Archeological sites losing out to development

Archeological sites losing out to development

JAKARTA (JP): Apart from the national campaign to protect the
environment, a leading archeologist said on Saturday that the
nation must not overlook conservation of the country's cultural
heritage.

Mundardjito, speaking at the University of Indonesia, said
many areas containing valuable historical as well as prehistoric
archeological remains across the country have been wiped out in
the name of development.

"Physical development conducted by people today directly or
indirectly is causing the destruction and disappearance of
archeological data that are crucial if we are to understand our
society and culture," Mundardjito said.

"Failure to conserve these situs could deny us the opportunity
to understand our own identity and the dynamism of the nation's
socio-cultures. Sophisticated archeological theory and
methodology are of no use if we don't have the data in the first
place," he said.

Situs are lands thought to contain valuable archeological
remains that can reflect the systematic, social and technological
values of past societies.

Mundardjito, an archeology and anthropology lecturer at the
university's School of Letters, was installed as professor at the
ceremony on Saturday. It was also a gift for his birthday, which
came one day before he turned 59.

He said the attention given to conserving the nation's
cultural heritage pales in comparison to the vigorous campaign
launched two decades ago to protect the country's environment.

"Those concerned with cultural preservation have tried hard to
raise the attention and awareness of the public to join in the
endeavor, but they cannot match the results achieved by
environmental activists," he said.

He spoke of the need for a national cultural heritage
campaign.

"We need the campaign because there have been many cases when
situs were submerged in the name of development," he said.

The banks along the Ciliwung River in West Java, which contain
valuable prehistoric sites, have been destroyed to make way for
industrial and residential development, he said. Another example
is the Awangbangkal paleolithic sites in south Kalimantan, which
were submerged for a reservoir.

Addressing the potential conflict between economic development
and archeological conservation, especially where land use and
ownership are concerned, Mundardjito reminded that archeological
sites are protected under the 1992 Law on National Cultural
Heritage.

However, the conversion of land usage, he said, has continued
unabated.

Such lack of concern is even found among archeologists, he
said, pointing out that the problem is rarely raised in
scientific papers or discussions.

The conservation of archeological sites was only introduced as
a university subject in 1985, he noted.

Mundardjito said archeologists were not consulted during the
drafting of the 1992 Law on National Cultural Heritage.

Only when the bill was nearing the final stages of debate was
the Association of Indonesian Archeologists invited by the House
of Representatives to give its opinions, he said. "As it turned
out, the association's suggestions, for major changes, were
accepted by the House."

Edi Sedyawati, the Director General of Culture at the Ministry
of Education and Culture, who was present at the oration
ceremony, said later that she fully supported Mundardjito's
proposal for a national campaign.

"This is a big challenge for archeologists. They have to
inform and convince the public that they have to conserve the
nation's cultural heritage," she said.

Mundardjito said many archeological sites across Indonesia are
not legally protected under land laws. Very few of them actually
have land certificates, which would shield the land from being
taken over for other purposes.

The few exceptions include the temples of Borobudur and
Prambanan in Central Java, he added. (05)