KUNAK BUMI LELUHUR - Episod 1: Dari Ethiopia ke Tingkayu

Batu lahar berongga boleh ditemui di mana-mana di Daerah Kunak, sebuah daerah yang terletak di pantai timur Sabah. Penduduk daerah ini pada amnya tahu hubungan batu-batan ini dengan kesuburan tanah pertanian yang mereka usahakan, ada segelintir yang tahu asal usulnya, namun amat sedikit yang menyedari hubungan eratnya dengan sejarah penjelajahan dan kependudukan umata manusia di bumi nusantara.

Kira-kira 30,000 tahun dahulu, gunung yang kini dekenali sebagai Gunung Mostyn, telah meletup dan memuntahkan lahar ke segenap penjuru meliputi keseluruhan kawasan Daerah Kunak dan sekitarnya. Kesan dan fenomena aktiviti magma yang mengalir di bawah bumi Daerah Kunak dapat dilihat pada terowong kartz di Mostyn, kolam air panas di Sungang, Kolam Air Masin di puncak bukit di Tingkayu dan Kolam Lumpur di Binuang.

Lahar dari Gunung Mostyn yang mengalir ke barat daya telah menutupi laluan sebatang sungai, iaitu Sungai Tingkayu. Air sungai melimpah membanjiri kawasan pamah di sekitarnya. Maka terbentuklah sebuah tasik dengan anggaran keluasan 100 kilometer persegi. Di tepi tasik flora tumbuh subur. Ia menjadi padang ragut bagi haiwan-haiwan herbivor yang menarik pula haiwan-haiwan karnivor datang mencari mangsa. Pelbagai spesis ikan air tawar membiak dengan banyaknya.

Pada 150,000 tahun SM sekumpulan manusia zaman purba meninggalkan tanah kelahiran umat manusia di Afrika dengan menyeberang selat ke Yaman. 

Dari sana keturunan mereka berpecah haluan, generai demi generasi, menuju ke segenap penjuru bumi yang mudah mereka lalui. Selepas lebihkurang 120,000 tahun, iaitu sekitar 28,000 tahun SM, sekumpulan umat manusia, yang dianggarkan sebagai generasi ke 3,000 tiba di tepi Tasik Tingkayu. 

Melihat kekayaan sumber semulajadi di kawasan itu yang boleh menampung kehidupan, maka mereka mengambil keputusan untuk mendirikan penempatan di sekitar tasik ini.

Harmonious Kunak Part 4: Derivation Of Names for Pengkalan, Mostyn and Kunak

Bahasa Melayu

Until 1980s Kunak was seldom found on maps of Sabah, and marked on in its location was Mostyn. 

Map of North Borneo drawn W.M. Crocker

and presented to the Royal Geographical Society in London in 1881

Sir Arthur Mostyn Field (1855-1950) surveyed the area around Lahad Datu Bay (formerly Darvel Bay) in 1891. He was then commander of HMS Egeria commissioned to survey British North Borneo between 1890 to 1894. Much of inland Borneo was uncharted then, including the area of (now called) Kunak District, so it was named Mostyn after the middle name of the commander. One might wonder why not use the surname instead.

In my opinion, it was not named Field to avoid oral communication perplexities as the word 'field' stands for many aspects of an area, including meadow, pasture, grassland, area, playground and etcetera. 

Imagine the confusion when someone is to mention about the abundance of timber in a place called Field: "There are many valuable timbers in Field". The respond could be: "Which field?"

H.M.S. Egeria

In the 1950s logging activities in Mostyn were already in vigorous operation. The timbers were sent to wharfs in Darvel Bay where ships would take them to other parts of the world. 

The locals call the place where a vessel docks for quite some time as the 'pengkalan' for that vessel. So, if that vessel is HMS Dampier, they will call the place where she docks as Pengkalan Dampier. Since a number of ships took turn to load the precious timbers at that particular wharf, the local people simply referred to it as Pengkalan. 

The shipping services were provided by The Straits Steamship Company (SSC), a shipping company founded in Singapore on January 20, 1890.

Before the war, SCC ships were of 2,000 tonners but in 1960 the company bought two 5,000 tonner ships from a Dutch shipping company, Koninklijke Paketvaart Maatschappij (KPM). One of the ships was Baud 3, constructed by Wilton Fijenoord in 1949. After the acquisition, SCC renamed the ship, Kunak. 

The Ship Kunak

The rise of another wharf in the vicinity gave the necessity to come up with partcular terms to distinguish the two wharfs. The presence of the big ship, Kunak, at the first wharf had been the talk among the local people. So, to refer to the wharf where Kunak frequently docked, they called it Pengkalan Kunak. The other wharf was named Pengkalan Madai as it was located not far from the famous (for its bird nests), Madai Cave.

After North Borneo gained independence with the formation of Malaysia on September 16, 1983, Pengkalan Kunak was put under the administration of Lahad Datu District.

In Januari 1965 a sub-district office was set up in the locality of Pengkalan Kunak. The office was named Pejabat Daerah Kecil Kunak (The Sub-District Office of Kunak) after the wharf, Pengkalan Kunak. An assistant district officer was put in charge of the office and the first was Thomas Koroh.

On Julai 1, 1981, the sub-district  was upgraded to a full district and named as Daerah Kunak (Kunak District). Salleh Bin Ajak was appointed as the first District Officer of Kunak.

Batu Sapi By-Election: What Does It Imply?

Bahasa Melayu

1. The National Front (BN) Still Commands Peoples Support.

• BN's win at Batu Sapi by-election with bigger majority (6,359) as compared to the 2008 general election result (3,708) is a clear indication of Sabahan support for BN.

Distribution of Votes for Batu Sapi By-Election on Nov 4, 2010

2. Muslim Bumiputera Voters Are Not Racist

• Muslim Bumiputeras (Suluk, Bajau, Bugis, Orang Sungei & etc) which is 59.02% of the Batu Sapi electoral role form the majority of voters in the constituency.
• BN candidate, Datin Linda Tsen is not a Bumiputera.
• Linda's victory over Muslim candidate is thus a proof that generally Muslim Bumiputera voters  do NOT practice racial politics.

Ethnic Composition of P185 Batu Sapi Voters

3. The Presence of BN Leaders from Outside of Batu Sapi Reinforced Voters Support.

• Charismatic BN leaders from outside Batu Sapi constituency are the icons of some local voters. 
• I found out, through casual conversation, with a number of Muslim Bumiputera voters that they have high esteem for Dato' Seri Hj Mohd Shafie Apdal (Semporna) and Datuk Nilwan Kabang (Kunak). They admitted of having some inclinations towards BN oppositions, yet to uphold the dignity of the leaders whom they admire and had been  assigned to carry out the campaign in their areas, they reverted to BN.

4. Speculations on Void Chinese Vote for BN is Amiss.

• If the Batu Sapi Chinese voters had been generally anti-BN, they would have entirely turned out to vote for SAPP.
• Their votes of 9737 along with votes from Muslim Bumiputeras who had turned out in scores to support Yong Teck Lee, that SAPP President would have defeated Linda.
• Yong Teck Lee must have counted on that. He must have been very disappointed. 

5. Narrow Regional Political Dogmas are Not for the Sabahans.

• Slogans such as "Sabah for Sabahans" and "Restore Sabahans Dignity" as used by some in their campaign during the Batu Sapi by-election proved to be shunned by the voters.  
• In fact, those slogans merely reared some queries:

> Sabah for Sabahans: Has Sabah been taken away? If so, by whom? When? Where have they hidden it?

> Restore Sabahans Dignity: Have the Sabahans lost their dignity? If so, who has taken it away? The Speaker at the Parliament is a Sabahan. Isn't that a boost to Sabahans dignity? The Vice President of the biggest political party who form the Malaysian government is a Sabahan. Isn't that a clear endorsement of high seemliness for the Sabahans?

• Peoples demand for representative candidates to be selected from among the local people is still relevant for it is not a manner of narrow regional political dogma. Rather, it shows the sensibleness of the voters who want their representatives to be those who have first-hand knowledge and experience on local issues. 
• Compare the profiles of the Batu Sapi by-election candidates:

> Profile of Barisan Nasional candidate

Name: Datin Linda Tsen Thau Lin
Age: 54
Children: 4
Profession: Professional musician (piano)
Education: Chi Hwa Primary School, Sandakan, Tiong Hwa Secondary School, Sandakan St Brandon School, Clevedon, United Kingdom Trinity College of Music, London Fellowship London College of Music
Political Standing: Deputy Chief PBS Women Elopura, Vice Exco Chief PBS Women Sabah.

> Profile of SAPP candidate

Name: Datuk Yong Teck Lee
Age: 52

This is the first time Yong is chosen as a candidate after a five year suspension from contesting in elections, since 2001, following his violation on the electoral regulations during the 1999 general election. 

Although the suspension was withdrawn in 2006, Yong did not stand for election in the 2008 general election when BN turned down SAPP's request to contest the Kota Kinabalu Parliamentary seat where PBS was the incumbent. 

Yong said, "Sabah for Sabahans" and "Borneonisation" will be the core theme for SAPP in this by-election.

> Profile of Parti Keadilan Rakyat candidate

Name: Ansari Abdullah
Age: 56 tahun
Spouse: Alisyah Abdullah
Hometown: Tuaran, Sabah
Children: 5
Academic: Master in Law University of Malaya
PKR Membership: Since 1999
Profession: Lawyer, Ansari & Co, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah
Position in PKR: Sabah PKR Liaison Chairman (2007-2008) and PKR Chief of Division Tuaran (todate)

6. Lessons to Learn

• Despite the confidence shown and publicized by all parties that took part, they all have some reservations.
• BN entered the arena still haunted by their not-so-well performance in the 2008 general election and the loss at the 16 May Sibu by-election, SAPP was testing the water, for the first time after leaving BN, by playing their most valuable card, their very own president while the Peoples Pact (PR) PR bid a Muslim candidate hoping the majority Muslim Bumiputera voters would take to their side.
• BN was victorious over SAPP and PR because the former has less weakness than the latter, and that does not imply that BN is without flaws.
• The winners must not think that they have taken it all, then fail to evaluate the factors that had led them to victory.  Retrospection should be continuous for eradicating the flaws within incessantly. Pledges made, including those promised during the 2008 general election must be fulfilled.
• The losers need to go back to their drawing boards and probe their true endeavors.

7. Voters Sensibleness Ought Not Be Underrated

• Money can buy NOT everything.
• Maxims and slogans are sometimes only charm the owners.
• The people do want transformations but ones with clear objectives.
• The people do support justice but not the narrowly-characterized ones as defined by a particular group only. The basic of justice must be broad and wholly.

Double Trouble for the Opposition

Bahasa Melayu

The opposition Peoples Pact (PR) lost in its bid in the two by-elections in Malaysia today, November 4, 2010.

In the contest for the state assembly seat of N45 Galas in Kelantan, the National Front (BN) candidate, Abdul Aziz Yusoff defeated PR candidate, Dr Zulkefli Mohamed by a majority of 1,190 votes. The seat was previously held by Pan Malaysia Islamic Party (PAS), a member of the PR coalition.  

Orang Asli voters at Hendrop Post checking their names in the electoral roll

before voting

In Sandakan Sabah, Linda Tsen (BN) retained the Batu Sapi Parliamentary seat. Linda who is the widow of the late Batu Sapi MP, Edmund Chong defeated Ansari Abdullah (PR) and Yong Teck Lee (President of  SAPP).

Voters and party supporters outside SK Gas voting center in Sandakan, Sabah.

The accident at Tanjung Aru Street, Kota Kinabalu

that led to the death of  Datuk Edmund Chong Ket Wah

Harmonious Kunak Part 3: The Kadazan Community

Bahasa Melayu

The Kadazan Community

There are several theories and explanations about the origin of the term 'Kadazan'. Some says that the term was of recent origin as coined by politicians while others claimed that it had existed long before the arrival of the Europeans to North Borneo. To me, every group of people, have their own term to what to call themselves and that should be the term accepted by others outside that group.

Not knowing what term to call this particular ethnic group, the early British settlers simply classified them as 'Dyak' together with other indigenous people in the interior of Borneo.

The Kadazan population of Kunak is estimated at around 600 (based on a 1999 census of 445). Their ancestors were from all over Sabah and most of them reside in Kampung Kadazan, a kampong within the boundary of Sime Darby Plantations.

According to Valentine Sebastian, a local community leader, the area of Kampung Kadazan is about 4.5 acres and is situated in the area of Mostyn Estate.

The area was allocated by the British Abaca Limited (BAL) Plantations to its Kadazan employees in 1958. At that same time BAL Plantations also allocated areas to its employees of the Cocos ethnic at Batu 2 Kunak (now known as Kampung Selamat) and to miscellaneous groups at Kampung Sri Bahagia.

A postcard published in 1906-1920 showing 'Dyak' women

of North Borneo. Details at: NorthBorneoStamps

Unduk Ngadau Kampung Kadazan Pesta Kaamatan 2009

Apart from working in plantations, the first Kadazan generation of Kunak also grew vegetables for their own consumption as well as sold for extra income. In the early seventies they ventured into cocoa cultivation.  Albeit with small area to begin, it exposed the people to the intrinsic aspects of commercial plantation. Today, many Kadazan families in Kunak have their own oil palm farms and they are among the prosperous people of Kunak District.

Harmonious Kunak Part 2: Cheng Ho's Delegation

Bahasa Melayu

The Idahans

The Madai Caves and its bird nests is probably the most well-known site in Kunak District today, though more often than not it is linked with Lahad Datu rather than Kunak.

It is somehow incomplete to talk about the Madai Caves without mentioning the Idahans, a native of Kunak. They are believed to be the discoverer of the valuable bird nests in those caves back in the 15^th century.

The Idahan clan is a Bumiputera ethnics who collectively claim themselves descendants of a legendary ancestor, Besai, who was said to have originated from Kinabatangan river.

Although the Idahan comprises of only a small percentage of the population of Kunak, it is fair to give more space on subjects pertaining to this community. Apart from being the founder of the bird nests in Madai they are also said to have played a major part in the introduction of Islam to North Borneo in 1408, particularly in the east coast.

It is related by the Idahans that in the old days their ancestors had traded with some powerful group of Chinese traders who came to the east coast of Sabah. It is presumed that the group mentioned was the delegation of the Muslim Chinese Admiral, Cheng Ho, who made his first voyage to Sulu region around 1405 A.D.

Admiral Cheng Ho and his fleet
(Image as seen at: Cheng Ho)

At first, bird’s nests have very little commercial value until the Idahan ancestors showed them to Chinese traders. The Cinese were already familiar with the product which they previously knew from elsewhere. They asked if more could be gathered and promised they would return regularly to trade for them with Chinese goods.

Upon realizing that the Chinese had a keen interest on the nests, the Idahan ancestors were quite cautious about disclosing the exact locations of the nesting caves, but assured them of a continuous supply if the Chinese agreed to wait at the coast.

A Village in Madai 1960
(More stories at: semuakunak.blogspot) 

Personally, I believe that the story of trade with Chinese traders in the old days is quite authentic, for in 1998 I came across an area in an oil palm plantation in Silabukan, literally littered with fragments of Chinese porcelain which (to me) had the distinctive features of that from the Ming Dynasty.  The site is only a few hundred meters from shore.

I was then the Assistant Manager of that plantation. The plantation workers also mentioned about some sort of spears and canons, apart from other relics, had also been discovered in that particular site and procured by authorities of Sabah Museum.  Stories also went around the plantation that on extreme low tide, structures that resemble the mast and hull of a ship could be seen not far from the shore.

The present day Idahan population are mainly in Lahad Datu District. Nevertheless, there are still several families who remained in Kunak, particularly in kampongs not far from Madai Hills. Also, there are some Idahans who built a second houses within the vicinity of the caves, which they only occupy during harvesting seasons.

Generally, the Idahan population in Kunak has blended well and inter-married with other ethnics and not easy to distinguish them from other bumiputeras. 

Harmonious Kunak Part 1: Introduction

Bahasa Melayu

The quiet and peaceful town at the mouth of Lahad Datu Bay (formerly Darvel Bay) in Sabah is literally unknown to people outside Tawau Residency. It is not even shown on maps of Sabah until much recently. The town is Kunak, the administrative center of Kunak District, rich with natural and historical resources.

Prehistoric people roamed this land tens of thousands years earlier. They could have been the ancestors of the indigenous tribes of Borneo or even of other parts of the Malay Archipelago.

The exodus must had taken place over a long period of time involving a few clans at a time. Still some had stayed behind. Those who had migrated as well as their descendants would later on frequented the area to forage the natural resources and do some barter trade with those who had stayed behind.

A Bugis Ship

A Bajau Boat

Free trade among the indigenous of the Malay Archipelago continued even after the arrival of the Europeans, pioneered by the Portuguese who anchored at Malacca harbor in 1511.

Following the Anglo-Dutch Treaty in 1824 the Malay Archipelago was divided into three foreign dominions, namely, British (over the area of present Malaysia and Singapore), Dutch (Indonesia) and Spanish (the Philippines).

Indonesia declared independence from the Dutch on August 17 1945 while the Philippines were granted their independence by the United States of America on July 4 1946. North Borneo (Sabah) was still under British rule. At that however, many citizens of both nations were in Kunak, as fishermen, merchants or working in timber camps and plantations owned by the British. In fact, they formed the majority of the population in the region.

Inhabitants of Kunak working as lumberjacks with
British-owned Timber Companies

Main Population of Kunak

When North Borneo gained independence and took up the name Sabah with the formation of the Federation of Malaysia on September 16, 1963, many of them decided to become citizens of the new federation, through provisions in Article 26 Malaysia Agreement 1963.  Thus, until this very day their descendants formed the majority of the population of Kunak.

Some however were reluctant fearing that by doing so, they might be barred by the Philippines and Indonesian authorities from visiting their relatives in their respective country of origin. That concern proved to be unfounded.