Jakarta (ANTARA) - Minister of Women's Empowerment and Child Protection Bintang Puspayoga stated that women are still categorized as part of the vulnerable group by placing them in lower positions than men.

Puspayoga conveyed this statement at the handover and inauguration of the Mitra Seni Indonesia (MSI) board and the MSI Annual General Meeting of Members here on Tuesday.

According to the minister, the social construction that places women below men is not right because women can be the strength of the nation.

Puspayoga said, women constituted almost half of the population in Indonesia, thereby making them potential extraordinary human resources in every line of life, including in the fields of art and culture.

To this end, she lauded MSI as a non-profit organization that is a platform for creative people in Indonesian precious arts and culture.

She also praised MSI for its unwavering support to the improvement of artistic skills and preserving cultural arts.

Puspayoga expected that the new MSI chairperson and the new management can continue the program to synergize and collaborate for women's empowerment and child protection.

Meanwhile, MSI Chairperson for the 2023-2026 period Sari Ramdani Basri said she supports the preservation of cultural arts in regions across Indonesia. The preservation of cultural arts is an effort to protect cultural heritage from damage, she affirmed.

Through cultural preservation, artistic values that exist in a tradition can be maintained, even if it undergoes a process of change in the cultural form.

Mitra Seni Indonesia, comprising over a thousand members, with majority being women and elderly, keeps its enthusiasm high to be creative in various artistic skills.

Some 23 art-related training for members comprise traditional musical instruments angklung, kolintang, arumba, choir, vocal, dance, and painting.

In November 2022, MSI participated in the Women Twenty (W20) Post Summit in Bali by featuring MSI dancers.

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Translator: Lifia P, Kenzu
Editor: Azis Kurmala
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