KUALA LUMPUR, June 21 — Cultural exchange is an important medium to strengthen relations between Malaysia and Indonesia, said Communications and Digital Minister Fahmi Fadzil.
He said cultural exchange could build bridges of understanding and peace between the two countries which belong to the same kinship even though societies have been increasingly overwhelmed by the pressures of modern life.
"Living in urban areas, we can be so easily separated from our identity. We get carried away by the culture of today’s modern world that we lose our customs and traditions.
"The efforts taken by Universiti Malaya (UM) and Universitas Negeri Padang to realise tonight's programme ought to be lauded.
"This is building a bridge in the struggle for national identity and promoting culture as a medium to strengthen the relations between our two countries," he said when officiating at the Malaysia-Indonesia 2023 Cultural Relations Programme at UM Experimental Theatre, here, yesterday.
The programme organised by UM Creative Arts Faculty and Universitas Negeri Padang, Indonesia, in collaboration with Warga Tigo Luhah Tanjung Tanah Malaysia, is aimed at revealing to the public the cultural heritage of the Malaysian community and the Indonesian diaspora, especially the Kerinci tribe.
At the ceremony, Fahmi also officiated Kampung Kerinchi Diaspora Cutural Group and Association as a symbol of cultural assimilation inherited by the diaspora community as a result of the cultural relationship between the people of the two countries.
— Bernama
