Prambanan Temple Becomes a Symbol of Commitment to Collaborative Disaster Preparedness Commitments

Prambanan Temple was the location for a Preparedness Roll Call and Equipment Display to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the Yogyakarta Earthquake on Saturday (May 23, 2026). This event served as a crucial opportunity to remember and strengthen Indonesia's disaster mitigation system. 

This event, initiated by the Coordinating Ministry for Human Development and Culture in collaboration with InJourney Destination Management, also featured the presence of the Penintas Market, which featured 20 local MSMEs.

Lilik Kurniawan, Deputy for Disaster Management and Social Conflict Coordination at the Coordinating Ministry for Human Development and Culture, also touched on the threat of megathrusts and the importance of strengthening cluster-based disaster management systems. He stated that preparedness in vulnerable areas like Yogyakarta and Central Java cannot be achieved in isolation. 

"The 20th anniversary of the Yogyakarta and Central Java earthquakes is not just a moment to remember past events. This commemoration should serve as a means of collective reflection, reinforcing and strengthening the nation's collective memory that preparedness is a crucial investment in disaster risk reduction," he said. 

The 2006 Yogyakarta earthquake marked a turning point in how the public views disaster risk. The government is now pushing for a shift from simply understanding the risks to taking concrete action in everyday life. One concrete step is the KitaTangguh (We Are Resilient) movement. 

Assistant Deputy for Disaster Risk Reduction, Andre Notohamijoyo, explained that this movement rests on three main pillars: a resilient culture, resilient collaboration, and a resilient dashboard.

A resilient culture emphasizes the importance of community awareness in understanding risks. Resilient collaboration fosters cross-sector synergy, while a resilient dashboard leverages technology and data to accelerate response times.

"We need a data-based system to make disaster management more precise and responsive," he explained.

The Regional Secretary of DIY, Ni Made Dwipanti Indrayanti, who read the speech of the Governor of DIY, said that the people of DIY live side by side with various disaster threats, ranging from earthquakes, Merapi eruptions, floods, landslides to tsunamis in the southern region. 

Ni Made also agreed that preparedness must be built as an ecosystem that includes safe infrastructure, early warning systems, disaster education, disaster-resilient villages, regular simulations, and clear evacuation routes.

"The memory of the Yogyakarta earthquake must be transformed into policy. Let's make preparedness a part of our daily culture," he said.

Indung Purwita Jati, Operations Director of InJourney Destination Management, stated that her team has educated approximately 1.000 high school students in Yogyakarta Special Region on disaster preparedness. These students are expected to become agents of change in their respective communities. 

"The hope is that these high school students can become ambassadors in their respective communities that Yogyakarta is a city of culture but also very close to or prone to disasters," explained Indung Purwita Jati.

In addition, IDM also formed the Gurila (Gunung Rimba Laut) humanitarian team which is active in psychological recovery and logistics distribution in various disaster-affected areas in Indonesia.

Regarding the temple area, Indung stated that some damage occurred after the 2006 earthquake and repairs were immediately carried out. Currently, management has also tightened supervision and restricted visitor activity to maintain the safety of the temple structure. 

This preparedness roll call also emphasized the importance of pentahelix collaboration—involving the government, business, communities, academia, and the public. Without strong synergy, mitigation efforts are deemed unlikely to be optimal.

It is hoped that this momentum will not cease to be an annual commemoration, but will become a driving force for a sustainable culture of disaster resilience. The message from Prambanan is clear: disasters may be unavoidable, but their impact can be minimized if all parties are prepared and act together.