KUCHING: Sarawakians were not ready in 1963, but today many Sarawakians are politically mature and ready to drive Sarawak into a new era of progress and development as was envisaged in 1941 when Sarawak got its first constitution.
This was said by State Reform Party (STAR) president Lina Soo when contacted by New Sarawak Tribune recently.
“What started as a spark in 2013 by a small group of Sarawak nationalists who commemorated July 22 with a parade at Padang Merdeka Kuching (formerly Central Padang) has now mushroomed into a Sarawak affair with politicians, schools and civil liberty groups and also the Sarawak government celebrating it on a grand scale this year,” she said.
“We must be thankful it was the Sarawak government under former chief minister Adenan Satem who was the driver behind the momentum to declare it a Sarawak holiday and had it gazetted as Sarawak Independence Day in 2016.”
Soo also said that even though July 22, 1963 is not truly the Independence Day of Sarawak, it was indeed a milestone in Sarawak history that for the first time a Sarawak politician namely Stephen Kalong Ningkan was appointed as the first chief minister to lead the government of Sarawak.
“It was still not independence for Sarawak yet as Sarawak remained a British crown colony with sovereignty held by Britain, until September 16, 1963 when the British surrendered Sarawak’s sovereignty to the Federation of Malaya which was subsequently renamed Malaysia,” she continued.
“Nevertheless, Adenan Satem had reflected the foresight and aspiration of many Sarawakians in calling July 22 as Sarawak Independence Day in line with Sarawak’s Nine Cardinal Principles of 1941, which stated that Sarawak shall be granted self-rule when the people are ready and politically mature.”
Soo also wishes every Sarawakian a happy Sarawak Independence Day and envisions one day it will truly be a day of celebration when full self-rule is restored.
