Not-so-cheap fair fails to get people reading

The Jakarta Post ,  Jakarta   |  Fri, 07/07/2006 4:42 PM  |  Jakarta

Intan Ismawati, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Yulia, a resident of Bogor, West Java, spent hours traveling to Jakarta with her two children to visit the much-promoted Jakarta Book Fair, held two weeks before students returned to school after their long holiday.

She was disappointed, however, to find that despite a small discount, most of the books on display were still reasonably expensive.

""I was interested in visiting the exhibition because I had heard vendors were offering cheaper prices,"" said the 42-year-old.

Yulia was hoping to buy religious encyclopedias, but found most vendors were only providing discounts of 10 percent.

She was one of hundreds of parents who have taken their children to the fair, which opened on July 1 and will run until July 9, at Bung Karno Sports Hall in Central Jakarta.

The fair, titled ""Books as Future Investments"" features the stands of 207 publishers and book sellers.

The Indonesian Publishers Association (IKAPI) said the fair was aimed at improving the reading habits of Indonesian students.

""We are left far behind in reading habits and the problem is even worse in regions outside Jakarta,"" said IKAPI Jakarta chapter head Lucya Aldan.

The association holds regular book exhibitions in provinces across the country at least twice a year.

""We hold book exhibitions in March, July and December with different focuses. In March is the Islamic Books Fair, in July the Jakarta Book Fair and in the December the Indonesian Book Fair,"" said IKAPI head Biem Pasaribu.

He said the government should take action to help the association's efforts to improve reading habits and should go beyond producing text books for schools.

""The government must work hand in hand with IKAPI to bring society closer to being a reading culture,"" he said.

The association said the exhibition was not intended to attack the financial support of the government, as each vendor at the fair was required to pay Rp 595,000 (US$62.63) per meter for their stands.

""What is most important is moral support from the government to uphold the noble intention of increasing reading interest amongst Indonesians,"" he said.

Meanwhile, the Indonesian Reading Forum said community was to blame for the country's poor reading habits.

""There are millions of reading sources available, such as newspapers. There are also many shopping centers selling all kinds of books. Indonesians just do not know what is important to read and what is not,"" forum secretary Ari Asih Pratiwi told The Jakarta Post.

When asked about the growing popularity, and number, of romance novels aimed at teenagers, she said that it meant Indonesians at least had the will to read.

""It is everyone's right to create, purchase or read as long as they eventually know what is best for them.""

Lucya said members of IKAPI published about 10,000 new books every year.

""However, this is still low compared to our population of 220 million,"" she said.

Many books published here have also been made into films, while some movie makers required book adaptations of their works.

""We wish to support each other,"" Lucya said.

""In order to ensure writer creativity and quality, the book industry must not become merely profit-based,"" she added.

Lucya also said book piracy was also contributing to the decrease in book sales.

""And the lack of space on bookshelves in shops has caused books to be returned to the distributors,"" she said. (10)

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