Janice, a regular customer, shows the mini rattan chair that she wants to buy for her collection.
A mini replica of a gallows.
Zura (third right) and her staff give the thumbs-up to the products at the Sibu Prison’s Infokraf exhibition.
The exhibition section.
Mohd Noridzan Fadzli Daud explains how a prisoner sentenced to death is executed by hanging.
Zura Abdullah
SIBU: Sibu Prison is currently holding a 10-day exhibition cum sale of its craft products at the roofed car park of Sibu Town Square from 8am to 10pm daily until Jan 31.
Sibu Prison enterprise division head Zura Abdullah said various items made from rattan, wood and iron, sewing and needlework products and frozen food by the inmates are on sale at reasonable prices.
She said the exhibition is held under their ‘Infokraf’ programme, and its main objective is to disseminate information on activities in the prison other than to market its products.
“Many may think that prison is just a place where the inmates are doing nothing but only eat and sleep.
“They are wrong because we have many programmes for their physical and spiritual well-beings to prepare them for life after leaving the prison,” she said when met on Tuesday.
According to Zura, their products are also sold at the prison compound in Awang Ramli Amit Road here.
Besides walk-in customers, she said they welcome bookings from individuals, groups and corporate bodies.
She further mentioned that the products include rattan rocking chairs, bird cages, chairs, lamp shades, shoe racks, book shelf, scarf hangers, grilling iron, songkok, coffee tables and frozen food such as curry puff, bun, noodle and doughnut.
Their collection target is RM10,000.
“The craft products are of good quality because we have regular customers. I am told that our rattan products are better than those in the market in terms of durability and craftsmanship.
“We also received many bookings for our songkok which is the signature item of Sibu Prison. For songkok, we can sell 30 to 40 pieces during normal days and it usually increases during festive season,” she said.
A regular customer Janice Wong, 44, said she liked the products of the prison because of their intrinsic value.
She said she had visited the handicraft selling section in the prison several times before to buy rattan chairs and carved wooden mirror frame.
“My family members also buy some of the products,” she said, adding she came again on Tuesday to buy a mini rattan chair to add to her collection of decorative items.
Janice said she came on Monday and bought a mini fish trap.
Items used in the whipping of prisoners are also being exhibited.