The literature event at the HB Jassin Awards Night, which also honors the great Indonesian literary critic, was once again held. The event took place at the Grand Theater of Taman Ismail Marzuki (TIM) Jakarta on October 31, 2023.
the three literature categories highlighted for the competition were poetry music composition, poetry recitation, and essay writing. Unfortunately, there was no short story writing competition.
the opening ceremony of the HB Jassin Awards was conducted by the Head of Archives of the Department of Culture of DKI Jakarta, Firmansyah, who also recited a poem by Taufik Ismail.
“I am glad to see the growing enthusiasm and vibrancy of the literary world. This can be seen from the large number of participants from all over Indonesia who eagerly participate in this competition,” said Firmansyah.
on this occasion, the renowned writer Taufik Ismail, who is also the Editor-in-Chief of the Horizon Literary Magazine, talked about the HB Jassin Awards and how the literary critic collected books and various literary notes, which eventually accumulated into dozens of archives that now make up the HB Jassin Literature Documentation Center on the 4th and 5th floors of the Ali Sadikin Building in TIM Jakarta.
Taufik Ismail also shared how HB Jassin used to walk from his home in Tanah Tinggi, Central Jakarta, to TIM in 1968 to compile various writings and literary books.
“seeing Jassin walking, the Governor of DKI Jakarta at that time, Ali Sadikin, couldn’t bear it. He presented HB Jassin with a new sedan car. With that, Jassin no longer had to walk and could perform his duties more effectively,” revealed Taufik Ismail.
at the end of the event, the winners of the competition were announced. The first prize in the poetry music composition category was awarded to students from Santo Kristoforus High School.
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The second prize in the poetry music composition competition of the HB Jassin Awards went to SMAN 109 in South Jakarta, and the third prize went to SMA Penabur Jakarta.
meanwhile, Mono Wangsa from Bekasi won the first prize in the poetry recitation competition, followed by Ade Saputra from South Kalimantan in second place, and Galih R from Tasik Malaya in third place.
as for the essay writing competition, Tatan Daniel received an honorable mention, Sofyan RH Zaid came in second, Zen Hai secured the third position, and Anton Kurnia emerged as the first-place winner.