Queen pleased 8th ASEAN Traditional Textiles Symposium a tremendous success

"To my committee members that put their effort, and worked as a team, I must thank them from the bottom of my heart. Today, we should celebrate the success of the five-months planning of the event.

"Thank you for your hard work projected through the event's tremendous success," said Her Majesty at the closing ceremony of the symposium here today.

Themed "Celebrating Textiles: A Journey", the symposium was organised by Yayasan Tenun Pahang Diraja, which showcased the beauty of Malaysian textiles including songket and batik, as well as the techniques of textile-making, such as tekat, tenun, telepuk and menggerus for the world community to learn.

The biennial symposium was officiated by Yang di-Pertuan Agong Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri'ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah on Sept 26.

Tunku Azizah also expressed her gratitude to Singapore for paving the way for Malaysia to hold the 8th ASEAN Traditional Textiles Symposium.

"Actually Singapore should be the host, but I made a request to Singapore to give way to Malaysia," said Her Majesty, adding that the event was initially planned to be held last year but was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

At the closing ceremony, Tunku Azizah handed over the symbolic symposium flag to Laos, which was represented by Duangmala Phommavong, as the next host for the traditional textiles symposium in 2024.

Phommavong while congratulating Malaysia for organising the 8th edition of the symposium said she gained meaningful experiences in the uniqueness and diversity of arts, culture and ethnicity of Malaysia.

"I have learned a lot about Malaysian textiles as well as the cultural performances," she said while extending invitation to delegates to attend the symposium in Laos.