Say no to 'dropping Dayak term'

KUCHING, 12 May - Dayak elected representatives at the Dewan Undangan Negeri yesterday were not supportive of the idea of dropping the term "Dayak".

Ministers, assistant ministers and members of the august house seemed taken aback by the suggestion. Some of them refused to comment, while others replied negatively.

Those who gave interviews mostly felt that it is alright to keep the term "Dayak" to refer to the ethnic community in the State.

They disagreed with the suggestion that the term could connote that the community was uncivilised, uncouth and 'low class'.

"To me, being called 'Dayak' is not an issue, the most important think is that we know our own identity and we want to be united," said Kemena assemblyman Dr Stephen Rundi Utom.

He felt that the issue has been blown out of propotion.

"The term 'Dayak' has been used by the colonial government to refer to ethnicity. On the other hand, we want to keep our tradition to be called 'Dayak' as a form of unity," he explained.

Dr Rundi, who is Parti Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu (PBB) secretary general, did not see the point of changing the term if it affected the unity and dignity of the Dayak people as a whole.

Tasik Biru assemblyman Datuk Peter Nansian Ngusie, said: "As Dayak, I am proud to be a Dayak and I would like to be called a Dayak,".

He said, there is nothing to be ashamed of, as it is part of the community's identity.

"Derogatory is what you make it to be, not what you are," said the Sarawak Progressive Democratic Party (SPDP) senior vice president.

Assistant Minister of Land Development Francis Harden Hollis said the term Dayak covered the various ethnic groups in Sarawak and he was fine with it.

"To me, I am alright with the term...I don't think by using that term, the 'Dayak' community outdated...we are progressing well," he said.