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THE Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs and Investment, Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan, said that the government will prepare the Borobudur Temple area to become an international standard cultural heritage conservation laboratory.
“The government is currently sharpening and implementing the Borobudur-Yogyakarta-Prambanan Integrated Tourism Master Plan to develop the Super Priority Tourism Destination (SPTD) of Borobudur into quality tourism,” said Luhut in Magelang, Central Java.
He explained, to ensure that the impact of the preservation of Borobudur Temple is sustainable, it will involve the community actively. One of them is the role of students to deepen the study of the Borobudur area so that a sense of belonging to this area grows. Thus, there will be a sense of responsibility to care for and preserve this heritage for future generations.
Luhut added that the main problem facing Borobudur Temple is the huge pressure on the temple structure. This is due to the increase in temple tourists, which reached 8,000 people per day in 2019. The results of a study by the Borobudur Conservation Center show that ideally the peak area of Borobudur Temple is only able to accommodate a maximum of 128 visitors per one visit per day.
Meanwhile, Minister of Education and Culture, Nadiem Anwar Makariem said that Borobudur Temple has several statuses, namely World Heritage, National Rank Cultural Heritage Area, National Strategic Area, National Vital Object, and finally as one of the Super Priority Tourism Destination
Therefore, the Ministry of Education and Culture puts forward the overall improvement of governance from protection to utilization to maximize the potential of this area.
Nadiem said there are several things that will be regulated in the integrated management plan of Borobudur Temple, including improving interpretation and information facilities regarding the important value of the Borobudur Temple complex, improving the quality of the environment and natural resources, developing sustainable tourism that supports the protection of the Borobudur Temple complex and improving welfare community, increasing cultural heritage conservation activities in the area, and improving governance.
“The development of supporting attractions at a number of points around the Borobudur Temple complex actually aims to spread tourist visits, thereby reducing the burden on Borobudur Temple itself. This must be in line with the spirit of protecting the cultural landscape of the Borobudur Temple complex,” he concluded. [antaranews/photo special]
