Baysoor women to revive straw weaving craft

The traditional straw weaving craft is currently at risk of dying out in the village of Baysoor, Mount Lebanon. Being mainly a woman’s activity, local craftswomen are currently striving to revive it. One craftswoman, Ibtissam Malaeb, explained to Al Diyar newspaper that she “uses wheat straw because it is more resilient and resists damage.” She pointed to some 100-year-old utensils that are still in very good condition, she boasted. “We make kitchenware and utensils as well as decorative items,” she said. Voicing her concern over the fate of this endangered craft, Malaeb appealed to Ministries of Labor and Social Affairs to save this centuries-old tradition from extinction by giving crafters and manufacturers the right incentives and motivation. “Workers in the domain need the straws of wheat the least to continue in business,” she said. “There are many women out there who have stopped working for many reasons, mainly financial, adding that presently there are only 12 Baysoor women active in this industry”: Malaeb added. For his part, President of Green Hand association, Engineer Zaher Radwan told Al Diyar that the his association is presently setting up a syndicate for traditional artisans and manufacturers in an attempt to regulate, develop the sector and create new job opportunities. (Al Diyar, 29 March 2015)