The Adoption of Local Traditions, A Communication Process of Chinese Descents in Kapitan Village, Palembang, Indonesia.

Abstract

This study aims to understand and explain the communication of Chinese descendants in Kampung Kapitan, Palembang in the assimilation context. So far, there has been an assumption that the Chinese community in Indonesia is considered not to mix well with the local community due to communication problems. They inhabited the Kampung Kapitan area much earlier than the local people came to the area. Their existence is far ahead of the local community. This study used the ethnographic method of communication, lasted for 6 months, and interviewed 12 informants. The results showed that the communication process used was based on the strength of the figure of Kapitan Tjoa Ham Lim which was passed down from generation to generation by adopting traditions of the local communities. This forms a shared meaning about the ethnic relations of the people in Kampung Kapitan with the Palembang community as a whole. The Chinese identity is deliberately fused, although Chinese symbols still appear. The communication process is in two stages, namely a linear-vertical model that smells magical and semicircular. The linear[1]vertical model occurs between the ancestor and the caretaker of Rumah Kapitan where the messages come through dreams, indicate magical nuances, and are disseminated or passed on to the local communities in a semi-circular manner. That means the power of information remains with the caretaker of Rumah Kapitan. But in the process, it is fluid and continues.