Government strengthens museum development as educational tool

The government continues to strive to preserve national cultural heritage through the development of museums as spaces for education and strengthening national identity. This commitment was demonstrated by Indonesian Minister of Culture Fadli Zon during a visit to the Indonesian Postal Museum and the Bandung Post Office on Jalan Cilaki, Bandung City, West Java. The visit was part of the Ministry of Culture’s agenda to encourage thematic museums in Indonesia to become more relevant to the public, especially the younger generation. “The Postal Museum does not merely store collections, but tells the journey of the nation. The role of the post is very important in Indonesian history, including during the independence struggle,” Fadli Zon said via an official statement on Saturday. During the occasion, Fadli Zon reviewed various collections that record the history of the development of Indonesian postal and communication services, ranging from postal equipment, stamp collections, and post boxes, to historical archives. The Culture Minister also visited the Bandung Post Office building, which is over a century old and holds cultural heritage status. He assessed that the building possesses high historical value and deserves recognition as a national-level cultural heritage site. According to him, museums have a strategic role in improving literacy while reviving the culture of letter writing as a form of expression and human closeness. The government is also paying attention to the philately tradition because stamps are considered part of material culture that records various events and the nation’s identity. As a tangible form of strengthening literacy, the Ministry of Culture last year held a Letter Writing Competition for Heroes, which was participated in by more than 34,000 participants from various educational levels. All letters were handwritten, affixed with stamps, and sent through the services of PT Pos Indonesia. Commercial Director of PT Pos Indonesia, Fahdel Akbar, appreciated the Culture Minister’s visit, which was seen as an impetus for developing the Indonesian Postal Museum into a more modern and interactive educational space. Going forward, the Ministry of Culture will continue to encourage improvements in the quality of exhibition layouts, the strengthening of historical narratives, and the utilisation of digital technology in various thematic museums to make them more attractive and capable of strengthening Indonesia’s cultural identity.