Kota Lama Semarang @ De Telegraaf Den Haag

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Delftenarian wants to preserve Dutch heritage Indonesia
In defense of old buildings

by Jeroen Ketelaars

DELFT, Tuesday (June 17th, 2014)

If more than one hundred old Dutch buildings in Indonesia Semarang not be restored quickly, it does not take too long at all to collapse and they are lost forever.

[Photo caption]
Jenny Kalalo, yesterday at the Indonesian Embassy in The Hague, to protect Dutch buildings in Semarang. PHOTO: René Oudshoorn

For this warns Jenny Kalalo-Megaradjasa from Delft. She commutes back and forth between the princely town, where she has a home, and Indonesia, where she runs a restaurant that in for generations long runs in the family. But they also put their heart and soul into the Dutch heritage that is still in Semarang.

"In the Kota Lama (Old Town), which covers 34 hectares, there are still 105 listed monumental buildings. These include the offices of banks, insurance companies and the Dutch Railways," explains Kalalo far. "Many of the buildings of Dutch companies and institutions have already disappeared. They were often brought from the Netherlands to Indonesia and put together as it were like puzzle pieces. They often had actually Dutch elements, such as stained-glass windows. If we are not careful, we'll lose everything in only five years time."

Kalalo is originally from Indonesia, but studied architecture in the Netherlands. Through the family who are active in the restaurant industry, she came into the hospitality industry. So she ran a restaurant in The Hague, Toko "Oen". Her love of old buildings has never disappeared.

Salvation

"I realized that we all have lost so many precious things. I can not bear to see that an old building just collapses on its own and thus its history is just wiped out."

If it were up to Kalalo, the remaining properties are also going to be restored while you still can. Sometimes it's for her to be fighting a losing battle, because many owners prefer to opt for cheaper options. They often have more faith in scrapping than a costly restoration. Kalalo can not be stopped by the resistance and put her lobbying efforts with determination. "We must ensure that those 34 acres in the historic center of Semarang soon be occupied with major shopping malls and high-rise buildings."