THE Streets of Harmony initiative, first launched in 2021, has been rebranded in George Town with new features, including a year-round stamping activity designed to enhance visitor interaction and to promote Penang as a “City of Harmony.”
Penang Harmonico Corporation (Harmonico) general manager Paul Au said the project, which began with George Town’s Street of Harmony in 2021, was later expanded to Seberang Jaya in 2022, Air Itam in 2023 and Bayan Baru in 2024.
This year, the George Town version was further developed with its own publication and extended route.
“Previously, the trail only covered from St George’s Church to Masjid Lebuh Melayu. Now, we have added the Church of the Assumption, which also houses a museum, to make the route more comprehensive,” Au told Buletin Mutiara.
He explained that the Street of Harmony programme carries different objectives depending on location.
For example, the Seberang Jaya route has been developed into an educational module in collaboration with the state Education Department, with the schools involved using a city bus for half-day tours.
In George Town, meanwhile, the programme is being positioned as a tourism product.
Au said Harmonico introduced a stamping activity, inspired by similar practices in Japan, Taiwan and China.
“The whole idea is that tourists want to bring something back apart from photos. With the availability of stamps, they can collect memories and even send out postcards by tearing off the last page of our brochure,” Au said.
Since its soft launch during the George Town Festival (GTF) two months ago, Au said demand for the brochures has been strong.
A total of 2,200 copies were distributed across six houses of worship: Church of the Assumption (800), St George’s Church (200), Goddess of Mercy Temple (400), Masjid Kapitan Keling (200), Sri Mahamariamman Temple (200) and Masjid Melayu Lebuh Acheh (400).
Au said the response exceeded expectations, with most locations running low before last week’s top-up.
“Before the replenishment, each house of worship had only about 50 copies left, which means the majority had already been taken up. This shows that visitors are really embracing the idea,” he said.
Au also said the visitors must seek out the stamping points within the sites, which are located in secluded area.
Looking ahead, Au added Harmonico aims to build multiple Street of Harmony routes across Penang, namely in Perai, Nibong Tebal and Penanti, to ultimately brand the state as the “City of Harmony.”
“We are not stopping here. Every one or two years, we want to introduce a new Street of Harmony.
“With the community support, and by linking houses of worship located side by side, this religious exploration can evolve into both education and tourism products,” he said.
Au also stressed out that the stamping initiative is not a one-off effort.
He said Harmonico intends to expand the activity to other well-known houses of worship, including those introduced under future Street of Harmony routes.
“In the future, we plan to introduce a special passport that people can carry with them to different houses of worship across Penang. They can collect stamps as a way to celebrate diversity, to record diversity, and also to promote harmony,” he said.
Story by Edmund Lee
Pix by Law Suun Ting and courtesy of Penang Harmonico Corporation