Jakarta – Five years after Law No. 5 of 2017 concerning the Advancement of Culture (UUPK) was passed, the Government has finally launched the Indonesian Fund. This fund is expected to maintain the flame of various cultural promotion activities in the archipelago. However, the Art Coalition – a non-profit organization engaged in the advocacy of arts and artists, sees that there are still many problems in the process of promoting culture. This includes the preparation of a guide document for the promotion of culture, namely the Principal Thoughts of Regional Culture (PPKD).
Since the manufacture of PPKD was first mandated through Presidential Regulation No. 65 of 2018 concerning Procedures for Compiling Regional Cultural Principles and Cultural Strategies (Perpres PPKD), only 34 provincial PPKDs and 393 districts/cities have PPKDs. "This figure is still below expectations, considering that this is already the fifth year of implementing the Presidential Regulation," said Deputy Chair of the Art Coalition, Kartika Jahja, in Jakarta, Wednesday, June 29, 2022.
Ideally, all regencies, cities and provinces have finished compiling PPKD before the Cultural Strategy is formulated in the 2018 KKI. This is because both Provincial and Regency/City PPKD will be used as the basis for the Regional Cultural Strategy, or a reference for the Master Plan for the Advancement of Culture. Without valid data, it is difficult to develop a concrete vision for advancing culture in the future. PPKD is important because it is the beginning of mainstreaming culture in development at the regional level. This document encourages arts and culture affairs to have a concrete basis in accordance with the needs of the community. This is in accordance with the provisions of the Presidential Regulation on PPKD which mandates that the implementation of cultural promotion must be accompanied by objectives, targets, work stages, achievements of each stage of work and indicators of achievement. "That way, art matters do not depend on the perspective of regional heads or other government parties, so that the budget can be allocated more to arts and culture affairs," said Policy Researcher from the Art Coalition, Aicha Grade Rebecca.
From observations in the field, the Art Coalition assessed that there were three problems in the process of preparing the PPKD. The first problem is the understanding of culture which is not in line with the perspective of cultural advancement. According to the UUPK, the process of promoting culture needs to be based on diversity and locality at the same time. However, in reality, cultural representation in the drafting team was overlooked.
In the preparation of the DKI Jakarta PPKD, for example. Hikmat Darmawan, Secretary General of the Jakarta Arts Council who took part in the process, said that the PPKD document which was completed in 2018 implies that it does not yet cover various types of culture. This condition is certainly counterproductive to PPKD's efforts to encourage inclusiveness. In the future, we hope that the preparation of the PPKD will include more diverse community representatives, both in terms of educational background, age, and gender. "This is important so that the results of the preparation of the PPKD will be more representative, and pay attention to the objects and conditions of the regional arts in question," Aicha explained.
The second problem, the process of preparing the PPKD is not in accordance with the Regulation of the Minister of Education and Culture No. 46 of 2018 concerning Guidelines for Compiling the Main Thoughts of Regional Culture. Previous research from the Art Coalition noted that artists still had difficulty accessing the draft PPKD document and contributing to the process of its preparation.
In some areas there are still PPKDs that are formed without involving a public forum. This includes Riau Province PPKD, as said by Aristofani Fahmi from the Riau Artists Association (ASERI). Because the preparation did not take into account the perspectives of the stakeholders, there were many differences between what was written in the PPKD and the reality on the ground. In Riau's PPKD, the number of artists and cultural objects differs from reality.
The third problem found in the process of making KDP is the availability of human resources and budget. This problem could be caused by the division of cultural affairs with other affairs under one “roof”, such as the tourism and sports offices. In the long term, this could invite several new problems that could hinder the execution of the formation of the PPKD.
The various obstacles above indicate that it is necessary to carry out a process of monitoring and evaluating PPKD in stages, which is supervised by the minister at the provincial level and the governor at the district/city level. "This process is important to ensure there is synchronization between PPKD and the implementation of cultural programs in regional planning, budget realization, and realization of program achievements in the field of culture," said Aicha.
It is the duty of the Ministry of Education, Research, Culture, Research & Technology, especially the Directorate General of Culture, to do three things. First, to oversee the monitoring and evaluation (monev) process up to the PPKD at the smallest government level, namely the district/city. Second, to maintain objectivity in the PPKD monev process because so far, the procedure has only included the government without civil representation. The third solution is to continue to promote socialization and technical guidance (bimtek) related to the preparation of PPKD for local governments (districts/municipalities) that have not yet compiled PPKD.
The editorial opinion on PPKD can be accessed at bit.ly/3I3B45h
About the Art Coalition
The Art Coalition is a non-profit organization that works to build a better arts ecosystem in Indonesia. To achieve its goals, the Art Coalition advocates for art policies, encourages the creation of an arts endowment fund, and strengthens knowledge management and networking among members of the organization.
The Art Coalition bridges various stakeholders in policy advocacy to advance the arts ecosystem. The Art Coalition has succeeded in pushing the ratification of the Law on the Advancement of Culture, has also advocated for the Music Bill, compiled research on artistic freedom, and participated in capturing the aspirations of art ecosystem activists for the first National Cultural Strategy in Indonesia. The Art Coalition has also adopted the concept of a cultural trust fund so that the government in 2021 is committed to allocating IDR 3 trillion.
Members of the Art Coalition contribute to improving their respective artistic ecosystems, as well as work to mainstream art as a great asset of Indonesia. As of April 2022, the Art Coalition consists of 333 institutions and individuals spread across 24 provinces.
For further information or an interview appointment, please contact:
Isma Savitri
Art Coalition Communication Manager
isma@koalisiseni.or.id
081-310-130-960
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