In recent days, there has been a loud voice about a fashion from Indonesia which called kebaya to be UNESCO intangible world heritage. A lot of supports are spread throughout various social media platforms and other social networks.

Reported from the Indonesian Ministry of Education and Culture RI, hundreds of Indonesian women ranging from children, teenagers, to adults made a crowd at the Indonesian Ministry of Education, Culture, Research and Technology office wearing kebaya to do a casual walk in the city. This event was organized by the Pertiwi Indonesia community and the Indonesian Women in Kebaya (Perempuan Berkebaya Indonesia) as their support for the kebaya to be registered as the world intangible cultural heritage from Indonesia to UNESCO.

This movement is known as the “Kebaya Goes to UNESCO” movement. The Indonesian Internet Domain Name Manager together with the Cultural Conservation Community including the Perempuan Berkebaya Indonesia, the Digital Cultural Heritage Foundation, the Rancage Cultural Foundation, and Seluas Tanah Merah have also launched a website tradisikebaya.id to support this movement. Through the website, women throughout Indonesia are invited to participate in this movement.

It is written on the site that “the world needs to know and acknowledge that Kebaya is a cultural heritage of dress from the ancestors of the archipelago that has existed for hundreds of years.” Five criteria for the kebaya registered as an intangible world heritage to UNESCO are also described on the website, including:

  1. Kebaya is regional or traditional clothing worn as a top. To strengthen the impression of locality and femininity, kebaya needs to be combined with batik, woven or other types of wastra as the skirt.
  2. Kebaya is a dress model. The choice of materials can be brocade, chiffon, velvet, cotton, t-shirts, and so on. So do not be confused that all models of tops made of brocade are said to be kebaya.
  3. As a clothing model, kebaya has a standard cut (or often referred to as grip). Namely: front side opening, symmetrical left and right, hands closing elbows. It is undeniable that there are many modifications to the kebaya with various versions, but at least this standard is recognized first.
  4. The kebaya is different from the brackets and bodo clothes which do not have a front opening.
  5. There are several models of kebaya that are currently known by the wider community and widely used by Indonesian women, such as Kebaya Kartini, Kebaya Kutubaru, Kebaya Krancang, Kebaya Noni/Nyonya, as well as several other types of kebaya with their own peculiarities.

Not only the communities who are involved, the Kebaya Goes to UNESCO movement also received support from various public figures*,* both from the government and community leaders. Also, all levels of Indonesian society can now easily show their support for this movement with Twibbonize, by using a Kebaya Goes to UNESCO themed frame on your best photos and sharing it to your friends on social media. Below are some frames of Twibbonize Kebaya Goes to UNESCO:

CFD Berkebaya

by Arsita Resmisari

Link: twb.nz/cfdberkebaya

Kebaya Goes To Unesco

by Arsita Resmisari

Link: twb.nz/kebayaunesco

Kebaya Goes To UNESCO

by CFD Berkebaya

Link: twb.nz/kebayagoestounesco

Kebaya goes to UNESCO

by Bening Cahyani

Link: twb.nz/kebayagoestounescopbn

Srigan mendukung kebaya goes to UNESCO

by Wisaksono Setyo Putro

Link: twb.nz/srigankebayagoes2unesco

Kebaya Goes to UNESCO

by Beatrix Cynthia

Link: twb.nz/kebayagoestounescopbs

Dukung Kebaya

by ries handono

Link: twb.nz/dukungkebaya

Kebaya Goes To Unesco

by Iman Kamarga

Link: twb.nz/blakebayagoestounesco

Kebaya Goes to UNESCO -PBIA

by Nurul Esti

Link: twb.nz/pbiagoestounesco2

Kebaya goes to UNESCO

by Nurul Esti

Link: twb.nz/pbiagoestounesco1

With those criteria above, the kebaya has been a heritage of Nusantara fashion for hundreds of years. Given how expensive this legacy is for the unity and integrity of the Indonesian nation, it is important for the people to keep it together. Therefore, here is Twibbonize with a small yet meaningful step for the Kebaya Goes to UNESCO movement.