Squabbles between nations these days are not only over matters such as boundary lines, offshore islands with rich natural resources, or air rights space. A new kind of debate springs where countries are claiming a particular cultural heritage as theirs. With ardent passion, signs of such tempers sometimes flare among citizens of both nations and leaders on both (or more) sides have to cool the crowd and defend their interests.
Can you guess which countries are in the whose’ controversy when it comes to batik? Yes, neighbours Indonesia and Malaysia. Both parties have their claims basis as their defence strategies. Shall we briefly listen to their views?
Indonesia: Batik has been long associated with the islands of Java where the batik tradition is rich, continuous, alive and still widely used till today. They claim to be the seat of batik legacy, with a refined tradition from the royal courts to the common folk. The best refined pieces of batik has always been traditionally attributed to the Indonesian region.
They claim that Malaysia has a relatively new tradition of batik borrowed from cousin Indonesia.
Malaysia: The people of Malaysia, like Indonesia have always worn batik as their attire and this is also seen in the batiks worn by the immigrant societies of early Malaya. Malaysia too, has an active batik industry mainly in the states of Kelantan and Terengganu and the capital Kuala Lumpur. Besides, the “Malay World” or the Nusantara region (rantau) has a shared tradition and roots over many cultural traits such as the lingua franca of Malay (called Bahasa Malaysia, Bahasa Indonesia or Bahasa Melayu), similarities in many other aspects such as food, religious beliefs, etc. In modern countries, the former lines of boundaries between ancient kingdoms, human migration patterns, cultural exchange and diaspora always do not share a clear and defined cultural border.
Sibling rivalry over a piece of cloth? If good must come out of this, it is perhaps this: that not any piece of cloth is worth arguing over, we are talking about batik 
We welcome you to post your comments and thoughts in a, yes, diplomatic and politically correct, manner, please.
Filed under: Batik Discussion | Tagged: batik, batik indonesia, batik malaysia, batik politics, cultural border, java
I appreciate the Batik of both countries. They both have different patterns and inspirations drawn in their Batiks. I have lived in Indonesia, where I grew up with Batik from Java and other parts of Indonesia. I am not biased, but since I came from Java, I have witnessed the history, the passion, the craftmanship of Batik processing in the region. However, the claims of who started it, does not really matter or should it be an argument. This is because, like I said, they do have their differences in terms of patterns, styles and designs. So, I believe that this matter should not be of any disturbance to both countries.
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I like Batik
Alasan memakai batik
http://blog.aldohas.com/archives/batik/
Malaysia is 50 years old and Indonesia is 61 this year. What is the age of this beautiful art? It has been around far before the idea of a country was conceived in this region, far before they even had flags. It belongs to the people of this archipelago, we call it “Kepulauan Melayu”. So I don’t see why anyone country should calim the art to be theirs.
Batik is the artistic expression of the people of their surroundings and nature. Malaysia nor Indonesia can claim the rights of this wonderful art for their own. It belongs to the peaceful people of Kepulauan Melayu.