Jogja Expo Sekaten kicked off

Jogja Expo Sekaten kicked off

YOGYAKARTA: Jogja Expo Sekaten (JES) 2004, which was previously called the Sekaten Night Market, was officially opened on Friday by Yogyakarta Governor Sultan Hamengkubuwono X of the Yogyakarta Palace.

Held for 40 days annually ahead of the ceremony to observe the birthday of Prophet Mohammad, to fall on May 2, the expo is held in the palace's Alun-Alun Utara (north square), occupying some 4,000 square meters of land.

Unlike in the past, the Yogyakarta administration has involved the private sector to professionally manage the event. It invited Surabaya-based event organizer PT Citra Pamerindo, expecting that the night market would attract more tourists and business people to Yogyakarta.

"We are asked to make Sekaten not just a nationally but also internationally recognized event," Citra Pamerindo's president director Taufik Ismail said, adding that some 400 business groups and individuals were taking part in the expo.

Friday night's opening ceremony was embellished with a cultural carnival and various traditional performances including a theatrical performance Repertoar Bangsaku (my country's repertoire) by Tratag Budaya Estetik. --JP