Jakarta. Culture Minister Fadli Zon told lawmakers on Wednesday that the United Kingdom is unwilling to repatriate historical artifacts and other antiquities taken from Indonesia in the 19th century.

The Great Indonesia Movement Party (Gerindra) politician recounted how UK troops, led by Thomas Stamford Raffles, raided the Yogyakarta Palace in June 1812, seizing valuable items, including historic manuscripts.

“They used four ships to transport these treasures, but two of them sank. The remaining items are now kept at the British Museum and the British Library. Hundreds of our historical manuscripts have still not been returned,” Fadli said during a hearing with the House of Representatives’ Commission X.

He noted that the UK and the Netherlands hold the largest collections of Indonesian antiquities taken during the colonial period.

“The Netherlands has signed a memorandum of understanding on the repatriation of [Indonesian antiquities], but the United Kingdom has shown no intention to return them despite holding the largest collection,” Fadli said.

According to him, the Indonesian government has been working to repatriate antiquities held overseas since the country gained independence in 1945, and those efforts continue today.

“Our appeal for repatriation isn’t directed only at the Netherlands and the UK, but also at France and Japan, which once had influence in Indonesia,” Fadli added.

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