Published on: Saturday, July 04, 2009 |
"To be honest, competition is secondary, you don't come here to pick up the winners because I believe no culture is better or less than another as each country has a unique culture of its own," Masidi told a dinner for participants of the 4th Sabah International Folklore Festival at Shangri-la Tanjung Aru Resort, Thursday.
The true and overriding intent of the Sabah International Folklore Festival is building friendship and bringing nations closer together, Masidi stressed.
"Celebrating friendship in culture and finding new friends is the reason you are all in Sabah from many parts of the world," Masidi told the packed crowd of folklore troupes from Kazakhstan, China, India, Cambodia, India, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Brunei, Java, Kalimantan and Negri Sembilan.
The 2-8 July Sabah Folklore Festival includes a Premier Dinner Show at 1borneo on July 5 and a two-day folkdance competition on 6-7 July at the Sabah Cultural Centre, Penampang. Only Sri Lanka, Brazil and Russia failed to turn up at the last minute due to the global H1N1 flu pandemic.
Citing wars and conflicts among other equally big destructive economic and environmental challenges like global warming, Masidi said they prove each state need do whatever little they can to bring nations much closer together to tenderize burdensome problems that afflict the world.
"I say it again: winning or losing is irrelevant, we are here to celebrate the uniqueness of our own culture."
He said Sabah is playing host to such an ambitious world folklore extravaganza because it feels good about its exemplary harmony in differences.
"Given 32 ethnic groups who speak 50 languages, Sabah is a land blessed with much culture," he pointed out.
"For us, differences are an advantage, something we treasure because the fact that we are able to group all 32 races together in harmony clearly indicate where there is a will, where there is openness of heart, differences are something to celebrate because differences are a reflection of the rich cultural heritage that all of us cherish."
