Ong (fourth left) presents a framed photo of the Ukit tribe as a memento to Abdul Karim, as others look on. – Photo by Monica Chua Chin Mei
SIBU (Dec 28): All the cultures and traditions of Sarawak’s ethnic groups must be recorded in pictures or videos so that they can be a source of reference for the sake of the younger generations, suggested Tourism, Creative Industry and Performing Arts Minister Dato Sri Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah.
He said the beauty of Sarawak is yet to be discovered and introduced to people within and outside of Sarawak.
Sarawak exhibits notable diversity in ethnicity, culture and language given that 31 out of its 34 ethnic groups are the indigenous people, he added.
“A picture is worth a thousand words as the saying goes. Our younger generation will learn to appreciate, apprehend and possibly be imbued with the gratitude for the beautiful cultures, traditions, lifestyles, rituals and more through pictures.
“A nation’s heritage has very high value and is extremely unique, reflecting the people’s values and shaping their identities. Preserving and transmitting this knowledge is especially relevant to ethnic groups socially and economically,” he said when officiating at the opening ceremony of a photography exhibition on the Ukit tribe organised by Sibu Photographers Association (SPA) here yesterday.
He pointed out that in order for the state’s heritage to stay alive, the people need to play their part in keeping them relevant.
“These history, traditions and cultures that define us should be practised and learned within communities and between generations regularly to ensure the constant transmission of knowledge, skills and meaning,” he added.
The exhibition, titled ‘Ukit Blue: Shoot Before They’re Gone’, is being held at University of Technology Sarawak (UTS) until Jan 2, 2023.
Abdul Karim commended SPA for sharing the same mission and vision as his ministry in terms of documenting, recording, maintaining and promoting the cultures and traditions of ethnic groups in Sarawak.
He said documenting the culture and traditions of the Ukit tribe by having photographs of them is one of the very good ways of introducing them to people in and outside of Sarawak.
“The Ukit ethnic group is one of the minority ethnic groups in Sarawak and it is the eighth group documented by SPA.
“SPA has the same vision and mission as the ministry. We will continue to support and promote the beauty of Sarawak through activities that contribute to capacity building in Sarawak’s heritage, arts and culture sectors,” he said.
He also noted that SPA president Edwin Ong, who won the grand prize of Hamdan International Photography Award (Hipa), is actively involved in documenting minority ethnic groups in Sarawak.
“I wish more people will be inspired by his artwork and follow in his footsteps participating in many international competitions,” he said.
Abdul Karim also hoped local higher learning institutions would do research on the background of various ethnicities in Sarawak.
Earlier in his speech, Ong said he will publish a book on the cultures and traditions of Sarawak’s ethnic groups.
He said he wants the younger generations to see the beauty of every ethnic group in Sarawak.
“I wish that all the cultures and traditions of every ethnic group will be preserved and passed to the next generations. I have spent eight years capturing photos of eight different ethnicities.
“Our next plan is the documentary of Melanau in Mukah and Berawan and Seban in Miri by pictures. These are the minority groups that still can be found in Sarawak.
“I wish to document as many as possible about their cultures and traditions in pictures for the sake of our next generations,” he said.
Among those present were Ministry of Tourism, Creative Industry and Performing Arts permanent secretary Datu Hii Chang Kee; Ministry of Tourism, Creative Industry and Performing Arts head of Arts, Culture and Heritage Section Dr Elena Chai; UTS vice chancellor Professor Datuk Dr Khairuddin Ab Hamid; Bukit Assek assemblyman Joseph Chieng and Cr Joshua Ting.
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