VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

Last August 16, the Indonesian President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) attended the Annual Session of the Indonesian People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) and the Joint Session of the Indonesian People's Representative Council (DPR) and the Indonesian Regional Representative Council (DPD) in 2022 at the Indonesian MPR Building. As in previous years, President Jokowi wore traditional clothes when giving a speech at the Nusantara Building. On this occasion, President Jokowi chose the Paksian shirt from Bangka Belitung Province. The Paksian clothes worn by President Jokowi consist of a long calf-length robe, trousers, sash and cual woven cloth, typical of Bangka. For the head covering, President Jokowi wore sungkon. On the clothes there are decorative ornaments with the motif of Pucuk Rebung (bamboo shoot). Actually, the original color of this traditional dress is red, but as time goes by, the color of the clothes adjusts to the tastes of the wearer.

During his speech, the President mentioned the reason for choosing the Paksian traditional clothes from Bangka Belitung with the green bamboo shoot motif. According to President Jokowi, these motif and colors symbolize harmony and hope. The motif symbolizes harmony, while the green color contains the philosophy of coolness, hope, and growth.

Bangka Belitung historian and humanist, Akhmad Elvian, stated that the name Paksian comes from the Chinese language, which means a forehead cover or head crown, which is worn complete with red baju kurung (long and loose traditional blouses). Paksian clothes are typical clothes for Pangkal Pinang brides. Citing kemdikbud.go.id, this Paksian traditional dress is said to be influenced by China and Saudi Arabia.