Indonesia's History Rewritten, Kemenbud Wants Public Participation To Be Strengthened In Padang

The Ministry of Culture continues to strengthen public participation in the rewriting of Indonesian History. After Depok and Banjarmasin, it was Padang City's turn to host public discussions to capture criticism and input from stakeholders. Discussions were held at Padang State University (UNP), Wednesday, July 31, attended by more than 200 participants, ranging from academics, students, local governments, cultural communities, to journalists.

Minister of Culture Fadli Zon emphasized that public openness is the main foundation in updating national history. We want history to answer the needs of the times. Not only to remember the past, but also to strengthen national identity in the midst of polarization and globalization," said Fadli in a video welcome.

Fadli added that historians are given full freedom to research and write based on their scientific discipline. The goal, so that the results of writing are not normative and centralistic.

The Chancellor of UNP, Krismadinata, encourages events from outside Java to get an equal portion. Indonesia is not only Java. Sumatra, Kalimantan, and other areas have a history worth recording," he said.

Discussion presents three main editors: Prof. Susanto Zuhdi, Prof. Singgih Tri Sulistiyono, and Prof. Jajat Burhanudin. They describe the framework of 10 volumes of books written by experts according to their respective themes. One of them, Prof. Susanto emphasized the importance of the narrative of diaspora and local civilization in the formation of the nation.

The student of Andalas University, Zaskia, reminded that this book is easily accessible and understood by the public. This is not only for academics, but also for the wider community," he said. Discussions are closed with the affirmation that this writing project must form a fully connected narrative, from Sabang to Merauke.