IBANS AND BIDAYUHS ARE FOREIGNERS?

If we refer our Federal Constitution to any American or European lawyer who speaks English, he may say ibans and bidayuhs are not people of Sarawak! He may say that they are not natives! But he will agree that sea dayaks and land dayaks are natives of Sarawak! This is because ibans and bidayuhs are not stated as indigenous people of Sarawak! So, to the American or European lawyers, ibans and bidayuhs, although are two largest groups of indigenous people, they may say that ibans and bidayuhs are foreigners!

This is because under Article 161A of the Federal Constitution, the only races that are considered as “natives” as indigenous to Sarawak are the Bukitans, Bisayahs, Dusuns, Sea Dayaks, Land Dayaks, Kadayans, Kalabits, Kayans, Kenyahs (including Sabups and Sipengs), Kajangs (including Sekapans, Kejamans, Lahanans, Punans, Tanjongs and Kanowits), Lugats, Lisums, Malays, Melanos, Muruts, Penans, Sians, Tagals, Tabuns and Ukits.

Nothing is mention about ibans and bidayuhs.

Once ibans and bidayuhs are not identified as natives, the impression foreigner may have is that ibans and bidayuhs are truly foreigners although they are not.

At this moment, we have another problem, that is, dayaks who are with mixed parentage. Those ibans and bidayuhs who have Chinese or Indian parents, they are not considered as natives of Sarawak. We have iban and bidayuh Yang Berhormats in the State, but, we are yet to hear any of them spoke on this issue in Parliament or in the State Legislative Assembly.

When we in the DAP spoke on dayak issues, Datuk James Masing said we better not speak because we are not dayaks and do not know dayak culture well. James Masing said it was a display of cultural arrogance for us in the DAP to speak on behalf of the dayaks. To Tan Sri Jabu, he may say that we do not even know how to “bekayuh”. So, each time we spoke on native issues, we were hard hit.

The simple reason for iban and bidayuh YBs that caused them not to speak was because they have to protect their own pockets. Once elected as YBs, they got few thousand ringgits as allowances per month. On top of that, the BN government gave them other perks. They were made to sit on the Board of Directors of statutory or public listed companies where they can get a few more thousand ringgits per month. So, they have comfortable life and with that they dared not speak against the wrong thing the BN government had done.

So dayak people should think and throw their Yang Berhormat who are in the BN away into the seas! This is because your dayak Yang Berhormats enjoy life, while you there who are supporting them suffer. The most they can give you may be, a few bottles of "cap langkau" from their allowances and the rest are then theirs to keep!

温情满人间 ~ 贫苦寡妇有新家

诗华日报 20.10.2009 (星期二)

（古晋19日讯）还记得在今年3月报章报导西里益，以贫苦寡妇郑秀梅一家八口，居住在一间破烂摇摇欲坠烂屋的新闻吗？
新闻曝光后，在行动党峇都林当州议员温利山律师与党元老贝伟大等人号召下，义款与各种生活必需品纷至沓来，显示温情满人间。
接着在各界热心人士的合作协助下，郑秀梅一家已远离恶劣生活环境的恶梦，现在她一家已拥有一间水电俱备的钢骨水泥独立屋。
再加上行动党为她一家筹获一笔义款，也分别存放在银行的定存和储蓄户口。另外福利部每月会拨450令吉福利金，他们生活已无忧。
温利山今日在该党数领袖陪同下，拜访郑秀梅新居后告诉记者说，从郑秀梅事件，显见社会充满温情，他要感谢各界人翁善长，包括人联党的捐助，让郑秀梅脱离恶劣生活环境。
他也特别赞扬福利部说，当他致函予部陈情郑秀梅的困境，该部翌日就批准每月最高额的450令吉福利金予郑氏一家。
不过温利山说，他知道地方议会由资助辖区贫户计划，所以他曾致函巴达旺市议会申请协助郑家，然而至今他未听到佳音。温氏也感谢有关学校在听取他陈情后，允许已停学的郑家子女返校就读。希望日后学有所成，造福国家社会。

Good Work of DBKU in Batu Lintang Constituency

After being elected as the ADUN member, I found it a tough job for me in Batu Lintang Constituency to convince government staffs and the three municipalities to uplift the “image” of Batu Lintang Constituency which had huge potholes, clogged drains, tall bushes, uncovered drains and uneven roads here and there.

Now, we can see things have changed and I appreciate the respective municipalities of the good they have done, but, I have a special mention for DBKU. They have done a good job for Batu Lintang and many roads in the Sg. Maong area of the Constituency of which is within the jurisdiction of DBKU have been resealed. My special mention is because huge part of Batu Lintang Constituency is under the jurisdiction of DBKU. DBKU occupies much larger areas than either Padawan Municipal Council or MBKS. Batu Lintang Constituency was a stronghold of SUPP and was held through Chan Seng Khai for three terms after he defeated the DAP strongman, Sim Kwang Yang in a straight fight in 1991.

Not less than ten roads have been resealed, widened and upgraded in Sg. Maong area. I could see in all constituencies in Kuching, Sg. Maong area is the most difficult for the authorities to work with because of its low lying peat swamp land which flooded often at the slightest rain. At the sametime, this area has long been neglected or had been left unnoticed, not until recently. Roads that that have been resealed and widened included, Green Road, Jalan Tengah, part of Jalan Angsana, Gold Jade Road, Rubber Road West and also Rubber Road East.

The authorities also have pumped in million of ringgits to improve the drainage system in the constituency and lightings in the area.

MBKS has trimmed some of the overgrown trees along the roads in Tabuan Jaya which posed hazards to motorists. These overgrown trees created a source of danger during thunderstorms. The mayor has done a good job to see the streets are clean and he was very busy in his urban poverty eradication programme.

To Padawan Municipal Council, I have to understand their problem. Their Chairman, YB Tan Joo Phoi, who is also the YB for Batu Kawa, told me in the Dewan recently that the Council lacked funds to operate efficiently. To help him overcome his problem, I did raise the matter of funds on his behalf in the Dewan during the last sitting.

Keep the good work for a better Malaysia!

CORRUPTION – A non-issue in Malaysia Politics!

Democratic Action Party Malaysia has been fighting hard against corruption all these years because corruption is the evil of many things that caused spiraling costs of goods and services and can also lead to inequality and unfair distribution of wealth and natural resources. There were many more things associated with corruption, but, the message sent by the Democratic Action Party Malaysia has gone on deaf ears. We all know corruption at high places has been everywhere, but, why Malaysians still could not get the message clear? In its fight against corruption, Democratic Action Party has also exposed and lodged many reports against corruption in high places.

So far the relevant agencies tasked with their investigations could only catch small fries and the big fish normally escaped the net.

We could see the allegations of political corruption against Isa Samad which left him in the cold for quite sometime by his party, UMNO is now seen as a hero! His image is therefore bigger than the Party. Now, we have heard some RM10 million passed on from Datuk Tiong King Sing to Datuk Ong Tee Kiat and with allegations in connection with the purpose of what the money was for gave both politicians big problems with court cases pending. Lim Kit Siang has lodge a report against abuse of power and corruption, but, we are not sure whether this would be properly investigated by the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Agency.

Another high office scandal involving abuse of power was also recently raised by Lim Kit Siang and it also may have been swept under the carpet. Lim Kit Siang had asked the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Agency to investigate an abuse of power by our Deputy Prime Minister when Lim Kit Siang said after former Commercial Crime Investigation Department Director Datuk Ramli Yussoff was acquitted on 27 July 2009 by the Kota Kinabalu Sessions Court on a charge of corruptly misusing his position in having used a police Cessna Caravan aircraft in June 2007, “ I want to ask the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) why it is practicing double standards as it has not even started investigations into the allegation that Deputy Prime Minister, Tan Sri Muhyiddin had corruptly misused his position in having used RMAF Nuri helicopter to officiate Umno division meetings in Sabah last weekend totally unrelated to his official duties. This came to light when Muhyiddin was involved in an emergency forced landing of a RMAF Nuri helicopter in Tuaran due to bad weather when flying between Kudat and Penampang.”
It was said by Lim Kit Siang in his blog “As reported by Star online last Sunday 16th August 2009, Muhyiddin’s entourage took off at about 1.45pm Sunday on the RMAF Nuri from Kudat after officially opening the Umno division meeting there and were heading back to Kota Kinabalu for the Penampang Umno division meeting when the forced landing took place.”

The RM12. 45 billion Port Klang Free Zone scandal seems still nowhere has a clear conclusion and MACC seems has slowed down in their investigation and Malaysian public has fizzled out – tired and frustrated at what went on.
Likewise, the purchase of French submarines by Malaysia was clouded with allegations of dubious dealings link to Altantuya who was said went to Kuala Lumpur to demand her commission of US500,000.00 but was found missing on 19 October, 2006 and later on was found dead although still fresh in the minds of Malaysians, have very little impact of the voting trends of Malaysian people.

DAP 2009 Mooncake Festival

Native Land Rights

If we study the political struggle of SUPP since its inception, it was clear that the dayak community had been left behind as the Party had failed to work towards the interest of the dayaks by failing to protect their land, their most important assets. SUPP could not until now lived up to its election manifesto, “What SUPP Stands For”, published in 1969 which said that the Party would protect the land rights of the dayaks by revising laws relating to land to enable the dayaks to hold individual land titles. This matter had not until now been aggressively pursued by SUPP although it is in the government by virtue of being a coalition member of the state BN. SUPP had not through its leaders done enough for the dayaks and the indigenous people of Sarawak.

Being the oldest party in the State and being a senior partner in the state BN, SUPP is at the mercy of PBB as land matters are held by Ministers from PBB. Of course, the other two parties, that is, PRS and SPDP being junior partners in the state coalition could not do much to help the dayaks to protect their lands. It is a rule that if seniors can't talk, can one expect the juniors to talk and be busy body?

Most of the native lands in Sarawak had not until now been surveyed. We now could see that without land titles issued to them, there arose frequent land disputes involving lands alienated to some individuals and companies. The Batu Niah incident a few years ago involving ibans in which led to the loss of lives could have been averted had the dayaks felt their land been properly protected. Under the present law, unless you hold document of title to the land, you are not a land owner. So, how can dayaks be said to have land when they were not issued with document of titles to their native lands? The dayaks shouted at the top of their voice and even performed the “miring” each time disputes over their land were brought to court, but, still the land would not be theirs, not until, these important documents be issued to them. The only right the dayaks have to these lands was only to use them without interference from other communities as long as the government would not use them for development. When their lands need to be developed as oil palm plantation or for other purposes, the government could just take them away from them with a stroke of a pen. The poor dayaks could claim the lands as theirs and been taken away. They may protest against it, but, what could they do? They were helpless people and were at the mercy of their own political leaders whom they elected. These polticial leaders in their area where land has been taken away, may just say they wanted to help, but, were themselves helpless people. They were helpless because land matters is in the hand of one person, that is, the Chief Minister, whom most of the present YBs are afraid to get near and to talk with for fear that they may irk the "old man". If the "old man" may not be happy, this can put their political career on line and they may be dropped from the next state election of which is at the moment is around the corner. When a person is helpless, how can he help others?

In the end, these dayaks when they have no more land in search of their livelihood, will have no choice, but, to leave their homes and became squatters in the town and cities in the state. They will not be able to compete as most may not have the living skills to compete with people in towns and cities. They may become more frustrated with life and in order to drown their hardships and sorrows, they may just began to spend whatever ever money they have in “Cap langkau” and got drunk!

Should Dayaks Continue to Support BN through SUPP?

When the Sarawak United Peoples’ party (SUPP) was registered on 12 June, 1959 many dayaks joined the Party. It was a good multi-racial Party set up with the aim of protecting all races in Sarawak. Prominent dayaks joined the Party at that time included Jonathan Bangau ak Renang who was also the Party’s first Branch Chairman in Sibu who together with Francis Umpi ak Rantai were founding members and Vice Chairmen of the Party. Others who were in the Party included Barbara Bey, Charles Linang and Tamewang Tinggung Wan. As early as in October 1962, SUPP lost one of its most prominent dayak leaders, Jonathan Bangau ak Renang who left the Party due to political differences with Chinese leaders in the Party. In October, 1965 Charles Linang, the Treasurer of the Party also left the Party. According to Charles Linang, he had to leave as the Party had been neglecting the Iban Community (see Vanguard 26 October, 1965). The more recent one was the resignation of Hollis Tini, from Sri Aman, who was a member of the State Cabinet.

Some months ago after the 2008 General Election, a dayak YB who was returned to his seat a number of times was said planning to leave the Party and to join the Opposition, after he was not made a Federal Cabinet Minister. He was said to hold talks in Singapore with an Opposition leader about the matter, but, was later persuaded not to go ahead with his plan.

A senior bidayuh Dewan Undangan Negeri member in SUPP was also not happy with the Party as he should be made at least an Assistant Minister to replace one of the two assistant ministers’ posts slotted by BN in the state Cabinet.

Until today no dayaks through SUPP have been appointed full minister post in the state Cabinet and this speaks volume of the inability of SUPP in protecting dayak interests.