BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN

THE ‘Stories through Memories: 70 Years of Friendship’ exhibition at the Art Gallery, Royal Wharf in the capital has attracted more than 400 visitors since it opened on June 12.

The exhibition is a tribute to the men and women of Borneo who served survived the horrors of the second World War. It also celebrates the lasting friendship of the people of Brunei and Australian troops formed 70 years ago.

Christopher Lush, a history teacher at Jerudong International School (JIS), yesterday brought 160 students to the exhibition to broaden their understanding and knowledge of the Sultanate’s history.

“These Year Nine students are currently learning about World War II in our history classes. We as a school saw that this exhibition was a great opportunity for them to learn more about Brunei,” he said.

“This is an excellent way for people to learn about what their country has gone through,” he said.

Commenting on the exhibition features, Lush said that the videos were a great educational tool to educate the public as it provides a glimpse of the past.

Lush added that the exhibition was also beneficial to expatriates residing in the Sultanate. “We as expats are able to learn more about the country we are in through the memories of these people. We are able to understand how the country was before,” he said.

Dr Maslin Hj Jukim, a Malay Language and Literature lecturer at Universiti Brunei Darussalam (UBD) said the exhibition provided visitors with information not available in history books.

“We want to share the stories of those who were in the war to the public because these are untold stories and it is great for the public to listen to actual experience of Brunei’s history,” said Dr Maslin, who is also head of UBD’s oral history research project. Representatives of the exhibition noted that the majority of visitors were groups from schools.

The Brunei Times