Medium- and long-term policy
of cultural development
Since the first Five-Year Plan of the Republic of Indonesia, set up in 1968,
culture has been a prominent feature in the government’s overall planning
of national development. In the final year (1983) of the third Five-Year
Plan, it did not seem that culture would lose its importance. National
cultural development is acknowledged as being the basis for national
development in general. Indonesia gives priority to the development of
national culture to enhance cultural identity and national unity as outlined
in the constitution and the state ideology.
Thus, the programmes already mentioned on national language,
national history and traditional values, will remain relevant for the
development of Indonesia.
For, as outlined in the Five-Year Plan (in the section on long-term
planning in the chapter on culture), the features considered important are
as follows:
1. Indonesian traditional values have to be developed to enhance cultural
identity, cultural security and national unity.
2. National culture has to be developed on the basis of the Pancasila
(national ideology) and to follow the guidelines of those values that
enhance cultural identity and increase the values of those traditions
that have come down to us.
3. Once a strong cultural identity is established, there is less negative
foreign influence and the people are more able to absorb such foreign
influence as is necessary, which will be positive for the development of
their own culture.
4. The national language should be developed so as to become the language
used at all levels of communication.
5. Local languages have to remain developed as part of the national
heritage and to enhance the development of the national language.
6. Art development should aim at creativity with the artists themselves
a part of the nation and national culture.