23 February 2002

Brunei: Silat for students

A Brunei school, in the lookout for an extra-curricular activity for its students, stumbled on the idea of starting a silat club as it was this traditional Malay martial art that put the Sultanate on the global map when the country won gold medals in the 1999 Southeast Asian Games in Brunei.

The Kampong Masin Primary School yesterday kicked off the Silat Club with a strong support of more than 50 students.

Adi Hj Kahar, the head observer of the Silat club and also one of the teachers in the school, said the plan to establish a Silat Club was mooted last year.

With the help of the Persekutuan Silat Kebangsaan Brunei (PERSIB) that has provided the club with two instructors, the first day lessons began in right earnest yesterday.

The two instructors, Awg Timbang Ahmad and Noriemie Erna Mohd Danan, would teach the students the basic skills of martial art.

Every Friday and Sunday afternoon from 3 to 5 pm the students would gather at the school and begin their lessons in silat.

Students from Primary Three up to Primary Six are encouraged to join the club.

Pg. Hj Jaluddin Pg. Salleh, the Secretary of PERSIB, was also present yesterday to provide some encouragement to the students.

He said, "Silat is a good discipline to learn in spare time instead of loafing around aimlessly. It provides one with the knowledge of self-defence."

The Silat Club has utilised the empty garden slot in the school compound providing a perfect ambiance to it.

Written by AZROL AZMI
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