Sukarno's former home to be reconstructed

JAKARTA (JP): The city administration will begin next year reconstruction of demolished residence of the late president Sukarno in the Central Jakarta's Pegangsaan subdistrict.

Head of the city museum and restoration agency Robert Silalahi said on Thursday his office was completing preliminary studies on the building's structure.

"We have collected documents on the building and are about to determine the site of the planned building," he said as part of a campaign to promote the newly enacted city bylaw on protection of historic buildings and their surrounding areas.

The demolished building was the site of many important meetings during and after the proclamation of the nation's independence on Aug., 17, 1945.

Robert declined to reveal the estimated cost of the reconstruction project, saying that the amount had yet to be calculated.

However, Robert's assistant, Rusli Hamid, estimated that preliminary studies of the reconstruction project alone would cost about Rp 100 million (US$11,764).

"Everything will be covered by the city budget," Rusli said.

He said the agency was still discussing the exact site for the house because two buildings had been erected around the original site of the house -- the Independence Pioneers building and the Thunderbolt Monument.

Robert said the decision to rebuild the house was to comply with recommendations made by former members of the city council commission E for social welfare affairs before they ended their term last August.

Before they ended their term, the commission E members urged the city administration to reconstruct the historical building, which was formerly located on Jl. Pegangsaan Timur 56, Central Jakarta. The building has now become the site of the Proclamation Monument on Jl. Proklamasi.

Former commission E chairman Soeparmo said at the time that it was the right time to rebuild the house because many of the eyewitnesses to events in the historic former house were still alive.

"The administration should act quickly to use the chance before the eyewitnesses die," he said.

The commission said the rebuilding was important so that the younger generation would be able to trace their history.

The reason for the demolition of the Dutch-style building remains a mystery. The disappearance of two replicas made by the late former city governor, Henk Ngantung, is also unclear.

But it is known that the 1960 demolition order came from Sukarno himself. (ind)