“I came here and was immediately inspired by the idea of positioning West Sumatra with pencak silat as its main attraction,” he said at the inauguration of West Sumatra Deputy Governor Vasko Ruseimy as chairperson of the West Sumatra Indonesian Pencak Silat Association (IPSI) here on Thursday.
According to the minister, the central government is currently formulating a cluster system to emphasize each region’s unique strengths. West Sumatra, he said, is considered highly suitable for pencak silat development.
With the new West Sumatra IPSI leadership in place, he encouraged the management to develop and share a comprehensive concept for pencak silat advancement in the province.
The concept could include centralized training at sports venues, including for athlete development from an early age, and cultural performances, he said.
“I see the strength of pencak silat lies here, as this martial art also originates from West Sumatra,” he added.
Moreover, he highlighted that President Prabowo Subianto, who holds the IPSI chairmanship, is strongly committed to promoting sports diplomacy through pencak silat, with the goal of taking the martial art to the Olympics.
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According to the minister, this is not merely an idea as real steps towards it have been taken ever since Prabowo assumed the IPSI chairmanship.
Meanwhile, West Sumatra IPSI chair Ruseimy said that he will follow up on the minister’s directives and expressed his commitment to improving pencak silat achievements in the region.
He emphasized that such improvements would be grounded in traditional pencak silat, which forms the philosophical basis of the martial art.
“It is traditional pencak silat that will distinguish Minangkabau pencak silat athletes from others around the world,” he said.
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Translator: Zulfikar, Kenzu
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
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