'Yellow window' to knowledge opens in Indonesia

'Yellow window' to knowledge opens in Indonesia

Kurniawan Hari, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

A window has been opened through which people can look at the
beauty and uniqueness of Indonesia's diverse nature.

The window is National Geographic Indonesia, the Indonesian-
language version of the famous National Geographic magazine,
which was launched here on Monday.

Terrence B. Adamson of the Board of Executive Vice Presidents
of the U.S.-based National Geographic Society said the trademark
yellow border on the cover of the magazine represents a window to
the world.

"It is a window to find new places and to tell readers around
the globe about the world, its culture, its science and its
nature," he said at the launch.

With National Geographic Indonesia, National Geographic
magazine is now printed in 27 different languages every month.

The Indonesian edition is the fifth in Asia after Mandarin in
classical Chinese scrip, Japanese, Korean and Thai.

The local version will follow closely the editorial content of
the English-language original, and will include local content in
every issue. National Geographic Indonesia will also be produced
to the exacting standards of the National Geographic Society --
and of course, will appear with the famous yellow-border cover
that is familiar throughout the world.

National Geographic is being brought to the Indonesian
readership by Jakob Oetama's Kompas-Gramedia publishing group,
and Tantyo Bangun, a veteran freelance photographer, is its
editor-in-chief.

Jakob emphasized that the credibility and the long history of
the magazine had made the launch ceremony different from that of
other publications.

The main feature in the first edition of National Geographic
Indonesia is the discovery of "Flores man" -- a species of homo
sapien. A report on the condition in Suwak Indrapuri, Meulaboh,
Aceh, six days after the catastrophic tsunami is also published
in this edition, accompanied by a breakdown on how an earthquake
creates a tsunami.

Jakob hopes the publication of National Geographic Indonesia
would promote an effort to reinvent Indonesia.

He said he hoped the magazine would help the Indonesian people
become more aware of their homeland and its rich biodiversity
across more than 17,000 islands -- about 8,000 of which are
uninhabited -- and learn more about its flora and fauna, ancient
heritage and spirit of social harmony.

"An effort to reinvent Indonesia would be an impossible aim
without including its social and cultural aspects," he said.

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, who autographed the front
cover of the first National Geographic Indonesia and symbolically
launched the magazine, hoped the magazine could contribute
knowledge and scientific information toward improving national
education.

"It will be invaluable for us to understand our geography.
Through the geologic sciences, we can anticipate earthquakes,
tsunamis and droughts. The more we understand geography, the more
we will understand the secret of nature," he said, and gave his
full support to developing the magazine in the country.

National Geographic magazine was first published in 1888 as an
internal magazine of the National Geographic Society in
Washington D.C. The magazine became available to the public
because of great demand, and is the world's longest-standing
magazine.

National Geographic is also known for pioneering the use of
photographs to illustrate magazine articles.

As part of the launch, National Geographic Indonesia has
organized a photo exhibition that will run from March 29 through
April 3 at the National Archive building on Jl. Gajah Mada No.
111, Central Jakarta.

Chairman of the Indonesian Archeologists Association (IAI)
Truman Simanjuntak was enthusiastic about the launch of the
publication in Bahasa Indonesia.

"It will enrich the source of information for Indonesian
scholars and for Indonesian society as a whole," he told The
Jakarta Post.