BelitongToday, Tanjungpandan – Acting Regent of Belitung, Yuspian attended the symbolic opening of the 2024 Belitong Chinese International Festival.
The event took place in one of the pavilions at the Chinese cemetery in Pilang Village, Tanjungpandan, Friday, March 1, 2024.
On this occasion, Acting Regent of Belitung Yuspian received a broomstick and machete from the chairman of the 2024 Belitung Chinese International Festival committee, Ayie Gardiansyah and Chairman of the Budi Bakti Foundation, Hendri Haryono.
The broomstick and machete symbolize the start of the 2024 Belitung Chinese International Festival. The machete and broomstick as symbols of clean-up action.
Usually Chinese residents in Belitung will carry out cleaning activities at the ancestral graveyard or “washing the grave” before carrying out ‘Cheng Beng’ activities.
“Although the opening of this event is symbolic here, it does not reduce the meaning of the excitement of the implementation of the 2024 Belitung Chinese International Festival,” said Yuspian in his speech, Friday, March 1, 2024.
He explained, the purpose of the 2024 Belitung Chinese International Festival was to restore tourism conditions in Belitung.
This coincides with the momentum of the Cheng Beng celebration or grave worship. For this reason, the Belitung Chinese International Festival 2024 is to capture this opportunity.
“The economic potential is extraordinary, ladies and gentlemen. There are 11 thousand Chinese tombs in Belitung, and half of them are still actively pilgrimaged by families,” he said.
Yuspian explained, when initiating the 2024 Belitung Chinese International Festival event, his party had met with representatives of Chinese community leaders and the Belitung Malay Customary Institution (Lembaga Adat Melayu Belitung/LAMBEL) to ask for input and suggestions.
“I am a native Belitung and understand that there is no racial issue in Belitung because I have Chinese colleagues and friends since childhood. So there is no racial issue,” he added.
He also explained that 2024 BCIF had actually been in his mind for a long time even though he had not been able to realize it because he had not yet become Acting Regent of Belitung.
“This idea started when I was assigned to Kelapa Kampit during Cheng Beng. Many residents of Chinese descent who came to make a pilgrimage was willing to return to Kelapa Kampit to make a pilgrimage to the ancestor’s grave. They were willing to sleep in the Kelapa Kampit dormitory with up to 15 people in one room,” he explained.
Therefore, he considers that this activity has an extraordinary potential so that it should be packaged as good as possible.
“One of the potentials is that there will be many pilgrims who return to Belitung. This phenomenon is important in the midst of our very sluggish tourism conditions today,” Yuspian concluded. (Nazriel)
