Jakarta — At least two public library buildings in East Java and West Java were demolished in July 2026 to make way for other regional government projects, which came as Indonesia's National Library, known as Perpusnas, saw its budget cut by 47.6 percent this year.
Regarding the demolition of libraries, academics and literacy advocates say the moves show the governments have set the wrong priorities at a time when literacy levels remain low.
In Blitar Regency, East Java, the library building at SD Negeri Tlogo 2 elementary school was torn down in mid-May. The demolition made way for a new outlet of the Red-White Village Cooperative, one of President Prabowo Subianto's priority programs. The cooperative building now stands next to the school.
Thousands of books had to be moved from the library into a classroom. Twice-weekly reading sessions stopped after the demolition. Construction noise also disrupted classes. Muslikah, a school committee member said the committee had asked officials to wait until a replacement building was ready.
"We asked that this building be repaired first, so it's ready to use, before the building used for the cooperative was torn down," she said, adding that complaints to the Blitar legislative council had not led to any resolution.
In Bandung, West Java, the Gasibu Library was leveled on 10 July as part of a renovation project around Gedung Sate, the seat of West Java provincial government. Provincial Secretary Herman Suryatman said the demolition followed proper legal procedure and that library services would move online.
However, the demolition came as West Java's Community Literacy Development Index stood at just 18.7 in February 2026, far below the national average of 40.06, according to Statistics Indonesia data.
Adjo Akasia, coordinator of a community reading group called Sekolah Taman, said the demolition showed the government was not serious about literacy.
"Whatever the justification, it means the government isn't yet serious about building public awareness to read," Ado said.
