SHAH ALAM, 19 May: The International Museum Day celebration, celebrated on May 18 every year around the world, is to encourage the community to appreciate and preserve heritage and culture, which is our national pride.
The Director General of the Department of Museums Malaysia, Datuk Ibrahim Ismail, said that it is aimed at enlightening the public on the importance of museums in our daily life that many may not be aware of.
“The celebration is also the government’s recognition of museums, which play a role in encouraging the people to visit and get to know museums better.
“It is the aim of museums to attract the public’s interest in preserving cultural heritage and race, which is our pride,” he said at the closing ceremony of the International Museum Day celebration at the Silver Jubilee Hall, the Selangor State Government Secretary (SUK) Building last night.
The celebration which was filled with customs was enlivened with the presence of the Tengku Panglima Diraja Selangor, Tengku Sulaiman Shah, who represented the Sultan of Selangor; the Chief Minister, Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim; the Selangor State Secretary, Datuk Mohamed Khusrin Munawi and the Executive Officer of the Malay Customs and Heritage Corporation Selangor (PADAT), Azlinda Azman.
The resolution to hold this celebration was made by the museum international governing body in 1977, where Malaysia first celebrated it in 1997.
Selangor was chosen as the host this year, with the theme “Fostering Relationships with Museum Collection”.
An estimate of 100 countries are involved in the International Museum Day celebration, while 33,000 museums carried out the celebration.
