Heritage society meets to draft charter

Heritage society meets to draft charter

YOGYAKARTA: In cooperation with the Ministry of Culture and
Tourism, the Indonesian Heritage Preservation Network (JPPI) and
the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS) will
begin a four-day workshop here on Wednesday to draft a heritage
preservation charter for the country.

The workshop is expected to come up with a draft of a heritage
preservation charter for Indonesia, which would be endorsed at a
ceremony in December.

Chairwoman of the Indonesian Heritage Year 2003 Laretna T.
Adishakti said on Monday that the country required such a charter
that could be used as a moral and ethical guideline for heritage
preservation efforts in the country.

"Heritage preservation efforts are currently based only on Law
No. 5/1992 on Cultural Heritage, with related government
regulations and charters belonging to other countries including
Australia's Burra Charter and Italy's Venice Charter," she said.

She said Indonesia had an abundance of heritage sites, both
modern and ancient.

Each of the heritage sites was different and specific, making
it difficult for Indonesia to apply international standards in
the management and revitalization of them, she said.

Differences in the political and value systems between
counties were another factor that made it impossible for
Indonesia to implement the foreign charters, Laretna added.

Moreover, Law No. 5/1992 was also widely perceived to have
failed to accommodate all dimensions of the country's various and
diverse natural and cultural heritages.

"For those reasons, the heritage society will meet to prepare
for an 'Indonesian Charter', that will be specific to our value
system and culture." --JP