British Council library moves to cyberspace

British Council library moves to cyberspace

Evi Mariani and Leony Aurora, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

To mark World Literacy Day on Wednesday, The Jakarta Post
Evi Mariani and Leony Aurora has
been investigating library facilities in the city. Today, we take
a closer look at those managed by foreign cultural institutions.

"We're changing", read the posters hanging from the ceiling of
the British Council library on Jl. Jendral Sudirman.

From Sept. 17, the 7,000 members will find the library closed
until October, when the 17,000 books, 5,000 audio visual titles
and 70 individual magazine titles will become available to
readers again, only this time at the Ministry of National
Education building on the same road.

The council had agreed to hand over its entire collection to
the government, spokeswoman Mona Monika told The Jakarta Post.

The council would oversee the training of new librarians to
ensure that the service meets the required standard for the next
two years, she said.

But this does not mean that the British Council will stop
providing grants for education in Indonesia. The money will be
reallocated to developing an e-library and road shows to cities
throughout the archipelago.

"That's why we call the program 'We're changing' instead of
'We're moving'," said Mona. "We are trying to reach out to more
people by developing the www.britzone.or.id website."

The website, which is already running and enlisting members,
provides access to tens of thousands of papers on various topics,
like the social sciences, politics and economics.

The library of the Netherlands Culture Center Erasmus Huis in
Kuningan, South Jakarta, is also getting ready for a transfer --
this time moving back its entire collection to the main building
later this month.

Only a quarter of the 19,600 books in its collection are
displayed in the green container that has been converted into a
temporary reading room.

"We have some 2,500 books on law in Dutch, Indonesian, and
English," said assistant librarian Tjok Istri Putri Irina.

Not many law students use the facility though. "It's a pity,
because the collection is quite comprehensive," she said.

The library offers some 800 music CDs, mostly consisting of
classical music or music by Dutch artists.

Visitors to the library include Dutch literature students,
foreigners and Indonesians of over 50 who were taught Dutch in
school.

Meanwhile, the library of the Japan Foundation in the
Summitmas I building on Jl. Sudirman, Central Jakarta, is
becoming more and more popular among Indonesians.

Dozens of visitors were browsing the shelves when The Jakarta
Post visited the library on Monday. For learners of Japanese, the
library offers guide books, language games, CD-ROMs, and a
television airing Japanese channel NHK.

The room, located on the second floor, also has publications
in English and Indonesian, limited to those promoting Japan. The
total collection stands at 29,000 books.

Like public libraries in the city, only residents holding
Jakarta ID cards can become members. "It is a challenge to manage
the 4,000 members that we have," said librarian Sushanty
Chandradewi.

Mahendra, 22, a Japan literature student of the National
University in South Jakarta, goes there every Monday and Thursday
to prepare for his examinations in December.

"The television helps me improve my comprehension abilities,"
said Mahendra, who is in his final year at university.

On holidays, he travels every day from his home in Bogor. "I
like it here. The facilities are free and I can read Japanese
books, magazines and comics."