Jakarta (ANTARA) - Culture Minister Fadli Zon urged wider global recognition of pencak silat and stronger support for making the Indonesian martial art an Olympic sport through cultural diplomacy.
He spoke at the opening of the first International Pencak Silat Culture & Heritage Festival in Amersfoort, the Netherlands, on Saturday (Oct 10).
"We share an aspiration for pencak silat to become part of the Olympics. To achieve this, international cooperation and ever wider participation are needed," Fadli said in a statement on Monday.
He hoped pencak silat communities worldwide can help advance the goal while preserving the cultural values and traditions underpinning the art.
Pencak silat blends martial skills, art, traditional music and spiritual teachings, Fadli said, and its preservation depends on masters, practitioners and communities who pass the knowledge to the next generation.
The ministry has recorded 3,277 elements of Indonesia's intangible cultural heritage, including pencak silat, which the UN cultural agency UNESCO inscribed on its Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2019.
The Oct 10-11 festival was organized by the Dutch Pencak Silat Federation (NPSF).
It featured cultural performances, demonstrations, workshops and training classes bringing together Indonesian pencak silat masters and practitioners with the Dutch community.
Three Indonesian delegations took part: Panglipur Indonesia from West Java, Harimau Singgalang from West Sumatra and Persaudaraan Setia Hati Tunas Muda Winongo Madiun from East Java.
Fadli praised the federation's role in developing pencak silat in the Netherlands, where it oversees about 50 schools with more than 700 registered practitioners.
"The involvement of local communities in preserving this Indonesian tradition shows the important role of people-to-people relations in cultural diplomacy," he added.
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Translator: Farika, Kenzu
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
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