Chief Justice Anwar Usman visiting the U.S. Library of Congress in Washington, D.C., Thursday (7/20/2023). Photo by MKRI.

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WASHINGTON, D.C. (MKRI) — Chief Justice Anwar Usman made a visit to the U.S. Library of Congress in Washington, D.C. on Thursday, July 20, 2023, where the delegation of the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Indonesia (MKRI) observed historical U.S. literature. As a guest of honor, the chief justice was welcomed by senior librarian Joshue Kueh, who took him to view the Southeast Asian collection in the Thomas Jefferson building.

Kueh opened the tour by explaining that as the library with the largest collection in the world, the Library of Congress divides its collections both in terms of content (law, economics, history, politics, and so on) and origin (Southeast Asia, mainland Europe, Africa, Arabian Peninsula, etc.). He added that from the largest Southeast Asia collection is actually from Indonesia, both modern and ancient literature.

Afterward, he showed an ancient collection originating from the Batak tribe—a 20th century Batak calendar and an heirloom book from 1870. The heirloom book contains mantras and elixirs of life for the ancient Batak people before they recognized religion. The book, made of wood and layers of leaves, contains matters of faith, medicine, and astrology.

After viewing the collection from the Batak land, the MKRI delegation alongside Mardhiah Ridha—a diplomat from the Indonesian Embassy (KBRI) in Washington, D.C., viewed several other ancient collections, including from Bali—One Thousand and One Nights written on palm fronds—and a book that regulates the division of the sea between the Bugis and Malay people in 1836.

At the end of the exhibition, Kueh explained that the majority of these collections were obtained from literature expeditions by the Library of Congress. 

In response, Chief Justice Anwar said the ancient collection is an important history that shows the progress of Indonesian civilization. He also said Indonesians had been familiar with literature and writing since the Middle Ages, and he believes that those collections are well-preserved in museums in Indonesia. He added that after observing the ancient literature, he was even more eager to improve the literacy and reading interest of Constitutional Court employees. “I will further encourage [the employees] to improve the literacy in the Constitutional Court in order to endeavor to improve the quality of decisions,” he concluded.

The Library of Congress is United States national library and the research center of the United States Congress. It is also the largest library in the world in terms of bookshelf space and total book collections. The library’s catalog lists 32 million titles of literature in 470 languages. The library also holds a collection of 61 million manuscripts and the largest collection of ancient books in America, including the drafts of the Declaration of Independence.

Author       : NL
Editor        : Lulu Anjarsari P.
Translator  : Yuniar Widiastuti (NL)

Disclaimer: The original version of the news is in Indonesian. In case of any differences between the English and the Indonesian versions, the Indonesian version will prevail.

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