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TMII, Indonesia’s Disneyland, in spotlight after government takeover, lawsuit
The government has taken over the management of Taman Mini Indonesia Indah (TMII) from former president Soeharto family's Harapan Kita Foundation because the park has been operating at a loss.
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A worker installs a sign announcing the State Secretary's takeover of Taman Mini Indonesia Indah (TMII) cultural park in front of the park's gate in East Jakarta on April 7. The government has taken over the management of the cultural park from Harapan Kita Foundation, which had managed the park for decades. (Antara/Asprilla Dwi Adha)
T
aman Mini Indonesia Indah (TMII) cultural park in East Jakarta has recently been in the spotlight following the government’s move to take over the park from Harapan Kita Foundation, a foundation set up by the family of former president Soeharto.
President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo signed a presidential regulation on March 31 officially mandating the takeover. The regulation also stipulates a requirement for the government to establish a team overseeing the management transition for three months.
“We remain committed to [TMII] preserving the national heritage and serving as an education facility. But we need to optimize it to be a cultural theme park under international standards,” State Secretary Pratikno said on April 7.
He added that the State Secretariat would appoint a state-owned tourism enterprise to manage TMII following the transition period.
TMII was the brainchild of the late Soeharto’s wife, Tien Soeharto. She floated the idea in 1970 during a meeting with the foundation following her visits to several theme parks across the world, including a Disneyland in the United States. Tien reportedly wanted Indonesia to have its own theme park built specifically to showcase arts and culture from across the archipelago.
Read also: Soeharto tops favorite Indonesian presidents survey: Indo Barometer
The park was opened to the public following its inauguration in 1975. Two years after the inauguration, Soeharto signed a presidential decree that listed TMII as a government property under the State Secretariat. The decree also mandated the park’s operation to Harapan Kita Foundation.
