Documentary on world’s longest rattan mat premieres at dam opening

BELAGA: A documentary recording three upriver communities breaking the Guinness World Record by weaving the world’s longest rattan mat premiered at the official opening of the Murum Hydroelectric Dam in Murum near here yesterday.

The ‘Mat Weavers Tale’ records the feat of some 400 weavers from Belaga and Baram successfully weaving and combining a ratttan mat to a length of 1128.272 metres.

Their achievement in May this year has eclipsed the previous Guinness World Record held by Sweden for the longest woven rug at 797.51 metres long.

Filming started in February when the weavers from the Kayan, Kenyah, Buket, Penan and Lahanan communities began searching for rattan for the project.

The documentary also showed other villagers helping them in stripping and transporting the rattan.

The weavers then spent four months weaving the different sections of the mat and finally joining them together, at the Sungai Asap which is the resettlement area for those affected by the Bakun Hydroelectric Dam during the communal ‘Pesta Ubek’ ( Harvest Time Festival).

According to Sarawak Energy Berhad ( SEB) chairman Datuk Amar Hamed Sepawi, the documentary “tells the story of how hydropower development has brought a positive change to the directly-affected communities in these areas.”

“As part of efforts to proactively document, communicate and provide a balanced view of the lives of the communities after the completion of both the Bakun and Murum dams, a Belaga Women NGO- Peng Doh worked on this documentary with support from the SEB.

“It shows how upstream communities, which have been relocated due to the dams, have enjoyed access to development in a way that still preserves their cultural identity,” he said.

The 90- minute documentary comes in three half- hour episodes.

At the Murum opening ceremony yesterday, a fiveminute trailer was shown to the audience which included Head of State Tun Pehin Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud and Chief Minister Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Adenan Satem.

The different versions of the documentary will be broadcast on selected TV stations and made available online. — Bernama