Forget Pakatan, it may just be ‘independents’ who stir Sarawak
Most significant perhaps is the emergence of ‘independents’ from all corners of Sarawak who see themselves as the ‘Third Force” and the unlikely ‘wind to stir’ change in Sarawak. Notable here is the rise of the long dormant and unhappy Dayaks, who make up 45% of the population in Sarawak. The Dayaks believe that they have been unfairly marginalised by the ruling BN.
Free Malaysia Today
KUCHING: The people of Sarawak have a dream. They dream of jobs, better salaries, schools, water and electricity.
Awesome simple truths yet so terribly complex when dressed with politics and doctrinations.
It’s been a trying week looking for that which is real in the midst of an endless stream of loud political theatrics. Truth is often lost in the slush of who said what.
But in Sibu on May 2010, they found that elusive ‘truth’ and impossible became possible.
With a simple ‘x’ , Sarawak played out the Barisan Nasional coalition led by Chief Minister Taib Mahmud and Sibu welcomed DAP vis-a-vis Pakatan Rakyat.
Since then there’s been a steady rise in awareness here of ‘choices’, ‘rights’ and ‘possibilities’.
But unlike before, now the Pakatan coalition of DAP, PKR or PAS is ‘just another option’, noted a longtime political observer.
“The way I see it, Sarawak is ready to field its own independent reps (elected representatives).
“True… they may not be as knowledgeable as the seasoned campaigners but they will be best useful to their own people.
“Locals don’t really trust the peninsular politicians. They don’t like what is happening in PKR and they don’t like the way Umno plays with religion and people’s dignity,” he said.
Third Force
Post Sibu, a steady stream of new possibilities has emerged to Sarawakians.
Most significant perhaps is the emergence of ‘independents’ from all corners of Sarawak who see themselves as the ‘Third Force” and the unlikely ‘wind to stir’ change in Sarawak.
Notable here is the rise of the long dormant and unhappy Dayaks, who make up 45% of the population in Sarawak. The Dayaks believe that they have been unfairly marginalised by the ruling BN.
The Dayaks comprise Bidayuhs and the Ibans, who incidently make up the largest native community. The Penans, the smallest community, total just over 12,000 people.
Until earlier this year the term ‘Dayak’ was a socially and bureaucratically accepted identity.
But a growing ‘patriotism’ among the Dayaks has apparently unsettled Taib, who has since decided to strike off the term much to the chagrin of Dayak intellectuals.
According to blogger and veteran DAP politician Sim Kwang Yang, the term “Dayak” came to political prominence even before the formation of Malaysia in 1963.
“During that time, the budding political consciousness of Sarawakians was very much influenced by the racial narrative of the Malayan federation.
“The politics of race is the politics of counting heads. It was more or less agreed that since the Dayak were the majority people in Sarawak, the chief minister ought to be a Dayak. There was also a tacit agreement that the governor would then be a Malay,” he wrote.
And so it was that on Sept 16, 1963 Stephen Kalong Ningkan, an Iban became the first chief minister. This, however was shortlived. In 1967 Ningkan was replaced by another Iban, Tawi Sli, in a crisis engineered by Kuala Lumpur.
But Sim notes in the blog hornbillunleashed, that Sli was only a seat-warmer for an eventual Malay-Melanau chief minister, a move which until today “defies the BN logic of communal politics”.
Seething anger
Meanwhile decades of festering discontent among the Dayaks gave birth to the Parti Bangsa Dayak Sarawak (PBDS) in 1983 under the guidance of Leo Moggie and Daniel Tajem.
But the party has since fallen into the wayside after a failed coup to oust Taib in 1987, an unsuccessful attempt at the state polls and its subsequent deregistration because of factional disputes following Moggie’s retirement.
Several splinter groups have mushroomed since and a new breed of middle class educated Dayaks are questioning the BN’s political practices.
Alongside this middleclass group are large pockets of angry Dayaks who live in poverty. Low education, unemployments and alcoholism remains a matter of urgent concern.
Said an informed observer in Kuching: “Dayaks are angry with the BN government for many reasons.But they are particularly bitter at the government for rejecting their request to form the Malaysian Dayak Congress (MDC), which was meant to spear social and economic reforms within the Dayak community.
“Once PBDS got deregistered the leaders tried to set up MDC but the government objected on the grounds that MDC would be a threat to national security.
“I know many influencial Dayak leaders who are not members of any political party. They are interested in being part of the independent “Third Force”.
“Sarawak is ready for change, especially from the more than 100,000 ex-PBDS cadres who are currently partyless after their group got deregistered.”
