The Lombok Wealth Will Be Returned By The Dutch, The Governor Of NTB: Research First And Don't GR

Governor of West Nusa Tenggara (NTB) Zulkieflimansyah (ANTARA)

The Governor of West Nusa Tenggara (NTB) Zulkieflimansyah spoke about the plan to return Lombok's treasure which became a booty during the Dutch colonial period.

"It needs to be seen, observed, don't expect it to be treasured later. We'll see what the details look like. Don't let us GR (Gede Ras) go first, we can't get anything," said Zulkieflimansyah, quoted by ANTARA, Monday.

What is no less valuable, he continued, is the relic in the form of historical documents and manuscripts. Because of this, said the governor, it could be used as material for the history of Lombok Island.

"The treasure does not have to be in the form of gold money, but also historical documents that may be returned to us, we so have material for exploring past developments," he said.

However, Zulkieflimansyah admitted that he could not comment further on the planned repatriation of the treasure. The reason is, he has not received any data and information on where the treasure is going.

"We'll try to review the details first," he said.

To note, Lombok's treasure is one of the 478 looted assets during the Dutch colonial period which will be returned to Indonesia and Sri Lanka at the National Ethnology Museum, Leiden, the Netherlands.

Lombok's treasure is the name for the loot of Dutch troops during the colonial period when it brought down the Lombok royal palace in 1894.

Previously, local natives asked for Dutch assistance, which then used the request to expand colonialism, as stated in the Lombok Treasure object at the Rijksmuseum Museum, the Netherlands.

The treasure of Lombok looted by Dutch troops includes 230 kilograms of gold, 7,000 kilograms of silver, and countless precious stones. Rijksmuseum features coins and bracelets as one of Lombok's treasures and is a silent witness to war crimes.

According to data from the Rijksmuseum Museum, most of Lombok's treasure was returned to Indonesia in 1977. Meanwhile, there are 334 Lombok treasure objects (Lombok treasury or Lombokschat) which will be returned on July 10, 2023 after Indonesia's request, as explained on the official website of the Dutch Government.