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Papua Province Community and Human Resources Expert Staff Elsye Rumbekwan giving welcoming speech at the disscussion (Photo : Perpusnas) - 

Voinews, Jayapura, Papua - Indonesia has an important national agenda that is being prepared, namely the golden generation. To be able to make this happen throughout Indonesia, including Papua, good collaboration is needed from all levels of society to instill reading and writing activities into habits and culture.

Papua Province Community and Human Resources Expert Staff Elsye Rumbekwan said reading activities can increase knowledge, train focus and concentration, as well as improve brain performance and reduce stress.

"That's the importance of reading, not just entertainment, but also a cognitive exercise that is full of benefits. When our eyes weave letters into words and sentences, our brains respond by focusing our attention. "This is the moment where focus and concentration work synergistically," he said when giving a speech representing Acting.

Governor of Papua in the Indonesian Reading Ambassador (DBI) Talks in Papua Province with the theme Indonesian Reading Movement: Reading is Healthy, Writing is Great, which was held in a hybrid manner, on Thursday (29/2/2024).

In the event held by the National Library of the Republic of Indonesia (Perpusnas), DBI Gol A Gong explained that he got his reading habit thanks to his parents. From this habit, he got his own blessings. He said that since the 4th grade of elementary school, he had to let his hand be amputated and accept judgment from people that his life would be bleak.

"My father and mother taught me three daily routine activities, namely running, reading and listening to fairy tales. As a reward for my perseverance, my reading habit, which was previously just a hobby, brought me to a pleasant profession, namely journalism. I also wrote 125 books. So, books make me empowered," he said.

Meanwhile, Papua Province Reading Ambassador Michael J. Yarisetouw confirmed that families play an important role in forming children's reading habits.

“When I was chosen as a Reading Ambassador, I created a family Reading Time movement. Because when I was little, I didn't have a book but my mother wrote down the Lord's Prayer big for me to study. From there, before I entered elementary school, I already knew how to read. "My father was the same, he required me to read one chapter of the Bible every morning, which I then had to explain after praying together," he recalled.

Furthermore, he added that literacy is not just about reading and writing, but about a person's ability to access and understand the information they hear and read. Then, the results are written down and can be useful for the wider community, as well as beneficial for their own survival.

According to a release received by Voice of Indonesia on Friday (01/03/24), the writer, Jose Alvan Ohei agrees with the DBI slogan, namely Reading is Healthy, Writing is Great. According to him, in the future there will not be many new writers in Papua. This is because the activity of writing is a calling and because the habit of reading has not yet been developed, the basic problems still need to be addressed.

"Because they are not used to reading, it will be difficult for Papuan children to move to the next step to express what is on their minds in written form. However, that doesn't mean it's impossible, but rather that it will take a long time to produce many writers, especially if it is not supported by the government. "Writing is downstream from reading," he explained.

Papua Province Literacy Activist Hanny Felle explained that women play a role in determining the future generation of Papua. According to him, women are the spearhead of driving literacy.

"I became a literacy activist starting with three books, until now I have been able to open around 25 libraries in Jayapura Regency. "We must realize that the work we do is not paid, but we work from what we have and serve with our heart," concluded the winner of the 2023 Nugra Jasa Darma Pustaloka Community Category award from the National Library//VOI