By DayakDaily Team
KUCHING, June 13: Premier Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Abang Johari Tun Openg inaugurated the first ‘Jom Kita Bincang’ (Let’s Talk About It) exhibition in Kuching, focusing on sustainability, health, and social rights through children’s literature.
In his speech, read by Deputy Premier Datuk Amar Dr Sim Kui Hian at the Sarawak State Library, Abang Johari emphasised the importance of early exposure to these crucial topics through literature.
“By strengthening the role of children’s literature and making sure all children have access to accessible and interesting books, the groundwork are laid for them to fulfill their potential in any number of fields in the future.
“With good reading skills comes also the ability to follow and participate in the democratic debate – also in this way children’s literature is an underappreciated foundational bloc for our democracies,” he said.
Apart from that, Abang Johari said by including the three angles in children’s literature, it will strengthen their reading skills, which is the portal to a wider world, to education, progress, and participation in the scientific, political and cultural efforts moving the country forward.
“Another impact of children’s literature is the bonds it creates. These come in many forms; closest to my mind is parents reading aloud to their children; sharing stories, discussing their meaning and their relation to everyday life,” he added.
Held in in collaboration with the Sarawak State Library, UNICEF, the Swedish Arts Council, AstraZeneca, and the Malaysian Rare Disorders Society, the exhibition draws on the rich tradition of children’s literature in Sweden, by exploring how further the dialogue on sustainability, health, rights, and social issues.
Meanwhile, Ambassador of Sweden to Malaysia His Excellency Dr Joachim Bergström said the Swedish Little Library exhibition at the Sarawak State Library provides cutting-edge Swedish children’s books, touching on subjects such as sustainability, the authority of grownups, and bullying.
“We have titles in English, Mandarin, and three books that we have translated into Bahasa Malaysia for this project,” he said. — DayakDaily
