Sambutan Hari Sarawak di Tebingan Kuching 22 Julai
KUCHING: Buat julung kalinya dalam sejarah, rakyat Sarawak akan mengadakan sambutan Hari Sarawak pada 22 Julai ini selepas ia diisytihar sebagai cuti umum bagi negeri ini.
Timbalan Ketua Menteri Datuk Amar Abang Johari Tun Abang Openg berkata, sambutan Hari Sarawak 2016 yang bertempat di Tebingan Kuching bermula pada jam 8 pagi bakal dihadiri Yang di-Pertua Negeri Tun Pehin Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud serta Ketua Menteri Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Adenan Satem.
「Pada tahun ini sambutan Hari Sarawak amat signifikan kepada kita kerana ini pertama kali dalam sejarah hari berkenaan diisytihar sebagai cuti umum oleh Ketua Menteri (Adenan).
「Pada acara ini nanti, kita akan menyaksikan ucapan daripada Ketua Menteri selain ia diisi dengan perkara lain seperti persembahan gambaran sejarah Sarawak serta pameran-pameran yang terlibat,」 ujarnya.
Beliau berkata demikian selepas mempengerusikan Mesyuarat Jawatankuasa Induk sambutan Hari Sarawak 2016 yang dihadiri Timbalan Setiausaha Kerajaan Negeri Datu Ismawi Ismuni, Menteri Muda Kemudahan Awam Datuk Dr Jerip Susil, Menteri Muda Kemudahan Awam (Elektrik dan Telekomunikasi) Dr Abdul Rahman Junaidi dan Menteri Muda Pendidikan Awal Kanak-Kanak dan Pembangunan Keluarga Sharifah Hasidah Sayeed Aman Ghazali di Wisma Bapa Malaysia di sini, semalam.
Menurut Abang Johari, sambutan di Tebingan Kuching dijangka dihadiri lebih 100,000 orang dan percaya ia akan disambut oleh rakyat Sarawak serentak di seluruh negeri mengikut aktiviti masing-masing.
「Mungkin ada di kalangan pertubuhan bukan kerajaan (NGO) yang mempunyai aktiviti mereka sendiri sempena sambutan ini dan kita berharap merek akan mengadakan sambutan mengikut pematuhan atau undang-undang.
「Kita tidak ada halangan bagi mana-mana NGO mengadakan sambutan di mana sahaja dan terpulang kepada mereka tetapi ia harus berlunaskan peraturan,」 tegasnya.
Jelas Menteri Pelancongan, Kesenian dan Kebudayaan itu, mesej penting untuk disampaikan adalah Sarawak tetap kekal bersama Malaysia meskipun melakukan sambutan itu dalam konteks negerinya sendiri.
「Sambutan ini juga amat penting terutama kepada generasi muda kita agar mereka tahu sejarah negeri ini dan paling penting penyertaan kita dalam Malaysia mengikut Perjanjian Malaysia 1963 (MA63),」 tegas beliau.
Mengulas lanjut, Abang Johari berkata secara peribadi beliau berasakan sambutan itu perlu dinamakan 『Hari Sarawak』 berbanding 『Hari Kemerdekaan Sarawak.』
「Ini kerana pada ketika itu (22 Julai 1963) kita hanya telah menerima kuasa eksekutif kepada kabinet yang ditubuhkan, namun Gabenor British terakhir, iaitu Sir Alex Wadell masih tinggal di Astana dan hanya meninggalkan kediaman itu pada 15 September 1963.
「Maka pada pandangan saya kita masih lagi belum merdeka sepenuhnya cuma kita mendapat urus tadbir anak Sarawak sendiri pada 22 Julai,」 katanya sambil memberitahu hanya pada 16 September Gabenor pertama Sarawak, iaitu Allahyarham bapanya, Tun Abang Openg mengangkat sumpah sebagai Yang di-Pertua Negeri.
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DAP: SUPP must apologise for erosion in S'wak rights
Richard T.W.
| July 14, 2016
DAP says the BN component should take responsibility for instances whereby Sarawak's rights were whittled down and notes this is the reason a stronger Opposition presence was needed in the state assembly.
KUCHING: The Sarawak United People’s Party (SUPP) should take responsibility for its part in the erosion of the state’s rights.
Sarawak DAP leader Chong Chieng Jen said SUPP must shoulder the blame for past policy changes.
「Before even talking about the Malaysia Agreement 1963 and Sarawak autonomy, SUPP and Sarawak BN should first apologise to the people for the erosion of Sarawak’s rights over the past 53 years,」 Chong told reporters at the party’s headquarters here today.
SUPP joined the National Alliance (the predecessor of Barisan Nasional) in 1970 and was part of the federal and state government.
SUPP has since had representation in both the federal and state Cabinets.
「SUPP has proven to be a party with leaders who in the past were prepared to sacrifice Sarawak’s rights for their ministerial posts in Barisan Nasional,」 Chong said.
「What assurance can the people of Sarawak have that their present leaders are not the same breed as their predecessors?」
Chong referred to the Petroleum Development Act 1974, which took away Sarawak’s rights over oil and gas, and reduced its revenues to the current level of 5%.
Chong said the Act was done with the consent of the BN state government, which SUPP was a part of.
Chong also referred to the early 1980s, when the state’s English-medium school system switched to Bahasa Malaysia, which Chong said was done with the consent of the BN state government.
He added that stamp duties payable for the transfer of landed property in Sarawak, which were supposed to be paid to the state, were paid to the Federal Government. This occurred when the Sarawak finance minister was SUPP’s former President George Chan, he alleged.
He added that the passing of the National Security Council Act, which gives the prime minister and a handful of federal officers in high posts the absolute right to declare any region as a security area and to impose martial law, also occurred under the watch of the BN government.
「All these were just a few examples of the major erosion of Sarawak’s rights.
「In addition to these, there was the annual grossly unfair allocation of development expenditure for Sarawak, which has taken place since the formation of Malaysia till this day. All these were done with the consent of the state government, which SUPP was a part of,」 Chong said.
「Therefore, to show its sincerity about wanting to fight for Sarawak’s rights, SUPP must first apologise to all Sarawakians for the wrongs that the party has been a party to in the past half century.」
Chong added that the 「sell-out」 of Sarawak’s rights by SUPP and Sarawak BN in the past half-century was possible because there was no strong Opposition in the Sarawak state assembly and in Parliament to represent Sarawak.
「Thus, the SUPP and BN leaders could do as they like without the rakyat even knowing about it.
「Therefore, to protect Sarawak’s rights and that of the ordinary Sarawakian there is a need to have a strong Opposition in the state assembly and in Parliament, failing which history will just repeat itself,」 Chong said.