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In the 1930s and ’40s, the Dutch buildings that lined the streets of Salatiga, Central Java, were iconic of Indonesia’s fight for independence — that is, of course, only when they were set on fire.

Back then, torching hotels and office buildings was a way of sending the Dutch colonialists a clear message: Get out!

The people of Salatiga today have no one to drive out and no reason to burn down the beautiful buildings that the Dutch left behind. In fact, members of the community are now fighting the government to protect the very buildings that their ancestors sought to destroy.

In stark contrast to Jakarta, there is only one mall in Salatiga — the modest Taman Sari, which has little more than a Ramayana department store.

The mall sits on the spot where the city’s main road, Jalan Sudirman, starts, along which hole-in-the-wall stalls offer locals everything they need and nothing they don’t. And unlike the high-rise buildings that dominate Jakarta’s skyline, there are none in Salatiga.

However, the luxury of walking along paved sidewalks and through parks while admiring this quaint city’s colonial architecture may soon become a thing of the past. This is because the local and provincial governments have yet to formally identify which buildings are a part of Salatiga’s heritage and therefore warrant legal protection.

“If we put up a lot of malls in Salatiga, we will be worse than Semarang, which has already lost many of its historical buildings,” said writer Eddy Supangkat, coordinator of Forped BCB Salatiga, the organization spearheading the campaign to conserve Salatiga’s heritage buildings.

“I want Salatiga to be known for its historical buildings, not for its malls.”

The local and provincial governments have had 65 years since independence to figure out what to do with their heritage buildings.

This month, they have been feeling the heat as the public demands that they get a move on.

“The Salatiga government doesn’t yet have legal authority over these buildings. They are the responsibility of the Ministry of Tourism and Culture, which acts through the Conservation of Cultural Heritage Agency [BP3],” Valentino Haribowo, head of the Salatiga government’s public relations department, told the Jakarta Globe.

Valentino gave his comments at the local government’s office, an old building marked with a gambrel roof, decadent high ceilings, grand iron light fittings and a white rendered exterior that are characteristic of Dutch architecture.

Even though the local government has denied responsibility for the buildings, Salatiga Mayor John Manuel Manoppo has given a private company permission to knock down a building in the military’s old headquarters, now known as the ex-Kodim complex.

The 100-year-old complex was bought by PT NV Yogyakarta last year. The company plans to develop a mall there and the complex is now completely fenced in with meters-high metal fences.

After months of public campaigns against the development, the company has put up a sign outside the complex that reads: “This land and building are legally owned by PT NV Yogyakarta.”

Through a few holes in the fence, the public can peer into the site, where the main building has been leveled off, save for a couple of walls.

“There’s no problem with the demolition. The only issue is what will be built afterwards,” Mayor Manoppo told members of the local media last year.

But following a spate of negative press and lobbying by the community — including an active Facebook group and a coin drive— the government has changed its tune and is now claiming that it wants the complex to be protected as a heritage site.

On Jan. 22, a group of activists marched to the local government office, demanding legal protection of the ex-Kodim complex.

On Wednesday, police questioned local government staff over the demolished building.

In theory, the complex is already legally protected. The 1992 Law on the Protection of Cultural Heritage states that any building more than 50 years old is automatically considered a heritage site and should therefore be listed as such and preserved.

Forped BCB tried to have the ex-Kodim building registered as a heritage site before it was sold, so that NV Yogyakarta would be unable to develop the site. “What I am worried about is that there are more heritage buildings that have been sold to private owners,” Eddy said.

NV Yogyakarta’s operations were halted two weeks ago due to public pressure. The Conservation of Cultural Heritage Agency sent a warning letter to the Salatiga government, which then forwarded the message to NV Yogyakarta.

The warning, however, came too late.

“We sent BP3’s warning to the owner, but we didn’t realize the main building had already been demolished,” Valentino said.

It is unknown if or when NV Yogyakarta will go ahead with its development plans, although it has submitted a request to the local legislature for permission to develop the mall.

The local and provincial governments are now cooperating with BP3 to examine 16 buildings for heritage status consideration, including the government-owned office, one Christian church and a number of schools.

It is hoped that the move will be echoed throughout the country. On Jan. 20, Indonesia’s oldest movie theater, Bioskop Banteng in Pangkal Pinal, Belitung, was demolished. The theater was built in 1917.

In Salatiga, examples of old buildings that have been bought and demolished include a Dutch film studio that is now a KFC restaurant and a former hotel and school that are now markets.

The ex-Kodim and Bioskop Banteng cases have raised suspicions of corruption in local governments.

“The local governments are the ones allowing these buildings to be knocked down,” Joe Marbun, coordinator of the Cultural Heritage Advocacy Community, told the Globe.

“These buildings are legally protected by law, so why are they being demolished? The governments obviously have motives.”

When asked how much the local government would profit from a new mall in town, Valentino did not respond, only saying that the Salatiga government now supported the protection of the ex-Kodim building.

Eddy was not willing to speculate. “I’m not exactly sure if there’s corruption in this part of the government and I wouldn’t want to falsely accuse anyone. I prefer to think positively,” he said.

He added that he was certain corruption existed in some parts of the local government.

But he is happy with the positive support he has found in the community.

“It is important we preserve our history, like Bung Karno said Jasmerah: ‘ Jangan sekali-kali melupakan sejarah ’ [‘Don’t ever forget your history’].”