What is 'national culture'? A symposium at UM unpacks this big question

Kumpulan Wayang Kulit Sri Warisan Pusaka from Machang, Kelantan will be performing a special show at Experimental Theatre, Universiti Malaya in KL on Dec 11 as part of the "National Culture Congress 1971: A Symposium 50 Years On" initiative. Photo: Pusaka/Cheryl Hoffmann

A hybrid two-day symposium The National Culture Congress 1971 – A Symposium 50 Years On will be held at Universiti Malaya in Kuala Lumpur on Dec 11 and 12.

The event will be held at the original site where the National Culture Congress in 1971 was convened. It will also be streamed live online.

This symposium, a collaborative effort by cultural organisation Pusaka, literary journal Svara, Universiti Malaya and Cendana (Cultural Economy Development Agency), will gather cultural practitioners and experts from diverse fields to critically appraise the development of culture in Malaysia since the formulation and implementation of the National Culture Policy.

Panelists include National Laureate Prof Muhammad Haji Salleh, Dr Maszlee Malik (former Education Minister), Elizabeth Cardosa (Badan Warisan Malaysia’s former executive director), academic Prof Mohd Anis Md Nor (managing director of Nusantara Performing Arts Research Centre), senior lecturer/researcher Dr Welyne Jeffrey Jehom, researcher Adil Johan, Zamzuriah Zahari (dean of Aswara, National Academy of Arts Culture & Heritage, dance faculty), filmmaker Muzzamer Rahman and others.

Moderators for the symposium sessions are Eddin Khoo (Pusaka founder/writer) and academic Teo Lee Ken. Two daytime sessions (11am and 2pm) will take place on Dec 11 and an evening session (8.30pm) is slotted on Dec 12.

Kumpulan Wayang Kulit Sri Warisan Pusaka from Machang, Kelantan will be performing a special live show (8.30pm) at Experimental Theatre, Universiti Malaya in KL on Dec 11 as part of the National Culture Congress 1971: A Symposium 50 Years On initiative.

The National Culture Congress and the corresponding National Culture Policy were the culmination of efforts to define Malaysian culture and build a foundation for national harmony in the wake of the racial riots of May 13, 1969.

While some of the original intentions of the National Culture Congress of 1971 still resonate in contemporary Malaysia, the framework of a National Culture Policy does not always reflect the organic and ever-evolving complexity of today's Malaysian cultural life.

In this spirit of reflection and reimagining, this symposium aims to revisit and critically appraise the aspirations and ramifications of the National Culture Congress of 1971 through opening a space for public discussion and collective reimagining of the foundations of Malaysian culture, particularly among cultural practitioners across diverse communities and fields.

Audience members for the symposium to be held at Experimental Theatre, Universiti Malaya this weekend must be fully vaccinated. The venue will be enforcing strict public health guidelines. Registration for the free event here.