No Longer Buried in Archives, Old History Books Enter E-Book Format

JAKARTA - The government is preparing strategic steps to maintain and expand access to the nation's historical heritage. One of the efforts that will be carried out is the digitization of Indonesian history books published in the 1970-1990s so that they can be reused by the wider community, especially the younger generation.

Minister of Culture Fadli Zon revealed the plan as part of a program to preserve national intellectual property through the use of digital technology. According to him, many quality historical books from that period are now difficult to access because they are no longer printed and traded.

"I ask the Director General to also collect all the books that are the book project in education and culture from the 70s, 80s and 90s to now we have digitized it, we put it in an e-book," said Fadli Zon in a working meeting with Commission X of the DPR RI which was monitored online in Jakarta, Wednesday.

He explained that at that time, many high-value historical works, such as fibers and chronicles, stopped at the production stage and did not circulate widely to the public. As a result, the treasure of knowledge is less known by today's society.

"Even though it is a very good work, so we know that this will try to digitize the book," he said.

In its implementation, the Ministry of Culture plans to collaborate with the National Library to support the process of collecting, media conversion, and storing historical books in digital format.

In addition to digitizing old archives, Fadli Zon also revealed plans to compile thematic history books that will be worked on this year. Topics covered include the history of the war to defend independence in the period 1945-1950 to the establishment of the Republic of Indonesia, the history of the Majapahit Kingdom, the Sriwijaya Kingdom, and the Samudra Pasai Kingdom.

"So there are at least four books that we hope will be written this year as an in-depth study of history so that the book is more comprehensive," he said again.

He hopes that the books can become a deeper historical reference and at the same time be easily accessible to the public through an e-book format.

Regarding the history of Indonesia in general, Fadli Zon said that the current writing project has entered the final stage and is targeted to be completed by the end of February in the form of a digital book.

Previously, the Ministry of Culture had launched the book "History of Indonesia: National Dynamics in Global Currents" on Sunday (14/12/2025) as part of the country's efforts to maintain the collective memory of the nation and strengthen national identity.

The writing of the book began in January 2025 and involved 123 historians and experts from 34 universities throughout Indonesia.

The book "History of Indonesia: National Dynamics in Global Currents" consists of 11 volumes that review the long journey of the Indonesian nation, starting from the roots of the Nusantara civilization, global interactions with India, China, Persia, the Middle East, and the West, the colonial period, the national movement, the struggle to defend independence, the consolidation of the state, the New Order era, to the reform and development of Indonesian democracy until 2024.