No respect: Our heritage sites go to waste

Andre Vltchek and Rossie Indira, Contributors, Surakarta, Central Java

The central highway between Surabaya and Surakarta (not numbered, of course) passes through some unmemorable and polluted market towns and agricultural centers. Next to the small city of Trowulan, some 70 kilometers from Surabaya, the Periplus map shows a hardly readable mark: "Remains of Majapahit Kingdom and Site Museum".

In Trowulan itself, however, there were no indicators informing of the sites or museums. We had to ask locals, make two dangerous U-turns on the highway, before finding the small but superb Museum Purbakala (prehistoric museum), where we learned that the entire area is full of interesting temples and small architectural treasures that have survived in various states and shapes since the 12th century.

Signing the visitors' book, we came across several examples of positive input from American, Australian, European and Japanese travelers, although the time that lapsed between each foreign visit could be counted in weeks, even months.

The rhetorical question we kept asking each other until we reached Surakarta was: Why is Indonesia so indifferent toward its own heritage, toward the cultural and architectural treasures? Why there is almost no promotion of such sites and why are only three cultural monuments (Prambanan, Borobudur and the discovery site of Java Man near Surakarta) part of the UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites, while even comparatively small Sri Lanka has many more?

The above mentioned list attracts tens of thousand of educated visitors from all over the world every year. UNESCO, however, cannot list any site unless approached by the government, with a proposal submitted and a highly competent commission gives its approval. It takes some serious effort and dedication from state bureaucrats, as well as determination to spend money and labor on preservation, although help usually comes from abroad.

But the rewards are tremendous: The selection of a site puts the entire area "on the map", attracts mostly educated visitors, creates tourism-related employment and promotes local culture at home and abroad. With the foreign visitors also comes diversity and cultural exchange.

Central Vietnam has been partially revitalized thanks to three World Heritage Sites -- the historical trading port of Hoi An, the imperial city of Hue and the archeological site of Cham culture at Mi Son. The influx of foreign visitors helped to build new hotels and upgrade the international airport, as well as the impressive Cham Museum in the city of Da Nang. Needless to say, investment followed improved infrastructure and enhanced cultural prestige of the region.

Indonesia is the fourth most populous nation in the world, with countless important cultural and historical assets. Some, however, have been decaying for decades while others are surrounded by urban sprawl. Many, especially those in Sulawesi, Kalimantan and Sumatra, are almost unreachable.

Even Jakarta cannot offer one single square kilometer of a well preserved historical area, with the powers that be overlooking the fact that thoughtful and educated visitors are more interested in this country's culture and history than in countless shopping malls that can be found in virtually any place in the world, rich or poor.

After reaching Surakarta, we decided to drive north to visit one of the three Indonesian World Heritage sites -- Sangiran -- home of the famous Java Man and thus one of the first inhabited areas of the world. We parked our car, paid at the entrance and walked up the stairs, only to find the "museum" consisted of some old photographs, maps and replicas of the skeleton.

"The original skeleton is in some museum, here in Java, probably in Bandung," explained the curator, thoughtfully.

We were told that there are some "excavation sites" in the area, but the visitor center lacked knowledge how to get there and when we asked locals in the nearby village, they had no idea what we were talking about. Needless to say, we encountered no foreign travelers.

We bypassed Surakarta, heading for Yogyakarta. Driving through Prambanan at seven in the evening, we slowed down, hoping to catch the site of illuminated towers of magnificent temples, but the entire area was pitch-dark -- not one spotlight directed at the beautifully shaped stones.

Was it just our unlucky day or has Indonesia lost interest in its own culture, heritage and history?