Sarawak

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see also Sarawak River

States and Territories of Malaysia
Sarawak سراوق Bumi Kenyalang
Flag Coat of arms
State motto: Bersatu, Berusaha, Berbakti
State anthem: Ibu Pertiwiku
Capital	Kuching
Ruling party	Barisan Nasional
- Yang di-Pertua Negeri	Abang Muhammad Salahuddin
- Ketua Menteri	Abdul Taib Mahmud
History
- Brunei Sultanate	19th century
- Brooke dynasty	1841
- Japanese occupation	1941-1945
- British control	1946
- Accession into Malaysia	1963
Area
- Total	124,450 km²
Population
- 2005 estimate	2,376,800
- Density	19.1/km²
National calling code	082a 083b 084c 085d 086e
National postal code	93xxx to 98xxx
License plate prefix	QA & QK1 QB2 QC3 QL4 QM5 QP6 QR7 QS8 QT9 QSG10
Website:	http://www.sarawak.gov.my
a For Kuching b For Sri Aman c For Sarikei & Sibu d For Lawas, Limbang & Miri e For Bintulu 1 Kuching 2 Sri Aman 3 Kota Samarahan 4 Limbang 5 Miri 6 Kapit 7 Sarikei 8 Sibu 9 Bintulu 10 Sarawak State Government vehicle

Sarawak (Jawi: سراواك) is one of the two Malaysian states on the island of Borneo. Known as Bumi kenyalang (‘Land of the Hornbills’), it is situated on the north-west of the island. It is the largest state in Malaysia; the second largest, Sabah, lies to the northeast.

The administrative capital is Kuching (pop. 600,300 in 2005) which literally means ‘cat’ (kucing). Major cities and towns also include Sibu (pop. 228,000), Miri (pop. 282,000) and Bintulu (pop. 152,761). As of last census (May 5, 2005), the state population was 2,376,800. For more details about the population see Demographics of Malaysia, though it is interesting to note that Sarawak is, like Sabah to the north, a multicultural state, with no ethnic majority.

[edit] History

Main article: White Rajahs

Sarawak had been a loosely governed territory under the control of the Brunei Sultanate in the early 19th century. James Brooke (see figure below) became governor of Sarawak on September 24, 1841 and was appointed Rajah by the Sultan of Brunei on August 18, 1842; originally this territory was just the western end of later Sarawak, around Kuching. He ruled Sarawak until his death in 1868. His nephew Charles Anthoni Johnson Brooke became Rajah after his death; he was succeeded on his death in 1917 by his son, Charles Vyner Brooke, with a provision that Charles should rule in consultation with his brother Bertram Brooke[1]. The territory was greatly expanded under these three, mostly at the expense of areas nominally under the control of Brunei. In practice Brunei had only controlled strategic river and coastal forts in much of the lost territory, and so most of the gain was at the expense of Muslim warlords and of the de facto independence of local tribes.

Sir James Brooke

The Brooke dynasty ruled Sarawak for a hundred years and became famous as the "White Rajahs", accorded a status within the British Empire similar to that of the Indian Princes. In contrast to many other areas of the empire, however, the Brooke family was intent on a policy of paternalism to protect the indigenous population against exploitation. They governed with the aid of the Muslim Brunei Malay and Melanau people and employed the Ibans and other 'Dayak' peoples as their army. They also encouraged the immigration of a Chinese merchant class but forbade the Chinese to settle outside of towns in order to minimise the impact on the Dayak way of life.

In the early part of 1941 preparations were afoot to introduce a new constitution, designed to limit the power of the Rajah and give the people of Sarawak a greater say in government.

While the intention was clearly admirable, the draft constitution contained defects and improprieties, not least by reason of a secret agreement drawn up between Charles Vyner Brooke and his top government officials, by which he was to be financially compensated for this gesture out of treasury funds.

The Sarawak State Legislative Assembly building

Japan invaded Sarawak and occupied the island of Borneo in 1941, occupying Miri on December 16 and Kuching on December 24, and held it for the duration of World War II until the area was secured by Australian forces in 1945. The Rajah formally ceded sovereignty to the British Crown on July 1, 1946, under pressure from his wife among others. In addition the British Government offered a healthy pension to sweeten the negotiations. His nephew Anthony continued to claim sovereignty as Rajah of Sarawak.

After the end of the Second World War, Anthony Brooke then opposed the cession of the Rajah's territory to the British Crown, and was associated with anti-cessionist groups in Sarawak. Anthony was banished from the country. He was allowed to return only seventeen years later, when Sarawak became part of the Federation of Malaysia.

Sarawak became a British colony (it was formerly an independent state under British protection) in July 1946, but Brooke's campaign continued. The Malays in particular resisted the cession to Britain, dramatically assassinating the first British governor. Sarawak was one of the main sites of the Indonesian Confrontation between 1962 and 1966. It became an autonomous state of the federation of Malaysia on September 16, 1963, despite initial opposition from parts of the population.

[edit] Geography

Having land area of 124,450 km² spreading between latitude 0° 50′ and 5°N and longitude 109° 36′ and 115° 40′ E, it makes up 37.5% of the land of Malaysia. Sarawak also contains large (though shrinking steadily) tracts of tropical rain forest home to a plethora of plant and animal species.

Sarawak is currently divided into eleven Administrative Divisions: Kuching Division, Samarahan Division, Sri Aman Division, Betong Division, Sarikei Division, Sibu Division, Mukah Division, Kapit Division, Bintulu Division, Miri Division and Limbang Division.

[edit] Demographics

A Modern Iban Longhouse, built using new materials and preserving essential features of communal living

Sarawak is home to 28 ethnic groups, each with their own distinct language, culture and lifestyle.

The Ibans form the major ethnic group on this land with about 31.2% of the total population per the year 2004 census. The Malaysian Chinese, who generally live in the cities, are the second largest group at 28.6%, followed by the Bidayuh, Melanau and other native tribes of Sarawak. The Malays, from Brunei constitute a large portion (21.4%) of the population as well, mainly concentrated along the coast.

Sarawakians practise a variety of religions, including Islam, Christianity, Chinese folk religion (a fusion of Buddhism, Taoism, Confucianism and ancestor worship) and animism. Many converts to Christianity among the Dayak peoples also continue to practice traditional ceremonies, particularly with dual marriage rites and during the important harvest and ancestral festivals such as Gawai Dayak and Gawai Antu.

[edit] Economy

Sarawak is blessed with an abundance of natural resources. LNG and petroleum have provided the mainstay of the state's economy for decades. Sarawak is also one of the world's largest exporters of tropical hardwood timber. However, the state government has imposed strict log-production quotas over recent years to ensure sustainable forestry management. Sarawak still, however, produces approximately 9 to 10 million cubic metres of logs annually.

With such vast land expanse, Sarawak has large tracts of land suitable for commercial agricultural development. Approximately 32% or about 40,000 km² of the state's total land area has been identified as suitable agricultural land. Nevertheless, less than 9% of this is planted with productive permanent crops, while the balance is still under shifting cultivation for hill padi (rice) which is estimated at more than 16,000 km². The main commercial crops are oil palm, which has been increasing steadily over the years, sago, and pepper.

Since the 1980s, Sarawak has started to diversify and transform its economy into a more industrialized one. This endeavour has been seeing continuing success, with manufacturing and high-tech industries now playing a significant role in shaping the economic expansion of the state.

The global economic environment is expected to remain robust and dynamic right up to the next decade, with both the industrial and developing countries anticipated to maintain sustainable output growth. Global trade is predicted to expand by about 8%. This continuing favourable external outlook should keep the high growth momentum of the state's economy at a steady and stable level.

As the largest state in the Federation of Malaysia, Sarawak aims to be a fully developed state along with the rest of the country by 2020. Sarawak has identified four sectors as key sources of growth:

• manufacturing
• commercial agriculture
• construction
• services sectors

The availability of vast competitively-priced land and rich reserves of natural resources has made Sarawak an attractive choice for manufacturing operations among investors.

[edit] See also

• Sarawak dollar
• Sarawak Stadium
• Sarawak football team

[edit] Further reading

• L. W. W. Gudgeon (1913). British North Borneo. London, Adam and Charles Black.
• S. Runciman (1960). The White Rajahs: a history of Sarawak from 1841 to 1946. Cambridge University Press
• Chin, Ung Ho(1997) Chinese Politics in Sarawak: a Study of the Sarawak United People's Party (SUPP) (Kuala Lumpur, New York: Oxford University Press, 1997) (ISBN 983-56-0039-2)
• Barley, Nigel (2002). "White Rajah." London, Brown Little/Abacus.

[edit] External links

• Sarawak government website
• WWF Heart of Borneo conservation initiative
• Sarawak travel guide from Wikitravel

	Sarawak
Divisions: Betong Division | Bintulu Division | Kapit Division | Kuching Division | Limbang Division | Miri Division | Mukah Division | Samarahan Division | Sarikei Division | Sibu Division | Sri Aman Division
Cities: Kuching | Miri
Towns: Asajaya | Ba'kelalan | Bau | Belaga | Betong | Bintangor | Bintulu | Dalat | Daro | Debak | Julau | Kanowit | Kapit | Lawas | Limbang | Lingga | Lubok Antu | Lundu | Mato | Meradong | Mukah | Marudi | Pakan | Pusa | Samarahan | Saratok | Sarikei | Serian | Selangau | Sibu | Simunjan | Song | Spaoh | Sri Aman | Tanjung Kidurong | Tatau | Tebedu

States and Federal Territories of Malaysia
States: Johor | Kedah | Kelantan | Malacca | Negeri Sembilan | Pahang | Perak | Perlis | Penang | Sabah | Sarawak | Selangor | Terengganu
Federal Territories: Kuala Lumpur | Labuan | Putrajaya