Sarawak for Sarawakians coordinator Peter John Jaban said the delay in tabling the proposal for the Dayak community to be given due recognition at the Cabinet level remained elusive until today.
“Patience has its limits and what should be given ought to be respected. Our forefathers did their part in the development of the nation and by right we should not be identified as ‘lain-lain’ anymore,” said Jaban in a press conference.
Jaban said the issue being given low priority reflected the priority given to this issue in the workings of the government.
“Why the delay? Is the federal government against this proposal? Then why deny us our right. It is a question of recognition. It is a question of our very identity. As long as we remain without official recognition, as long as Malaysians are allowed to believe that there are only three races in Malaysia and all the rest are merely ‘others’, we will be ignored,” Jaban added.
Jaban also said the Dayak’s contribution to nation-building seemed to be forgotten.
“Our history is not remembered and our heroes are not honoured, our ‘adat’ (native laws) which our people have lived since time immemorial is being consumed by an imported system of laws that deprives what matters most to us, our land. The Dayaks of Sarawak are coming close to breaking point as we see organised efforts to strip us of our rights.”
“I urge the state and federal government to rethink their priorities and put Dayak issues first for once,” said Jaban.
There are 42 different indigenous groups in the state, not including 168 sub-tribes in Kalimantan Barat that shares similar culture and in some cases similar blood lines.
The word “Dayak” is a generic term to describe the different tribes and sub-tribes in the state.
“We are all unique in our own way, but we all have some things in common. We are all losing our lands. We are all losing our identities and we are all still ‘lain-lain’ in our own land. We are Dayak, and we demand our recognition.”
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