South West Papua has the potential about wealth in terms of culture and social environment consisting of various tribes. Cultural preservation only occurs because each tribe still follows various current practices in their daily lives. However, there are some cultures that are now considered insignificant when used in everyday practice. Examples include the use of cultural attributes that attach to the body, such as the attributes of clothing and various other accessories. The various daily activities carried out during this period are more likely to involve clothes that look formal and flatter the body. Especially for those who work actively in the public sector, for example regional representatives. Thus, traditional clothes with additional features are only used in certain cultural activities.
The current situation seems to force us to abandon the culture that existed since ancient times and was believed in. Traditional clothing is one of the remaining items. When no one wears traditional clothes anymore, it is feared that extinction will occur and no one will know about these traditional clothes in the future. Regional governments, as stakeholders responsible for the protection of society, not only in the formal sphere but also in the informal sphere, must of course think of appropriate solutions so that traditional clothing does not disappear from circulation. There must also be collaboration with traditional stakeholders, namely tribal leaders and traditional communities in South West Papua, to sustain culture.
The government of the South West Papua region has big ideas to preserve the existing culture, such as the use of traditional clothing and its many functions. The use of traditional clothing as a whole is considered trivial these days, but it turns out that in certain situations and activities, other assistive properties can still be utilized. For example, the governor of Southwest Papua and his wife exercised their right to vote in the presidential election on February 2024, wore typical traditional clothes, a station with South Western Papuan characteristics. It is therefore not surprising that when the governor arrived at the polling station, officials displayed decorations representing the tribal culture of South West Papua. Even government officials wear traditional clothes. Therefore, the governor, who initially only proposed, did not want to lose the creativity of the people and therefore decided to take advantage of the cultural characteristics that were there when he came and used the right to vote.
In the future, it is expected that more and more people and officials or stakeholders will use cultural characteristics such as traditional clothing to perform and attend certain activities. in 2024, General elections will be held simultaneously at the end of the year, where the candidate for governor of the region will be decided. The event could repeat the success of the presidential election earlier in the year, which was already busy showcasing the cultural identity of South West Papua. Other events can also use similar ideas and concepts to achieve the same goal of preserving the culture of South West Papua.