Jakarta Library Draws Readers From Across Indonesia

During a visit last Thursday to the Jakarta Library in Menteng, Central Jakarta, all five floors were humming with activity: Reading nooks were filled with visitors engrossed in books while long tables were occupied by students and office workers tapping away on laptops.

Most patrons hailed from the capital and surrounding areas, but the library, located inside the Taman Ismail Marzuki cultural complex, has also become a destination for out-of-town readers.

Hanifah Amalia, 17, a senior high school student from Nabire, Central Papua, said she was struck by the scale and quality of the facilities on her first visit. It offered what her hometown lacked: a well-funded public library with a thorough, updated collection.

She had hoped to borrow Madilog by Tan Malaka, a nonfiction title banned under the New order that had long been on her wish list but was rarely found in Nabire.

“Bookstores in Nabire are very limited. And Madilog is