GEDONG: The establishment of a Sarawak Songket Institute is a strategic effort to preserve and elevate the traditional art of weaving for the continued appreciation by future generations.
Tengku Ampuan Pahang Tunku Azizah Aminah Maimunah Iskandariah put forward the proposal to ensure the authenticity of Sarawak songket is preserved.
“The proposal to establish a dedicated institution is crucial as a centre for learning, research, and documentation to safeguard the original techniques, patterns, and aesthetic values of Sarawak songket.
“Sarawak needs its own Songket Institute that can produce documentation, develop syllabuses, and provide a dedicated learning space where young people can learn this weaving art.
“Young people should take part in this cottage industry so that it will not be forgotten, as songket is a precious heritage of Sarawak,” she said during her visit to Seri Gedong Songket in Kampung Kanchong Baru here today.
She also expressed admiration for the spirit and creativity of the youth and local community who continue to develop Sarawak’s weaving craft to greater heights.
Tunku Azizah further emphasised that close cooperation between the Sarawak Government, Kraftangan Malaysia, and various stakeholders is essential in turning the songket industry into a sustainable and competitive entrepreneurial field.
She described threads and weaving as symbols of the strong bonds among the peoples of the Nusantara region.
“The peoples of ASEAN, especially in Southeast Asia and the Nusantara, are in fact weavers. It is this art of weaving that ties the bonds of brotherhood,” she said.
