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Thousands of East Flores weavers to showcase skills at Bale Nagi Festival
Thousands of weavers of East Flores, East Nusa Tenggara, will showcase their skills as part of Bale Nagi Festival.
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Thousands of local weavers in East Flores, East Nusa Tenggara, will perform a weaving show during the Bale Nagi Festival, held from April 6 to 25, 2019. (Shutterstock/marie martin)
Bale Nagi Festival is set to take place in Larantuka regency, East Nusa Tenggara, from April 6 to 25.
The festival will feature woven fabrics made using various weaving techniques, such as Adonara, Solor, Larantuka, Ile Mandiri, Lewolema, Demon Pagong, Titehena, Wulanggitang and Ile Bura.
As part of the festival, 1500 weavers from several districts in Larantuka will participate in the festival to showcase various weaving skills on April 23.
The festival is held to commemorate the local Catholic church's Easter tradition called Semana Santa sacred week, which has been celebrated by the residents for more than five centuries.
Head of East Flores Culture and Tourism Agency Apolonia Corebima said he had coordinated with the Tourism Ministry and the East Nusa Tenggara Tourism Agency for the festival.
Read also: Weaving to preserve heritage, make ends meet
“Hopefully the weaving performance will attract pilgrims and tourists who attend the Semana Santa ceremony in Larantuka,” he told The Jakarta Post on Tuesday.
According to Apolonia, weaving is part of the daily routine of women in East Flores, and a way to improve their family's welfare.
Silvester Petara Hurit, curator of Bale Nagi Festival, said the event would also serve as a calling for the people of East Flores living outside the island to return, as the festival's name means "coming home".
“This is a cultural movement, an invitation to all people of East Flores out there to come home. We also extend this invitation to pilgrims and tourists from all over the world who will attend the Semana Santa ceremony to witness our culture,” he said. (dpk/wng)
