On Monday, 14 August 2023, the Department of History Faculty of Cultural Sciences UGM successfully held an Interdisciplinary Critical Heritage Study Conference in Indonesia at Ullen Sentalu Museum, Kaliurang, Sleman. The conference aimed to develop a critical heritage curriculum and open cooperation between museums, communities, and cultural activists in heritage utilisation.
The conference was divided into four panels that were conducted separately. The first panel carried the theme “Heritage in Practice”. Acting as presenters in this panel were Grace Leksana, an academic and historian from the State University of Malang; Kate McGregor, a historian from the University of Melbourne; Restu Gunawan, Director of Development and Utilisation at the Ministry of Education, Culture and Research; and Bambang Widodo, Chairman of the DIY Musea Deliberation Board (BARAHMUS DIY). In this panel, they discussed topics on the commodification of colonial heritage, the practice and theory of interdisciplinary approaches, and heritage preservation practices.
The second panel raised the theme “Decolonisation and Repatriation”. Tular Sudarmadi, UGM academic and archaeologist; I Gusti Agung Wesaka Puja, Executive Director of the ASEAN Institute for Peace and Reconciliation; and Daud Aris Tanudirdjo, UGM archaeologist discussed topics on the difference between return, repatriation, and resitution; microhistory approach in heritage studies; and museum decolonisation.
The third panel was themed “Performing Heritage”. Sumarsam, a lecturer at Wesleyan University and Eri Sustiyadi, Head of the Collection, Conservation and Documentation Section, discussed the topic of intercultural encounters in the development of puppetry and the practices of presenting heritage through museums.
Finally, the fourth panel raised the theme “Heritage in Contestation”. Marieke Bloembergen, a historian from Leiden University; Sukma Putri, activist of the Malam Museum Community, and Sektiadi, UGM archaeologist, discussed the topics of epistemic violence against heritage, discussion practices through communities, and the transformation of museum identity in line with decolonisation efforts.
