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APEC Leaders to wear Balinese 'endek' during summit
As many as 21 leaders of states and territories will wear endek, the Balinese traditional woven textile, during the APEC Leaders Summit in Nusa Dua, Bali, next month, says Tourism and Creative Economy Minister Mari Elka Pangestu
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s many as 21 leaders of states and territories will wear endek, the Balinese traditional woven textile, during the APEC Leaders Summit in Nusa Dua, Bali, next month, says Tourism and Creative Economy Minister Mari Elka Pangestu.
'It's part of our effort to promote Indonesia's local culture. We've chosen Balinese endek because the summit is held in Bali,' Mari told The Jakarta Post on Monday.
The minister said all the endek clothes were traditionally handmade by Balinese weavers. 'It needed at least three people and took about a month to finish one set of endek,' she said.
Mari said Indonesia was a pioneer in the tradition of obliging state leaders attending an international summit to wear the traditional clothes of the host country.
It was in 1994 when world leaders attending the APEC Summit in Bogor, West Java, were asked to wear batik shirts designed by the late prominent designer Iwan Tirta.
Since then, according to Mari, many countries hosting international meetings asked participating leaders to wear their traditional clothes.
'During the 2011 East Asia Summit, which was also in Bali, the state leaders wore traditional weaving clothes from East Nusa Tenggara,' she said.
The Bali provincial government recently issued a regulation on the mandatory use of endek for government officials and students.
Bali's civil servants, for example, are obliged to wear special uniforms made from endek on Thursdays and Fridays.
