Batik Enlivens UNSC Session
Minister of Foreign Affairs Retno Marsudi chairs the UNSC session in New York, the United States, attended by delegates wearing batik clothing. (Photo by: Indonesian Ministry of Foreign Affairs)
The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) session chaired by Indonesian Minister of Foreign Affairs Retno Marsudi on Tuesday (7/5) local time looked more special and unique than usual.
The meeting room was livened up by various batik and woven patterns worn by delegates from member countries, including the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres who was seen wearing a bright Troso woven clothing.
The batik dress code for this session marking the member countries respect to Indonesia for holding the UNSC Presidency for period of May 2019.
The various batik clothing worn by the UNSC delegates were part of their personal collections. Some delegates said that the clothing were gifts from the Indonesian delegation in New York, or they got the garments as souvenirs when attending conferences in Indonesia, and some others buy them during their visit in the country.
Aside from Guterres, other delegates from the United States, Germany, Ivory Coast, France, Peru, the Dominican Republic, and China were also seen wearing batik clothing.
“Todays session was certainly pleasing to the eyes as most delegates were seen wearing beautiful and colorful Batik including the UN Secretary-General himself who was wearing Balinese woven clothing,” Marsudi said.
The presence of batik clothing at the UNSC session was expected to boost the popularity of Indonesian traditional fabric as it had also gained UNESCO’s recognition as a world cultural heritage.
The UNSC Open Debate which adopted a theme “Investing in Peace” was held to constantly encourage the capacity building of peacekeeping forces in various missions worldwide. The session was one of Indonesia’s priority agenda during its UNSC 2019-2020 membership. (Ministry of Foreign Affairs/ES)
Translated by : Fairuzzamani Inayatillah
Edited by : Estu Widyamurti, Mia M. Bonaedy
