Malaysia bars RI's batik sarong

JAKARTA (JP): The Indonesian batik sarong is barred from entering Malaysia because of protectionist barriers, the Malaysian embassy's chief commissioner of trade, Sukandar Abdul Latif, said.

However, Latif told The Jakarta Post here yesterday that other kinds of Indonesian batiks could be exported to Malaysia.

In response to a complaints this week that Indonesian exhibitors were not allowed to bring their batik products with them, he said that Indonesian batik sarongs could be brought into Malaysia for exhibitions on the condition that they will be brought out again after the event.

The chair-person of the Indonesian Association of Fashion Designers and Producers, Poppy Dharsono, said earlier this week that three Indonesian fashion designers were prevented from bringing their batik products with them for participation in the first ASEAN Fashion Expo to be held in Kuala Lumpur from July 21 to July 25.

Latif said there might be a misunderstanding in this case since the Malaysian government has never barred Indonesian batiks in general, only the batik sarong.(als)