BY JAMES WONG
KUCHING: The Kuching Hockien Association (KHA) is calling on the public to submit their photos of the recent Seng Ong Kong deity’s birthday processions in Kuching in a photography competition themed “Harmonious Sarawak.”
“We want to showcase the multiracial and multireligious harmony in Sarawak through the procession parades for the Seng Ong Kong deity’s birthday that was held on March 13,” said Datuk Richard Wee, the President of KHA, during a press conference at KHA office today (April 1).
“We were inspired by the large crowd drawn to the procession and we noticed there were many photographers present during the procession. We also received positive feedback from West Malaysian participants that commended the unity between races and religion that could be seen at the procession parade,” he added.
The competition, held in collaboration with the Sarawak Photography Society, is free and open to the public from today until April 15th.
According to Wee, this is the first competition of its kind for the association.
“We wanted to provide a platform to promote local culture and heritage, as well as the harmony that exists in our society,” he said, adding that the suggestion to hold the competition came from the President of Sarawak Photography Society Chan Hua Chiang.
The competition has two categories, namely the professional camera category and mobile camera category. Participants must submit photos of the procession parade, with a minimum of 5 photos and a maximum of 10 photos per entry. The photos must be in JPEG format between 1MB to 5MB, with a resolution of 2400 x 3600 and DPI not less than 300.
The professional camera category offers a first prize of RM800, second prize of RM600, third prize of RM400 and five consolation prizes of RM150 each. The mobile camera category offers a first prize of RM500, second prize of RM300, third prize of RM200 and five consolation prizes of RM80 each.
The winners will be announced via email or telephone and on KHA’s Facebook page on May 1st, along with an exhibition to display the winners’ works.
To sign up, interested participants can find the forms on the Facebook page of KHA, Sarawak Photography Society, and SinChew Daily. All submissions should be sent to kuchinghockien@gmail.com, and more information can be obtained at the KHA office at 016-2242748.
