Tuesday, August 02, 2005

Amfoan - West Timor - NTT


Usif Pah/Raja Robert G. Manoch of Amfoan/Timor(officially installed sept. 2001)

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2 comments:

pandanwangie said...

Although not the first son of his father:the last ruling Raja of Amfoan;heis maybe the most ambitious one of the sons of the last ruling raja.He is quite involved in business in Amfoan,lives for a time in Kupang(maybe also to represent his people there),tries really to be a Raja for his people.In some areas he is very influential.He coild some years ago prevent,that the local government purchased a piece of and,traditional owned by the people.He could explain,that such a thing would be very unwise.
In 2004 he tried in vain to be elected as local representative to the parliament of Kabupaten Kupang.Maybe he should stay more time in Amfoan,so that people "could get used" to him more as their king.
He really tries in a honourfull way to be a king to his beloved people.The area was because of lacking of much short-way infrastructure direction Amfoan a bit isolated.Now that is improved.
The culture here is quite conservated.His dynasty is actual a side-branch of the dynasty,after that in 1910 the inside branch (to which his branch also belongs)was extinct,
the other branch(of Naikliu)was given to a not real adopted branch,which was in 1921 not accepted anymore,the then eligible branch(with Swiss blood in their vains)was not allowed to become ruling branch(belonging to inland branch)and then they came to his side-branch to rule.
The chief of the half-white(European)branch of the dynasty ;Prince Henry William Manoch;lives in Spijkenisse /Holland.
The present Raja of Amfoan is the 4th Raja of his branch.Actually he is an Oil Amanit(branch name),but he is firm in his conviction,that he is also a Manoch ansd that his branch was given the name Oil Amanit was a wrong way to describe his branch of the dynasty.

pandanwangie said...

This Raja also has plans to rebuild the old traditional palace of the former Rajas.No ruins anymore of it.If that is as possible as in other areas,is quite doubtfull.(In a short time),although his plans were quite detailed.That is what you can say about this Raja:he has a lot of very good plans.Only money and government support(but the most the first thing)is lacking him for such big projects.