Miri's joint Aidilfitri-pre-Gawai celebration showcases Sarawak's unity in diversity
Lee (right) chats with the guests during the function.
MIRI (May 1): The Aidilfitri cum pre-Gawai celebration jointly organised by various government departments and agencies at Wisma Pelita Tunku yesterday was a heart-warming reflection of Sarawak's enduring harmony and unity, said State Transport Minister Dato Sri Lee Kim Shin.
'This event is very meaningful because it reflects the harmony, unity, and togetherness of Sarawakians who live in an environment of peace and mutual respect, regardless of racial, cultural, and religious backgrounds,' he said in his address.
Also present were Sarawak Rivers Board assistant controller (Region III) Mohd Ariffin Bujang; Miri Land and Survey controller Anthony Aboi; Rural Water Supply Department (JBALB) Miri Water engineer Lau Jing Teck; and Miri Veterinar Department officer Dr Nur Athirah Mohd Jazman.
Adding on, Lee said the celebration, which brought together government agency staff from various departments such as the Sarawak Rivers Authority, Land and Survey Department, JBALB, and Natural Resources and Environmental Board (NREB), served as a symbol of multicultural appreciation.
'Aidilfitri and Gawai Dayak, two of the state's major festivals, are marked jointly in this occasion, representing not only cultural pride but also the shared values of gratitude, renewal, and community,' he pointed out.
He also praised the collaboration among the local agencies and departments involved, underscoring the importance of unity in achieving balanced and sustainable development.
The event concluded with cultural performances, encapsulating the essence of Sarawak's unique social fabric. Aidilfitri harmony lead Lee Kim Shin pre-Gawai unity
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Sgt Bunseng Munan seen at the razed Lundu Bazaar, in this photo taken by Bong Siew Min. Uncle DI Sidi Munan 1080p IF you were born at one place and now residing in another, isn't there a certain feeling for the former at one stage of your life? This is called nostalgia – or is there a better term? In Iban, it is known as 'lelengau', or 'rindu' in the local Malay. During the Gawai Dayak holidays, I had the time to read some literature about the villages in Lundu from the book called 'Lundu', written by Azmi Haji Bujang. While looking at the photographs of the main river, Batang Kayan, and those of the villages and longhouses along its banks, my memories, both sad and happy, started flooding back. Happy days were the school days at the Christchurch Mission School in Stunggang, and the Bumiputera School in town. I attended a Japanese school too, learning how to sing the 'Kumi Gayu' in Japanese, and planting tapioca. Our real schooling, however, was in the form of junglebashing, of identifying which wild fruits were edible and which were poisonous, of 'najur' (river-fishing at night) and risking snake bites. We didn't mind mosquito bites much, as they're relatively harmless. Sad days were a few; occasional fears and disappointments aplenty. These are fading away into the twilight years. Lundu Bazaar on fire in 1949 One sad day, however, remains indelible in my mind. It was when the Lundu Bazaar caught fire. I did not know until recently that this wasn't the first time it happened. So here's my version of the first event. I was an eyewitness, through semidarkness and overwhelming smoke. But I wish to record what I saw, for my grandchildren to talk about and for the ordinary readers of this column who are interested in what had happened long time ago in a small town in Sarawak. Is there anyone still around who remembers the 'Fire of Lundu Bazaar'? It was before midnight in early December 1949. I don't remember the exact date. My brother, Bunseng, Sergeant No 433, was the police officer in charge of security of Lundu District. He allowed me to stay with his family at the barracks while I was going to the Sekolah Bumiputera where I was taught the Romanised Malay (the Za'aba System of spelling) and the Jawi script. One evening, suddenly there was a commotion in the barracks. My brother was calling out to the constables to wake up, yelling: 'Pasar angus! Pasar angus! (The bazaar's burning! The bazaar's burning!).' He was having problem with his boots (no puttees were handy – constabulary's regulation required the puttees to be worn with the boots) and he could not find them. Normally my brother was sticking to the strict police code, but this time he had to break the regulation. In an emergency, he had to go on bare feet. With his 303 rifle slung over his shoulder, he rushed towards the direction of the bazaar, a few hundred yards from the barracks, warning everyone not to loot, not to steal. Some hope! There certainly was looting all right, which he could not control. I was running out barefooted too. I owned a pair of canvas shoes, but those were for wearing to go to school. Still, vividly in my mind, I was watching flying fiery material landing on the roof of the Lundu Studio, and the fire was gutting the building fast. The photo shop was owned by one Ah Chee, the town's photographer. He was doing a brisk business after the Pacific War (1941-1945) because that was the period during when people in the district were required to get themselves registered as citizens of Great Britain. They would be issued with the identity card, which required a personal photograph. Ah Chee's studio was to provide the photographs. I was watching how the fire was spreading from shop to shop. The smoke preceded the flame! The sparks jumping from shop to shop were awful sights. 'The lady with a bolster' I saw a woman rushing out of a shop owned by Kapitan Goh Hong Ping. She was carrying a colour portrait of Dr Sun Yat Sen, the Mainland Chinese leader, in one hand and in the other hand, she tightly clutched a fat 'bantal guling' (a bolster or 'Dutch wife'). Crying and muttering in Teochew, I could not understand her. A distressful moment indeed – I could not do anything to help her. Months later, I asked her grandson, Ah Kow, what it was that her grandmother had done with that pillow. Ah Kow said it had been stuffed with the 'Straits Dollars' – hundreds of them. He did not get a cent of it, he complained, but the content of the bolster helped the family a lot, post-fire period. The next day, we boys from the barracks and the villages descended on the area, searching for anything of use, avoiding the spot where one death was reported. We went for the hair cream and perfumes ('Santalia'). I went for the penknives. The hair cream ('Vaseline') glass bottles were empty, and the penknives were useless. We collected a few burnt coins, but they were not accepted for gambling – let alone for buying things. The marbles were all burnt out too. Before the fire of 1949, Lundu Bazaar – built on the bank of the Batang Kayan – consisted of two parts: the 'pasar tanah' (landbased) and the 'pasar gantong' (on stilts). The looters concentrated on the 'pasar gantong'. Bundles of clothes and new textiles were carted off the shelves and piled up onto the boats. The boys from the nearby village went for the bottled drinks, the fizzy lemonade 'Chong Kim Eng Aerated Water', while the men preferred arrack. There was no such thing as the fire brigade in the district. The only weapon was water, pails or buckets of it – no good at all to douse a conflagration. 'Rebuilding Lundu' I can claim the credit of helping to rebuild the present Lundu Bazaar in the sense that I was involved in levelling the sites where the (then-)new shophouses would be erected. I was a coolie, 13 or so years old, a member of the 'Changkul Gang' – working from 7am to 11am, and back at 2pm till 5pm. Exhausted but happy to have earned some money for myself, I was no longer relying on pocket money from my brother. I was also employed as a painter by Encik Bakri Kaya, a contractor from Kuching. I was also working for five dollars a day for Sim, building the District Office that had been operational since 1952. I painted parts of the wall of the old District Office. But that was not the first time Lundu Bazaar had burned down. I found out, from the 'Sarawak Gazette', that the same thing had happened in October 1893. Obviously I don't remember that one! 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So here's a word of advice: Lundu shopkeepers are strongly urged to keep fire extinguishers on their premises! > The opinions expressed in this article are the columnist's own and do not reflect the view of the newspaper.
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