KUCHING: Sarawak activist Peter John Jaban wished to clear the air following an event held in Sibu last month that saw him stepping on a machine-made pua kumbu.
He stressed that the Iban culture and heritage are incredibly important to him, and everyone must be aware of the ‘adat’ (custom) that the Iban all share, but also that each community has their own practices, taboo, and ‘mali’.
“With netizens commenting on a viral video of an event organised by Pencha Adat Sepring Sarawak and Kuntau Pencha Ajat Sepring Sarawak Club in Sibu last month. I am hoping to clear the air and restore some solidarity to the Iban community.
“As a guest in a community, we must follow the lead of our hosts. In this case, I emerged from the car onto a pua kumbu already laid out for this purpose by the organisers from the community in question.
“It was not my intention to disrespect the cloth in any way. On the contrary, I believe this was a mark of respect, practised among many communities to recognise guests and visitors,” he said.
The pua kumbu, he said, comes in many forms, and netizens are correct that it has ritual purposes, often driven by the motifs used on the cloth and the intentions of the weaver.
“However, it is also a blanket and our ‘kain kebat’ (ceremonial skirt). Our womenfolk would perform ngajat on it. It would be spread on mats for dignitaries and visitors to eat from, both spiritual and physical.
“In the old days, it would be laid on the floor for the Bujang Berani to walk on, a mark of respect for their contribution and position.
“I believe this was the intention of the organisers in this case and I am humbly grateful to them for according me this recognition,” he said.
He further explained, in the modern world, mass-produced, machine-made pua kumbu are available for sale across Sarawak.
“These do not contain the powerful designs, they are not created following the Ngar or dreams, and these are not made for ritual purposes.
“This is the kind of pua kumbu used in this case and I hope that this issue will not prevent anyone from enjoying the incredible designs of our community in the future for fear of causing offence,” he said.
Peter said he was also saddened that so many seem to want to make an issue out of a simple celebration of the Iban culture.
“There have been many examples of judgement and instigation over the last few days from some quarters.
“While it is unrealistic to expect every Iban to agree on everything, I hope we can also all have a little faith in the good intentions of both the organisers and their guests, who included two Kuntau Associations, the president of Sarawak Iban Kuntau Association, guro (Kuntau masters) from other Associations, several Lemambang (priest), Penghulu and Tuai Rumah, all of whom are experts in our custom,” he said.
For the future, he hopes the experts in customs and the elders of the Iban community can come together with the people to ensure that the pua kumbu remains an important and appreciated part of our material culture for years to come.
Meanwhile, Kuntau Pencha Ajat Sepring Sarawak Club chairman Guro John Siang hopes netizens will understand the situation before jumping to conclusion.
“The pua kumbu used to welcome Panglima Peter is not the woven type pua kumbu, but machine-made ones.
“I had bought the pua kumbu table cloth which is often used as decoration from a shop as I wanted to welcome Panglima who is a very respectable person and as a sign of respect to attend our closing ceremony of the Gawai Silat programme,” he told New Sarawak Tribune.
He explained that should a woven pua kumbu with ceratin motifs be used to welcome Peter at that time, then it is wrong as the Iban would believe it as ‘mali’ that is ‘Alah Ayu’ (short life span).
“I also hope netizens will stop making negative comments as the way I see it netizens are now taking the opportunity to tarnish the image of Panglima John,” he said.
