Preserving State heritage via Museum Festival
Published on: Monday, November 13, 2023
By: Wu Vui Tek
Alesia launching the 2023 Museum Festival.
Kota Kinabalu: Emphasising the conservation and preservation of State heritage sites, objects and both tangible and intangible cultural elements is crucial for maintaining Sabah’s identity.
Tourism, Culture, and Environment Minister Datuk Christina Liew said this is outlined in the State Heritage Enactment 2017, which mandates the conservation and preservation of State heritage.
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She said this during the launch of the 2023 Museum Festival at the Sabah Museum Department.
Liew’s speech was delivered by Tourism, Culture, and Environment Ministry Deputy Permanent Secretary II, Alesia Sion.
“This festival must be prioritised and carried out continuously so that attention to the government’s basic purpose and meaning can be achieved.
“I understand that tonight’s festival serves as branding and improvement for the North Borneo Rainforest Festival programme last year.
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“I was informed that this festival is planned in accordance with the function of the Sabah Museum Department,” said Liew, who also welcomed participants from Peninsula Malaysia.
The Sabah Museum Department’s effort to gather the cultural characteristics of the State in one festival is an alternative means of achieving this policy, she said.
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This endeavour should be developed by attracting more external cooperation to maximise its value, she said.
Furthermore, she said festivals could provide knowledge to every visitor and instil a love for cultural values.
Liew expressed hope that the festival would not only preserve the cultural values of Sabah but also make ancestral cultural heritage recognised and appreciated by all levels of society.
Such festivals also have the potential to become tourism products and support the local community in terms of economic generation, she added.
Among the attendees were the Department of Museum Malaysia’s Deputy Director General (policy), Mohamad Shawali Badi, and Sabah Museum Department’s Deputy Director II, Lester John Millip.
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