Mondulkiri revives annual indigenous culture event
THE Mondulkiri provincial Department of Culture and Fine Arts will organise an event to celebrate indigenous cultures on April 11-12 at Phnom Dos Kramom hill in Sen Monorom town’s Sokdom commune.
The event is open to the public and everyone is welcome to attend and learn more about the cultures of ethnic minorities in Cambodia in order to help preserve them, the department stated.
Department director Srey Touch said that youth groups, vendors and civil servants in the province will all be on hand to participate in the event and show support for the preservation of the identities, cultures and traditions of the indigenous communities in the province.
“We also would like to draw local and international tourists to come here and enjoy the event and gain a greater understanding of the value of these minority cultures, and also especially to encourage our indigenous youth to join in the protection of their traditions and culture,” he said.
He said this is an annual event – regularly held on April 12 – but it had been cancelled for the last two years due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Touch added that plans for the day include a parade with ethnic minority youths and community members representing their cultures with traditional costumes, musical instruments and other cultural items.
The parade will start at the foot of Dos Kramom mountain and proceed to Senmorom park and then return along the same route back to the main location for the event.
The ethnic minority groups will also showcase models of their traditional houses and other items they traditionally craft and some of these products of their cultures will be sold at six vendor stalls, he said.
“The celebration will also include the traditional games played by the ethnic minority groups which have been handed down for generations in their cultures, with the participation of elderly community members to lead them. There will be dancing and singing as well and all of it will be related to these minority cultures, and we hope the day’s fun attracts the attention of the younger generation,” Touch said.
Kreung Tola, coordinator for the provincial Indigenous People Network, said on April 10 that, in addition to educating youths about the ethnic minority peoples, the celebration is also organised as a means to showcase the ethnic minority groups in Cambodia to the outside world and attract more of them to visit their communities.
“It is really good that the provincial department of culture and fine arts participates in this celebration ... We applaud the support from the authorities here who are helping us with education efforts and the preservation of the cultures of our peoples,” he said.