Festival marks reopening of Jakarta Historical Museum
Festival marks reopening of Jakarta Historical Museum
JAKARTA (JP): A culture festival featuring local Betawi,
Chinese and Indian cultures marked the reopening of the Jakarta
Historical Museum at the Fatahillah square in downtown Kota on
Sunday.
The event, to run until Wednesday, features cultural
performances and traditional cooking from the Jakarta area, the
Middle East, China and India under the banner of "Jakarta's Food
Specialties Festival".
Joel, a young tourist from Canada, said he enjoyed the
festival and looked forward to learning more about Jakarta's
history at the museum.
"Kota is a little bit hectic but this festival and the museum
is quite nice," he said.
Ramya, from the Gandhi Memorial International School, hoped
this festival would establish better understanding between the
different ethnic communities in Jakarta.
"We all are aware of the (recent) history of violence in
Kota," Ramya said, referring to the May riots last year in which
violence was directed at the Chinese ethnic group.
Besides offering spicy foods to visitors, the Indian
contingent also performed a dance called Garba Dandia, a
celebration dance from West India.
The festival intends to introduce Jakarta as a cultural
meeting place for different ethnic groups which by and large all
made up the old Batavia.
The main part of the festival, however, is devoted to the
ethnic Jakartan contingent with food specialties like soto Betawi
(chicken soup) and pletok "beer" (a beverage made of local herbs)
and various handicrafts, traditional songs and performances, such
as the giant ondel-ondel puppets.
Barong Sai dancers from the local Chinese community also
entertained the audience at the ceremony at the museum.
Their performance marked the reopening of the museum, which
has been closed for three month's of renovation.
Governor Sutiyoso, who inaugurated the reopening, called all
parties to help care for the museum, which was once the City Hall
of Batavia (the previous name for Jakarta).
The renovation works included the replacement of several
beams, windows and the installation of new electricity cables.
The reopening also introduced a shift in the museum's concept
from an object-oriented to a social-oriented museum, which,
according to the museum's director Tinia Budiati, means creating
a more public-friendly environment.
"A museum should not only preserve old objects but it should
also open itself to the people so that they have a sense of
appreciation toward museums," she explained.
She declined to mention how much was spent on the
refurbishment but added that the museum often received help from
other countries, though not in the form of financial aid. (03)