Govt urged to submit sports bill to the House
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)