In celebration of the 50th anniversary of the establishment of China-Malaysia diplomatic relations and with the goal of strengthening friendly cooperation, the Launching Ceremony for the Call Campaign of Art Pieces for the New Dongguan Museum was held in Penang, Malaysia on July 14.
A parallel session was also held at the Dongguan Entrepreneurs Federation, receiving global attention. After the global call campaign was announced, the previous lion dance team from Kwangtung and Tengchow Association Penang donated a set of lion dance items to the museum, marking the very first donation in the global campaign.
"The lion dance items we persevered here and donated to Dongguan are monumental," said YB Wong Hon Wai, Penang State Executive Council (EXCO) Member, in an interview with GDToday. He believes that lion dance culture is one of the most potent cultural icons that bring overseas Chinese closer to their hometowns. "China's Premier Li Qiang also visited Malaysia last month, and he made an announcement that China will join Malaysia in the application for lion dance to be enlisted as world intangible cultural heritage," he added.
Zhu Ruiyi, a member of Penang Tong On Wooi Koon, was amazed upon hearing the news about the call campaign. "Although I was born in Malaysia, I really miss my home country," she said. "My father always told us that if we really amount to something someday, we should come back and visit our home country, to see what our hometown looks like."
She told GDToday that she knows a lot of overseas Chinese who really want to come back to their hometowns for a visit, but they don't necessarily have the conditions or time to do so. "If we really have these pieces passed down, I think the history behind them should be passed on to the next generation," she pointed out.
The call campaign aims to demonstrate the rich cultural deposit of Dongguan and empower Lingnan culture to go global. It also hopes to collect items that reflect its history and join the city's efforts in promoting cultural exchange and mutual learning.
Reporter | Jersey
Video | Shaolong
Photo | GDToday
Editor | Steven, Abby, James
