Soeman Hs
Soeman Hasibuan better known by his pen name Soeman Hs, was an Indonesian author recognized for pioneering detective fiction and short story writing in the country's literature. Born in Bengkalis, Riau, Dutch East Indies, to a family of farmers, Soeman studied to become a teacher and, under the author Mohammad Kasim, a writer. He began working as a Malay-language teacher after completing normal school in 1923, first in Siak Sri Indrapura, Aceh, then in Pasir Pengaraian, Rokan Hulu, Riau. Around this time he began writing, publishing his first novel, Kasih Tak Terlarai, in 1929. In twelve years he published five novels, one short story collection, and thirty-five short stories and poems.
During the Japanese occupation of the Dutch East Indies and subsequent revolution, Soeman—though he remained a teacher—became active in politics, serving first on a representatives' council and then as part of the Indonesian National Committee for Pasir Pengaraian in Pekanbaru. Following the Netherlands' recognition of Indonesia's independence in 1949, Soeman was made the head of the regional department of education, working to rebuild damaged infrastructure and to establish new schools, including the first senior high school in Riau and the. He remained active in education until his death.
As an author, Soeman wrote stories which emphasized suspense and humour, drawing on Western detective and adventure fiction as well as classical Malay literature. His written Malay, with a vocabulary heavily influenced by his east Sumatran background, flowed readily and avoided excessive verbosity. Soeman's most popular work was his novel Mentjahari Pentjoeri Anak Perawan, whereas his short story collection Kawan Bergeloet has been considered his most interesting from a literary perspective. Though considered a minor author of the Poedjangga Baroe period, Soeman has been recognized with an eponymous library and his books have been taught at schools.
Early life
Soeman was born on 4 April 1904 in Bantan Tua, a village in Bengkalis, Riau. His parents, Lebai Wahid Hasibuan and Turumun Lubis, had been born in , but moved to Bengkalis after marriage to avoid conflict between the Hasibuans and a rival clan. In a 1989 interview, Soeman stated that he was not sure of the conflict's source, but he suspected that his father, who was descended from a Mandailing king, felt as though his honour had been impugned. He had five brothers, Raman, Riban, Abdurrachim, Hamzah, and Jumaat.In Bengkalis, Wahid and Turumun farmed pineapples and coconuts. Wahid also taught Quran reading, which provided supplementary income for the Muslim family. As his father taught at their home, Soeman began learning to read the Quran at a young age. Meanwhile, from the traders who visited Wahid, he also heard stories of the crimes committed in major cities such as Singapore. In 1913 Soeman enrolled at a local Malay school, where his teachers reinforced the importance of reading. Soeman took this lesson to heart, reading numerous books by European and Malay authors from the school library before he graduated in 1918.
Hoping to become a teacher, Soeman tried out for a course for potential teachers in Medan, North Sumatra, soon after graduation. After he was accepted, he spent two years studying in that city. Among his teachers was Mohammad Kasim, whose later short story collection Teman Doedoek became the first such work in the Indonesian literary canon. Outside of class, Soeman would listen to Kasim's stories about authors and the creative writing process; this sparked his interest in becoming a writer. After two years in Medan, Soeman continued to a normal school in Langsa, Aceh, where he stayed until 1923. There he met his future wife, Siti Hasnah.
After graduation, Soeman found employment at HIS Siak Sri Indrapura, a Dutch-language school for indigenous students in Siak Sri Indrapura, Aceh. Soeman worked as a Malay-language teacher there for seven years, until 1930, when he met a young teacher from Java who was involved in the nationalist movement. Soeman and several other teachers joined him for discussion and to furtively play the song "Indonesia Raya", which was under a ban from the Dutch colonial government. When this was discovered, Soeman was transferred to Pasir Pengaraian, Rokan Hulu, Riau. Despite repeated requests for transfer, Soeman remained in Pasir Pengaraian until the Japanese occupation of the Dutch East Indies began in 1942, eventually being made principal.
Personal life
Soeman was married to Siti Hasnah and has had six son, Syamsul Bahri, Syamsiar, Faharuddin, Mansyurdin, Burhanuddin, and Rosman, and two daughters, Sawitri and Najemah Hanum. Their marriage lasted until Soeman's death on 8 May 1999.Writing career
Soeman began writing in 1923, shortly after finishing his studies. Inspired by his father, who stopped using the clan name Hasibuan in Malay-dominated Bengkalis, he took the pen name Soeman Hs. He submitted his first novel, Kasih Tak Terlarai, to the state publisher Balai Pustaka. The book, about a young orphan who elopes with his beloved but must remarry her in disguise after she returns home, was published in 1929. Soeman received a total of 37 gulden for the publication.This was followed by Pertjobaan Setia in 1931, a novel about a young man named Sjamsoeddin who is required to go on the hajj before he can marry Hajjah Salwiah, a rich merchant's daughter. When Sjamsoeddin returns from his trip, he suffers an accident and is tricked by a man who lusts after Salwiah. Ultimately, however, Sjamsoeddin's friend Djamin is able to reveal the treachery, allowing Sjamsoeddin and Salwiah to marry. The following year, two translations of Soeman's novels were published by Balai Pustaka; Kasih Tak Terlarai was translated into Javanese as Asih tan Kena Pisah by Soehardja, while Pertjobaan Setia was translated into Sundanese as Tjotjoba by Martaperdana.
Soeman published another novel, Mentjahari Pentjoeri Anak Perawan, in 1932. It follows Sir Joon, a man whose betrothal to Nona was called off after her father, Gadi, was offered a higher bride price. When Nona is apparently kidnapped, Joon offers his services to help find her. He builds distrust between Gadi and Nona's would-be husband, and ultimately that betrothal too is called off. Afterwards Joon leaves the village with Nona, whom he had taken from her home, and the couple lives happily in Singapore. For this novel, again published by Balai Pustaka, Soeman received 75 gulden. Over the subsequent decades, it became his most popular publication, and it has been identified as the first detective novel in the Indonesian literary canon.
Between 1932 and 1938, Soeman published two further novels, Kasih Tersesat and Teboesan Darah. This latter novel marked the return of Sir Joon, who had featured in several other detective stories by other authors. Soeman also published thirty-five short stories and poems, mostly in the magazine Pandji Poestaka but also in Pedoman Masjarakat and Poedjangga Baroe. Seven of Soeman's Pandji Poestaka stories were compiled in Kawan Bergeloet, together with five original stories. With this collection, published in 1941, Soeman became one of the first short story writers in the Indonesian literary canon.
Japanese occupation and Indonesian National Revolution
After the Japanese occupied the Dutch East Indies in 1942, Soeman was made a school supervisor by occupying forces. He soon became involved in politics, being elected to the Shūsangikai, a Japanese-sponsored regional representatives' council, for Riau. He later recalled that, because he had been elected rather than selected by the Japanese forces—and thus had strong backing among the community, which could be used for revolution—he had felt as though he was under constant surveillance. This situation continued until after the Japanese withdrew from Indonesia and Sukarno proclaimed an independent Indonesia.Though the Proclamation of Indonesian Independence was made on 17 August 1945, news did not reach Riau until September. In the following months, Soeman was elected to the newly formed Indonesian National Committee for Pasir Pengaraian, and later made its chairman. In this capacity, he had to strike a balance between former colonial staff who were looking forward to a Dutch return and those who supported an independent Indonesia; Dutch forces were returning to Java, and physical conflict had already broken out between Allied forces and the Indonesian republicans in Surabaya. The following year, Soeman was elected to the Regional Representatives' Council for Riau, based out of Pekanbaru.
Following Operation Kraai in 1948, in which Dutch forces conquered the republican capital at Yogyakarta and captured much of the Sukarno government, Soeman was made commander of the guerrilla forces in Riau. Aside from continuing the fight, he was tasked with finding new fighters to support the republican cause. In this mission, he was aided in part by his extensive networks as a long-term schoolteacher, and many of Soeman's fighters were former students of his. Though his troops were underarmed, Soeman led them into combat against Dutch-allied indigene troops several times.
Educator and later life
Once the revolution concluded following the Dutch–Indonesian Round Table Conference of 1949, Soeman was recalled to Pekanbaru and made the head of the regional branch of the Department of Education and Culture. His main task was reestablishing and reinvigorating the education system in Riau following three years of the Japanese occupation and four years of revolution. Desks had been used for firewood, school buildings had been razed to prevent enemy forces from using them, and much of the population had been unable to attend regular classes. Furthermore, the department did not have sufficient funding to support reconstruction. Over the next three years Soeman led communal work projects dedicated to restoring Riau's education facilities, relying on voluntary contributions from the populace.This was followed by a period of building further education infrastructure. To help elementary school teachers further their studies, Soeman took part in establishing a private junior high school in 1953. The following year he helped establish the Setia Dharma Senior High School, the first senior high school in Riau. Minister of Education Mohammad Yamin attended the opening ceremony, where Soeman compared the situation in Riau to that of Aceh and North Sumatra and declared that the people of Riau had been treated like stepchildren. He called for Yamin to send government teachers to support Setia Dharma. Though Yamin objected to Soeman's rhetoric and did not send any teachers to Setia Dharma, he did arrange for a state senior high school to be opened in Riau.
Soeman continued working to establish new schools in Riau. In the late 1950s, seeing the development of schools by Christian organizations, Soeman, working with other Muslims in Riau, began establishing Islamic schools at the kindergarten, elementary, junior high school, and senior high school level. In 1961, Governor of Riau Kaharuddin Nasution approached Soeman and asked him to join the Daily Governance Body of the provincial government. He did so and, working with the government, the Islamic Education Foundation established the. Soeman conducted the formal inauguration ceremony in 1962.
Though he had formally retired as a teacher to join the Daily Governance Body, from the 1960s Soeman was involved with several education foundations. He served as general director of the Institutions of Islamic Education Foundation as well as the chairman of the Setia Dharma managing board, the Riau Education Foundation, and the Riau Social and Cultural Society. He also maintained ties with the provincial government; in 1966, he formally became part of the Regional Representatives' Council, and in 1976, at the recommendation of Governor Arifin Achmad, he went on the hajj using state funds.
Soeman died in Pekanbaru on 8 May 1999, having remained active in various aspects of education in Riau until the previous year.