Friday, May 1, 2009

A Dayak View on 1 Malaysia

Resoucre: http://dayakbaru.com/weblog08/2009/05/01/3838/

Posted by: Anek Uren

New PM - New CONCEPT

If you give a space I want to comment on the 1Malaysia, new concept by our new PM. Of course the so-called new concept is nothing new in it. It is merely a re-coining of the word just to signify there is a new guy on the block: Najib is the Prime Minister.

His predecessor, Mahathir came up with Vision 2020, Badawi came up with “Gemilang, Cermelang dan Terbilang” The past had come and gone with those respective promotors of those slogans.

1 Malaysia has been - since 16.09.1963

But 1Malaysia, at least to me, has always been since Malaysia came into being 16.09.1963. The statistic of population: Malays, Chinese, Indians, and the Indegenous tribes in Sarawak and Sabah, has never changed in its ratio, and will never be.

My point is this: apart from the May 13th, 1969 incident which happened in Kuala Lumpur only, and it happened because of the result of the then just concluded election which certain quarters might have thought was not favourable to them, inter-racial relation wise has always been good. Tolerance of one another has been very good, for the most.

Tolerance

And the recent Hindraf issue, I think if there is a little bit of tolerance prevailing on the part of those in power, it could have been resolved without the use of such harsh tactics and even ISA.
And if the issues behind the May 13th incident, and the recent Hindraf matter, the real issues are economic disparity between the various groups in our society. People set up groups and indentify themselves as in their groups of one or the other for the reason that they want to express their dissatisfaction over what they perceive as “they are left behind”.

Poverty Level Line

The Dayaks in Sarawak, for the majority of us, if the yardsstick often used by the statements issued from the Ministry of Finance - those households having income monthly which is below RM750. 00 they are considered poor (hardcore poor, then indeed the majority of the Dayaks are in that category: getting less than RM750.00 a month of income. Of course one could then ask, how do these Dayaks survive?

Dayak Survival

Survival is assured of them by the environment in which they live: they plant padi, fish in the nearby rivers, setting traps for games in the jungle, and going after wild pigs for that matter, rearing some chicken and ducks which they fed with tapoica planted during padi planting seasons. Yes they survive in term of having some basic food to eat. But when schooling of their children comes into the equation, it is here the crunch comes into play.

Money for Education

They don’t have the money to send their children to schools and to better themselves. Agreed primary and secondary education are free, but beyond that, like the uniforms, school bags, shoes, writing books, and text book for bringing home which is disallowed, and when they go for tertiary education the problems are compounded into manifold.

Yes there is the Higher Education Fund but to get that one must have a guarrantor that must have know and established income or other asset. And even if that is obtainable, it is not given straightaway but after the student has landed at the college or uni. and enrolled there. The fund needed to get to the college or uni. is also hugely burdensome.

Dayak in Business

Talking of business, one can forget it because the Dayaks have no asset. Awang Tengah recently in Bintulu “Land Seminar” said that the native “have got a lot of land yet they remain very poor. He is telling the truth in saying that Natives remain very poor. But he is telling lies when he said about native have got a lot of land. As a government minister he knows that NCR is government land, and these lands are no asset to the Dayaks.

NCR Land

These NCR lands cannot be developed at will unless one has got money from other sources. Compared with the big investors who are mostly those who have gained so much profit over their exploitation of timber resources of this State, when those lands, former timber concession, are issued to them, leashold of 60 years are given and thse lands become great asset, and the mor e they get the bigger land bank they established.

Banks may lend them money based on these land leases as collateral. So for these people money makes more money for them. But the Dayaks because the so-called “their lands” is being used for pleasing only, these lands do not benefit the Dayaks. And for that reason they remain poor.

Can Land be given to Dayak

MP Nyallau recently, before Batang Ai polling, said that land titles cannot be given to Dayaks because they might sell them off. And he gave an example by asking people to look at the record at the Land & Survey Department to prove his point.

Dayak will remain the same - even after Najib

Now coming back to 1Malaysia, to me, the Dayaks will pass through this phase under Najib and after najib the situation for us will remain the same. The concept of 1Malaysia is not for change but for re-stating the status quo.

Why?

I say this because for the Dayaks, unless the NCR land of each is given him his title to it, there is no case of the community will ever become economically viable, but will remain mere squattors. The Chinese are very rich in Malaysia because they buy up solid asset - land land land, either in the form of property: buildings and the like and land for plantation after they harvested timber in it. And with the capital built up, they expand deeper and deeper into the interior.

Dayak land now belong to Chinese

For instance, let’s look at Tapah, Sioburan and Beratok, established during the communist insurgency time by the time of Datuk Kalong Ningkan “short” government, those land belonged to Dayaks then are now all belong to Chinese. And the queer thing about it is that under the Dayaks they were NCR and when Chinese occupied them titles were issued.

Change We MUST

Lastly, you blogger, my friend, I agree with the need to change and move forward, and get rid of those stereo-typed “pensioner”. But at the same time we must focus on exposing the bluff in the 1Malaysia concept by Najib, i.e. by concentrating on asking for our right to the land be recognized beyond what is provided in s.5(1) and (2) of our Land Code.

This we must before we from squattors become nothing! For 1Malaysia to really work we must call on Najib to address NCR problem first. Of course that can only happen when current CM goes, but will he go, and soon, remain a very big question mark if recent Batang Ai result is anything to by?

“Nadai nyawa kitai Dayak”