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Monas renovations to begin next month
A renovation of the National Monument (Monas) compound in Central Jakarta is expected to begin next month, after plans for its redesign are finalized
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span>A renovation of the National Monument (Monas) compound in Central Jakarta is expected to begin next month, after plans for its redesign are finalized.
Last month, the Jakarta administration picked the winners of a design competition held in December for the interior of the monument and the landscaping of Medan Merdeka.
A design by Nelly Lolita and team was chosen as the winner of the Medan Merdeka landscaping category, while a team spearheaded by Mei Mumpuni won the design for Monas’ interior.
However, several revisions are still needed before the administration can begin the revamp. The administration aims to ensure the new design is in line with the function of Monas.
Jakarta Governor Anies Baswedan is among the individuals authorized to assert their perspective on the final design, in addition to the competition’s judges and officials at the Cipta Karya, Spatial Planning and Land Agency.
The Cipta Karya, Spatial Planning and Land Agency will hold a tender to find a contractor for the renovation.
“Once the design is finalized, we will know where we can start,” said Pandito, the head of city’s building division at the Cipta Karya, Spatial Planning and Land Agency.
He added that a Jakarta heritage team would also be involved to ensure that the heritage value of the monument would be preserved.
Although the renovation design has not yet been finalized, the administration has allocated Rp 150 billion (US$10.3 million) from the 2019 city budget for the project.
“Currently, it fails to convey the picture of Indonesia’s history. We want a new look to better tell the story of the Sriwijaya kingdom and Diponegoro’s war, for instance,” Pandito said.
It will be the first major renovation of Monas since it was inaugurated in 1975.
While the iconic monument received regular maintenance, there had yet to be any major improvements to incorporate the most sophisticated technology, Monas management head Mundjirin said.
This regular maintenance is limited to cleaning the monument’s surface, which can become discolored because of exposure to rain and humidity.
Mundjirin added that the dioramas inside the monument would also be updated to give a better representation of Indonesia’s history for the younger generation.
“We want to make it more sophisticated by using augmented reality or hologram technology for instance. Everything is digitalized now,” Mundjirin said.
The Rp 150 billion budget may not be enough to cover the cost of the renovations, he said, adding that additional funds would be allocated in the coming years.
Anies previously said that he wanted to eliminate most of the fencing around the 75 hectare compound to make it more “open” and allow the public to hold more activities.
He revised a 2017 gubernatorial regulation on Monas’ management to allow religious, cultural and educational activities to be held inside the park.
Gembong Warsono, the leader of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) faction in the Jakarta City Council said he had approved the proposed budget because the monument needed to bee revamped to include the latest technology. “Monas is not only an icon of Jakarta, but also of Indonesia. We support any efforts to beautify it,” he said.
