By DayakDaily Team
KUCHING, Oct 13: Several priceless artefacts—some decades old—that told the story of the Bidayuh people’s rich cultural heritage were lost in a fire that destroyed the Barok House No. 2 at the Sarawak Cultural Village (SCV) on Sunday night (Oct 12).
According to TVS, SCV’s sales, marketing, and events director, Zaini Zainuddin, said that the traditional house was built around 2007 as part of efforts to expand the cultural exhibition area to welcome the growing number of visitors.
“The house was unoccupied, but it held important artefacts and exhibition pieces contributed by the Sarawak Museum Department and members of the Bidayuh community themselves,” he said when met at the scene.
He said that the fire marks a painful first for the cultural village, which has stood as a living museum for 35 years.
“Since SCV opened in 1990, this is the first time we’ve faced such a tragedy. God willing, we’ll do our best to restore and rebuild it as soon as possible, especially with Visit Malaysia Year coming up,” Zaini added.
Despite the loss, the rest of the village remains open, with SCV chief executive officer Jane Lian Labang assuring that operations will continue as usual.
“Only the Bidayuh House area will be temporarily closed. Other ethnic houses, performances, and cafés are operating as normal,” she said. — DayakDaily
