Preserving Ancestor Culture In APen Bayeren Hot Rock Attraction Belonging To The Papuan Biak Tribe

BIAK - The traditional cultural attraction of the Biak tribe, Papua, stepping on hot stones or apen bayeren is a unique and rare game in the world. This attraction is the attraction of tourists at the Munara Wampasi Biak Festival.This attraction can be played by men and women without footwear accompanied by a wor dance in front of indigenous peoples when the large families of the Yapen clan, Penasifu, Osbabor, and Badminton perform traditional ceremonies (munara).Apen bayeren events are usually played at ceremonies to appoint regional leaders to the appointment of traditional elders (mamberi or mansonanem), deliver dowry gold (yakyaker), and other events such as the Munara Wampasi Biak Festival (BMW) on July 1 - 8, 2023."The cultural attraction of the biak apen bayeren tribe is a cultural heritage of the ancestors of the Biak natives, which has been preserved for generations until now," said the traditional Biak Alfaris Yapen as quoted by ANTARA.As the heir to apen bayeren, the native son of Papua as the fourth generation heir to the Yapen clan is one of the people who continues the cultural attraction to walk on hot stones.The culture of the Biak tribe has been widely known to the outside world because it has several advantages in the type of traditional cultural attraction. Cultural wealth is still alive.Maintaining and caring for the culture of the Biak tribe is a shared responsibility for all elements of indigenous society in Biak Numfor Regency."The Biak youth must not forget his identity. One of them is introducing the native culture of the Apen Bayeren tribe through the Munara Wampasi Biak Festival abroad," said Alfaris.Special RitualFor the heir family of Biak native cultural attractions, apen bayeren cannot be played in any place. Because every attraction participant must perform a special ritual.According to Alfaris, before the apen bayeren attraction, the play party must have a clean heart. The soul of the attraction participants must be connected to the ancestors."We don't just rely on self-force but have to pray for each other and strengthen fellow participants," said Alfaris.Apen bayeren attraction is expected to always be able to provide entertainment to the public as well as tourists who watch live at the 2023 Biak Munara Wampsai Festival.Alfaris emphasized that not only is the festival to be shown, the appearance of young people heirs to apen bayeren stored hopes and a strong desire for the Biak native culture to remain sustainable throughout the day.Preserving Biak CultureChairman of the Biak Manpun Indigenous Council, JJK Mandibodibo, admitted that not all Biak tribes can play the apen bayeren attraction because it can only be played by certain family clans.Untuk di Biak, menurut Manpun, yang bisa tampil berjalan di atas batu panas hanya orang tertentu yang memiliki hubungan keluarga satu dengan lainnya.According to him, the Biak tribe is one. Only, for culture, it is preserved by certain clans. One of them is apen bayeren owned by the Yapen clan family from Kampung Adoki, Yendidori District.Meanwhile, the Head of the Regional Office of the Ministry of Law and Human Rights Papua Anthonius M. Ayorbaba asked the local government and the tourism office to protect traditional cultural attractions running on hot stones belonging to the Biak tribe.The form of protection that must be given by the government by registering the apen bayeren game as a copyright.The purpose of being registered as a copyright, according to Anthonius, is so that the attraction of apen bayeren culture is maintained as beautiful and legally protected.When it is registered, the Regional Office of the Ministry of Law and Human Rights only needs to identify community groups."If the public expression attraction is registered by the owner, it has legality to be protected legally," he said.Another advantage is that if you have registered, the younger generation of the Biak tribe can see and not disappear for generations.Once registered, they can find out the history of apen bayeren through a system belonging to the Ministry of Law and Human Rights of the Republic of Indonesia. He hopes that the Biak Numfor Tourism Office will immediately register the apen bayeren as an expression of traditional culture to the Ministry of Law and Human Rights through the Papua Regional Office.For requirements when registered, there must be a confession and the person in charge of the local indigenous community.Another requirement is to register the copyright of indigenous peoples by telling about the lineage of the biak tribe's appendix. This story just needs to be summarized to be registered with the Ministry of Law and Human Rights.