FBI Director Meets Prabowo, Returns Smuggled Indonesian Artefacts

President Prabowo Subianto received a courtesy call from Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Director Kash Patel at his residence in Kertanegara, Jakarta. The visit was made to personally return Indonesian cultural artefacts to President Prabowo.

Minister of Culture Fadli Zon, accompanied by Minister of State Secretary Prasetyo Hadi, explained that in addition to official discussions, the FBI Director directly handed over the cultural artefacts to President Prabowo. This handover was part of a repatriation cooperation between the Indonesian government and the FBI.

“Besides having a discussion as friends, he also officially brought cultural artefacts, which are the result of cooperation between the Indonesian government, through the Ministry of Culture, and the FBI, namely the return of cultural objects, artefacts, that were illegally smuggled into the United States,” Fadli Zon said.

“After conducting provenance research, these objects were then returned and brought directly by Mr. Kash Patel to President Prabowo Subianto,” he continued.

Fadli explained that the returned artefacts originate from Papua, specifically the cultural heritage of the Dani, Asmat, and Sentani Lake communities. According to him, these objects hold significant historical and cultural value for Indonesia.

“I think these are very valuable objects because this repatriation process is our effort to restore our cultural sovereignty,” he added.

Fadli Zon also revealed that cooperation between Indonesia and the FBI regarding the return of cultural objects has been ongoing for a long time. The FBI has reportedly assisted several times in returning important stolen Indonesian artefacts, including bronze statues and objects from various cultural sites.

“We hope that cooperation with the FBI, especially regarding the repatriation and restitution of these cultural objects, will be even stronger in the future, supported by the State Secretariat and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs,” Fadli said.

Fadli emphasised that the return of the cultural artefacts is part of the government’s commitment to restoring national cultural sovereignty. The artefacts will also be exhibited at the National Museum and opened to the public.