Mencetak Sawah
Iwan Fals Lyrics

The lyrics to Iwan Fals's song Mencetak Sawah describe the conflict between traditional agricultural practices and modern land development. The persona starts his day by reading the morning newspaper while enjoying a cup of coffee. He comes across an interesting article about how the wealthy landowners plan to turn fields into industrialized land for production purposes. The persona wonders who owns the land they are planning to use and questions the need for traditional farming practices. He believes that the land they plan to use is no longer beneficial and fruitful for agriculture as it once was in the past. Moreover, he feels everything they could do will just be worthless because they are no longer able to harvest the fruits of the land.

The persona highlights the sad reality that they no longer have a connection to the land, and their attempts to turn it into an industry will only lead to failure. The fertile lands that once produced an abundance of crops had turned into a playground for businesses and conglomerates to satisfy their financial desires. The persona's words showcase the tragedy of ignoring the traditional ways of farming and how all these changes only come at the cost of the suffering of the rural community who can no longer earn a decent living from the land they had always looked at as their inheritance.

In summary, the song Mencetak Sawah portrays the struggle of a common farmer's life to compete with the giant conglomerates and industrialists. The persona realizes the importance of preserving traditional farming practices and the crucial role farmers play in ensuring the nation's food supply. The song brings awareness to the destructive changes that are taking place in rural Indonesia, leaving the farmers with meagre wages and broken dreams.