Guess What? Tamalia Alisyahbana

Nothing makes Tamalia Alisyahbana happier than welcoming junior guests at the newly renovated National Archive Building in downtown Jakarta.

Tamalia, executive director of the National Archive, said she wanted to create a child-friendly environment and to throw open the building to school students.

"I was very touched to see hundreds of elementary school kids come to a recent exhibition on Indonesia-German relations," said Tamalia during a ceramic exhibition last week.

She said children must be introduced to their culture, including the arts, music and historical buildings in their early years.

"Museums should not appear to be haunted buildings for children," said Tamalia, a daughter of noted literary figure, the late Sutan Takdir Alisyahbana.

To attract more school students to the archive, she and her staff plan to launch special programs for children.

"We're still thinking about the best programs for them. But certainly we need support from the community and, of course, business." (raw)