The Government Will Reorganize The National Museum After The Fire Affected 817 Collections

The post-fire situation of the Indonesian National Museum (MNI) in Jakarta, Sunday 17 September 2023. (ANTARA-Devi Nindy)

JAKARTA - The government will reorganize the National Museum or the Post-Fire Elephant Museum that occurred on Saturday, September 16. The fire caused 817 collections to be affected.

Coordinating Minister for Human Development and Culture Muhadjir Effendy said that his party had coordinated with the Directorate General of Culture of the Ministry of Education and Culture regarding the rearrangement.

"We are trying to revitalize, preserve, and maintain it according to current and international standards," Muhadjir said in his statement, Thursday, September 21, which was confiscated by Antara.

Muhadjir said that during a visit to the museum, there was still a police line that circled the location of the fire, so he could not see firsthand the affected rooms and objects.

However, he said, the hundreds of historical collections are now being identified and cleaned up for the initial stages of handling conservation.

"There are 817 collections affected, the damage is still being studied and studied, ranging from heavily damaged to lightly affected," he said.

Muhadjir suggested that the revitalization was sought to create a system that was connected between the museum and the fire department.

This is done so that when a fire occurs in the museum there is no need to make a phone call first, but it can be immediately known and move quickly.

Such revitalization efforts, he continued, need to be carried out as part of modernization as international standards have been widely applied by developed countries.

Given that the museum is a vital building and must be protected.

"There needs to be modernization regarding ways and tools to prevent fire incidents like this and other (occurrences)," he concluded.