Reviews & Press : : Heritage Houses of Penang

The Star, Wednesday, June 17, 2009

Help maintain Unesco listing, private firms urged

PRIVATE corporations must help George Town maintain its UNESCO World Heritage site listing.

Penang Tourism Action Council chairman Datuk Kee Phaik Cheen said corporate social responsibility (CSR) programmes undertaken by private companies were important to complement efforts by NGOs and the public sector,

“Corporate concerns should be centred not only on heritage buildings but also on preserving our unique streetscape, endangered traditional trades and culture as these are what set us apart from other heritage sites in the world.

“Educational and awareness programmes are important and this is where CSR comes in,” she said at the Penang Traders Hotel Corporate Social Responsibility Fair on Saturday.

The fair saw a songket exhibition by the Tuanku Nur Zahirah Foundation (YTNZ), and an art exhibition and tea ceremony, beaded shoe making and nyonya embroidery demonstrations.

According to YTNZ (Songket Project) chief executive officer Roslan Wilkinson, all sales proceeds of the songket items will be used to fund the foundation’s activities to support, promote and preserve the industry.

The YTNZ comes under the patronage of Raja Permaisuri Agong Tuanku Nur Zahirah.

The highlight of the fair was the launch of the book Heritage Houses of Penang by author and historian Khoo Salma Nasution and photojournalist Halim Berbar.

Heritage supporter: Khoo (right) at the launch of her latest book. With her is Kee.

Khoo said work on the book started in 2004 and it only came out early this year.

“The main purpose of the book is to promote Penang’s heritage architecture globally.

“Unlike my other books which are only available locally, this one will be sold worldwide as it’s published by Marshall Cavendish — an international distributor,” she said.

There were also book signing sessions by Khoo and Penang Hokkien Pocket Dictionary author Luc de Gijzel.

In his speech, hotel general manager Karl Karlsson said the fair was held in support of local arts, culture and tradition.

“This is part of our CSR project to benefit the local community.

“In this day and age of digital advancement, local dialects, tradition and cultures have taken a backseat.

“Providing artisans, craftsmen, artists and authors with a platform to promote their work will make these heritage treasures more accessible to society,” he said, adding that the hotel would organise more such events in future.

Among the crowd was Peranakan cultural expert Michael Cheah.

Praising the organiser, Cheah expressed hope that more corporations would come forward to help promote local arts and culture as many people have lost touch with their culture these days.

“For instance, the younger generation may not find their culture interesting until they discover its beauty and that can only happen at exhibitions like this,” he said.