Govt urged to submit sports bill to the House
JAKARTA (JP): A noted sports figure called on the government yesterday to present a sports bill to the House of Representatives for deliberation.
Sports observer Mangombar Ferdinand Siregar said the country had long needed laws to regulate the rights and obligations of athletes, as well as to guarantee their post-career lives and boost the development of sports facilities.
"We are racing against time. While we are further establishing professional sports, we lack regulations to support the trend," Siregar said during a break at the National Sports Council's congress here.
He said UNESCO had recommended that each country pass laws to regulate and support sports development.
Siregar was one of several sports figures who initiated the idea to draw up a sports bill in 1986.
"We have been waiting for the government to act and submit the bill to the House. It has yet to materialize even 12 years after we proposed the idea," he complained.
He said former state minister of youth affairs and sports Hayono Isman had made some improvements in a draft bill to reflect recent sport developments.
New State Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports Agung Laksono agreed to the need of a sports bill, but responded cautiously to Siregar's demand.
"Having a sports bill would be very good, but we must coordinate with related offices. It is not that urgent," he said.
He said the law was expected to provide clear guidance on how to raise funds for sports activities.
"The public will have to shoulder much of the future burden of financing sports events (rather than the government)," Agung said.
He said, however, the passage of a sports law would not automatically solve the problems faced by the sports community.
Golden Garuda
Siregar said the national long-term training program called the Golden Garuda project should serve as the foundation of the national sports development system.
"This project must be carried out by an integrated team involving the council, the office of the state minister of youth affairs and sports, the Ministry of Home Affairs and the Ministry of Education and Culture," he said.
The council has planned to launch the Rp 10 billion (US$1 million) project to improve Indonesia's performance in the Asian and the Olympic games. The project's major goal is to finish at least sixth at the 2006 Asiad.
Indonesia finished a lowly 11th in the Games in Hiroshima four years ago with three golds, 12 silvers and 11 bronzes.
The country is setting a higher target in the upcoming Asiad in Bangkok this December despite a lack of funds to finance its training program.
Under the Golden Garuda project, the sports council looks to groom talented athletes aged between nine and 12 years old. These athletes would reach an optimal competing age in 2006.
Siregar predicted that the sports council would try to regenerate some sport associations through the project.
"For example, the badminton body does not have a strong basis to develop new athletes. That's why it always faces problems in finding new potential world-class players," he said.
Siregar said the office of the state minister of youth affairs and sports could also carry out the project.
Ateng Wahyudi, chairman of the sports council's congress, was skeptical about the project's implementation, saying it was prone to budget misuses due to a lack of coordination between the council and the ministry of home affairs.
"Some officials of local administrations may use the budget for other purposes because they don't know exactly what to do with the money," he said. (emf/yan)