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The United Pasokmomogun Kadazandusun Murut Organisation (UPKO) is a political party based in Sabah, east Malaysia. It is an ethnically-based party striving to voice the rights and advance the development of Kadazan-Dusun and Murut population of Sabah and the Orang Asli of Peninsular Malaysia.
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The party started as "Parti Demokrat Sabah" (PDS), which was founded by Tan Sri Bernard Dompok and other leaders who branched out from Parti Bersatu Sabah (PBS) soon after the Sabah state election, 1994. Later it was renamed UPKO.
This new UPKO has no relation with the original United Pasokmomogun Kadazan Organisation (also known by the acronym UPKO), which was created in May 1964 after being renamed from United Kadazan National Organisation (UNKO), originally founded by the first Chief Minister of Sabah, Tun Fuad Stephens in August 1961. It also has no relation with and the Pertubuhan Pasok Momogun Bersatu (United Pasok Momogun Organisation), formed in January 1962 by Orang Kaya Datuk G. S. Sundang. It should also not be confused with another active political party called United Pasok Nunukragang National Organisation, known as PASOK, founded by Richard Jayasuriya.
In 2009, the party opened four divisions in Perak, Peninsular Malaysia.[1] Here, the party aims to champion the rights of the Orang Asli.
UPKO is one of the component parties in the ruling Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition. The name of the new UPKO includes the words "Kadazandusun" and "Murut", and the logo is no longer a water buffalo but a silhouette of Mount Kinabalu. It is also believed by many political observers that the "Kadazandusun nationalism" which was apparent in the old UPKO is not really present in the new UPKO.
In Kota Kinabalu, UPKO, led by its Secretary-General Datuk Wilfred Madius Tangau, on September 23, 2008, joined its 3 other Barisan Nasional (BN) counterparts MCA, Gerakan and MIC petitioning the Government review of the Internal Security Act (ISA). Madius said the party supports former de-facto Law Minister Datuk Zaid Ibrahim's position that the ISA should only be used against those who posed a threat to national security, such as terrorists: "Clearly in the case of Seputeh MP, Teresa Kok; blogger, Raja Petra Kamaruddin; and Sin Chew Daily reporter, Tan Hoon Cheng, there are so many other public order laws that can be used against them if, at all, there is a case to do so."[2]