Kebaya - a personal, Singapore, and Southeast Asian story

A very good evening to you all. We are here tonight for a very momentous and significant occasion – to celebrate the inscription of our kebaya on UNESCO's Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

No amount of words can represent how vibrant and impressive the kebaya is. It represents the fabric of our culture and our shared heritage, so tonight I thought would talk about three stories: first, a personal story; second, a Singapore story; and third, a Southeast Asian story.

Many of you would have a personal story about Peranakan, Malay, Thai, Indonesian, or Bruneian culture, and many of you would have a personal story about the kebaya.

1. Mine is no different. As many of you know, I am Peranakan, so the kebaya is very personal to me. I grew up with it. My grandmother wore a kebaya. My great-grandmother wore a kebaya, and I still remember how resplendent she looked at my wedding.

2. My mother wears a kebaya, my wife – being married to me – wears a kebaya. My daughter wears a kebaya, although she has very quickly outgrown it. Now we have to buy more for her as she grows up, and I would really love to see her wear a kebaya on her wedding day.

3. It is a very personal thing to all of us in Singapore.

The kebaya represents a rich history. We are a port city.

1. It is an infusion of different cultures, and it is also something that is shared among our Eurasian, Malay, and Peranakan communities, bringing us together and enriching this tapestry we call our heritage.

It is not just a personal story, not just a Singapore story, but also a Southeast Asian story.

How special it is for this to be the first multinational nomination of the kebaya that brings together all our different countries: Brunei, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, and Singapore.

1. It is something that binds us together – a rich tapestry like no other that shares our rich cultural heritage across a region that is fast-growing but also rich in history, culture, language, and style.

2. That is Southeast Asia – very unique indeed.

But with this, what can we now do? What must we now do?

1. We need to ensure that we preserve this special cultural heritage not just to honour the generations before us, to enjoy it for this generation; but also, to preserve it for our children and their children.

I want to take a pause now to thank the many different people and organisations represented here who have made truly intangible contributions to this historic achievement.

1. Kawan Kebaya has, for the last two and a half years or so, been on this important journey to bring together different focus groups and engagements.

2. There is the 'Love Kebaya' exhibition team. They brought together our friends from different countries to write a suitable inscription to ensure that we can have this for all our countries.

3. Beyond Kawan Kebaya, there are also friends of Kawan Kebaya. Many others represented here have worked very closely with our National Heritage Board. They have worked closely with our schools and our friends from around the region on exhibitions for the Kebaya;

4. and now we have made it even more modern. We have the #WeHeartKebaya hashtag. For those of you who are on Instagram and social media, please use the hashtag.

We are not just stopping there because the next generation needs to also have a great appreciation of the Kebaya.

1. We have students from Nanyang Polytechnic who have put together a Kebaya cat keychain, working together with Kawan Kebaya and the National Heritage Board.

We are going to be launching many exhibitions next year.

1. For those who are young and more digitally inclined, we are also building a Kebaya game, as well as a Kebaya resource kit for primary school students.

2. We are not just honouring the past and enjoying the present, but also making sure that the Kebaya stays with us for our future generations.

May it long remain in our generations and for generations to come.

Thank you.