Bengkulu’s Tabot tradition: the hidden framing of contesting celebration narratives

The Tabot Festival has been held for centuries in Bengkulu, a province on the west coast of Sumatra, Indonesia. Recently, in 2023, it was made an official national-level event, representing the cultural heritage of Bengkulu. For years, the Keluarga Kerukunan Tabot (KKT, lit. ‘The Tabot Family Association’) has served as the key initiator and organizer, supported by local and provincial governments to preserve and promote the Tabot tradition. Throughout its existence the tradition has been marked by fluctuating dynamics, shaped by competing narratives around Islamic customs, economic interests, and diverse societal perceptions. Since the start of the Reform era in 1998, following the fall of president Suharto’s regime, new discourses have emerged, contesting cultural, religious, and economic elements of the festival. This article examines how Bengkulu’s Tabot tradition, as constructed to a significant extent by the KKT, encompasses various societal dimensions. Using a cultural studies approach, this study, based on field observations and in-depth interviews, reveals the ‘hidden framing’ around the tradition. Based on these interviews with stakeholders of Bengkulu’s Tabot tradition new insights are offered into how this tradition is a site of negotiation between different interest groups; whether political, economic (through the commodification of culture), tourism-related, or religious.