President Jokowi's Message During The National Batik Day Commemoration At The Mangkunegaran Palace Solo, October 2, 2019

President Jokowi opened the 2019 National Batik Day at the Mangkunegaran Palace, Surakarta, Central Java. (Twitter/@KSPgoid)

JAKARTA - Three years ago, October 2, 2019, President Jokowi opened the commemoration of National Batik Day. The event was held at the Mangkunegaran Temple, Surakarta, Central Java. During the event, Jokowi appreciated the development of batik in the archipelago.

Jokowi also admired batik. This cultural object has been known to the world, he said. He also thanked the Indonesian people, especially craftsmen and batik entrepreneurs. Without them, batik would not be able to become Indonesian cultural ambassadors abroad.

Batik was once considered unsuitable for men. The Governor of DKI Jakarta, Ali Sadikin, agrees with this. He often refuses to attend official events of the DKI Jakarta government, especially state events with batik. The strong stigma of batik as a dress for women is the estuary.

Entrepreneurs from the New Order era, Abdul Latief, realized Ali Sadikin. According to him, batik can be transformed into everyone's clothing, as long as it is made with a combination of attractive patterns. Latief also tried to challenge Ali using batik.

The man who was called Bang Ali answered the challenge. Ali made himself like an ambassador for batik. He also uses batik in all kinds of activities. In fact, batik can make its users look classy, male or female. Batik was then chosen as a national dress. Even though the rules made are still on a scale throughout Jakarta.

The governor, who served in 1966-1977, allowed people to wear batik (long sleeves) to attend official events. The result was brilliant. Ali Sadikin's hard work was rewarded. Batik goes up in class. Moreover, batik is starting to be comfortable used by everyone throughout the country. Without Ali being able to become a batik will not be known throughout the country, even the world.

The continuation of my decision as governor to set a long-sleeved batik shirt as the official dress is that such clothes can be accepted by the public to go to receptions, to weddings and so on. In fact, foreign diplomats also use it for meetings that are quite polite," said Ali Sadikin, written by Ramadhan KH in the book Bang Ali: For the sake of Jakarta 1966-1977 (1992).

Ali Sadikin's batik relay weapon was followed by President Jokowi. He opened the National Batik Day Commemoration at the Mangkunegaran Palace on October 2, 2019. Jokowi's opening was carried out with high optimism. He said Indonesia had succeeded in developing batik.

He wants the Indonesian batik industry not to be complacent. Batik must continue to develop, he thought. So that batik can become an Indonesian cultural ambassador in the eyes of the world. Moreover, batik lovers are starting to be present in various countries in the world.

Yesterday I came to a guest, the former Australian Prime Minister, Mr. Internetman, Mr. Internetman. I prepared batik. I asked him when he met me using the batik that Mrs. Iriana had prepared. It turned out that he was wearing it and I was lapanging for wearing batik and really, yes, because the batik was good. So it really changed that he looked not from Australia, it could be seen from Solo."

We also discuss batik at international events. We must also dare to continue to introduce batik to international events and make batik as Indonesian cultural ambassadors to the world community," said President Jokowi during the commemoration of National Batik Day, quoted from the Cabinet Secretariat website.