
with them
+ The kid who are radiated by these act may grew up thinking animal cruelty is
something ordinary, or even a culture needs to be preserve, when they get hurt, the
animal is on wrong