British presence in North Borneo started with the occupation of Labuan island by the British government in 1847. It was made into a naval base for the British navy in its campaign against piracy in this part of the world. In Owen Rutter's book British North Borneo : An Account of its History, Resources and Natives published in 1922, he described how piracy, slavery and headhunting activities in North Borneo had almost depopulate the country and this was further aggravated by the shortage of food when peaceful tribes abandoned all agricultural activity for fear of raiding parties.
In 1865, the United States Consul to Brunei, Mr Charles Lee Moses, obtained a ten years cession of large territories from the Sultan of Brunei. Unfortunate for him, the United States government was not interested in North Borneo. Hence, the rights to these territories were transferred to the American Trading Company of Borneo which was headed by Mr Joseph W. Torrey.
Torrey and associates attempted to set up a settlement in Kimanis which they called Ellena. Their enterprise failed because of disease, desertion and lack of financial backing.
In 1872, "Labuan Trading Company" established itself in Sandakan. The partners of this company were Mr J.D. Ross, Mr Carl Schomburgk and Mr W.C. Cowie who would eventually become the Managing Director in BNBCC.
Mr W.C. Cowie was a Scott and an adventurer. It was reported in the Straits Time dated 30 January 1902 that at one time, the Sultan of Brunei ceded the peninsula of Muara to him for service rendered. He was the White Rajah over the territory but he soon found himself bored with inaction and sold the territory to Rajah Brooke. In 1877, Torrey sold his rights to Baron Overbeck and Alfred and Edward Dent albeit that the lease had expired. Undaunted, the trio took over the lease and formed a syndicate to revive the lease. They successfully obtained in perpetuity 'certain' of the Sultan of Brunei's rights in North Borneo on 29 December 1877.
1) Mr Harrington G. Forbes, Secretary
2) Sir Charles J. Jessel, Bart., Vice Chairman
3) Mr Richard B. Martin, M.P., Chairman
4) Mr William C. Cowie, Managing Director
5) Mr Edward Dent
Standing in the centre is Captain W. Raffles Flint and standing at the far right at the back is Mr A.T Wardrop. Among them are Dayak (or Dyak as they spelled it in the old days) Jubilee Police Contingent who were in England to take part in the Queen's Diamond Jubilee celebration.
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| Staff of North Borneo Military Police |
2 comments :
WISHING ALL SABAHANS A MEMORABLE INDEPENDENCE DAY ON 31 AUGUST (NOT THE OTHER MERDEKA DAY!)
If there is anything to commemorate it is the short 16 bitter sweet days of real freedom.
Sabah since 1761 (when Dalrymple got it as trading post from the Brunei Sultanate) has basically been traded like a piece of real estate by Brunei, the Dutch, Spanish, USA, Austrians, Britain and then Malaya. (The latest trade off were the 2 blocks of offshore oilfields for Brunei dropping its claim on Limbang).
If we were to take 1865 (leased by the USA) as the starting point of the foreign colonization of North Borneo/Sabah, the poor country is still a colony after nearly 150 years!
24 years prior to 1865, in 1841 Sarawak came into being and existed as an independent state till 1941. It was recognised as a sovereign state by the USA in 1859 and Britain in 1863. It has also remained a colony since the Japanese invasion in 1941, colonization together with Sabah by Britain in 1945 and then by Malaya in 1963 to 2012. 70 years.
Sabah and Sarawak are siblings of Brunei and shared the same fate of being kidnapped (annexed) and taken over by Malaya in 1963.
To remind all of us of our real colonial status the rulers of Malaya (and many of its people) insists that we in Sabah and Sarawak celebrate their national day! So under the British we celebrated the Queen's birthday and now under Malaya we celebrate "Merdeka Day".
Nothing changed just the skin colour of the colonial master! Worse still, they looted the 2 colonies more intensively than the British were able to as they had only some 18 years of colonising Sabah and Sarawak. They ended up subsidising Malaya's economic development as Malaya did subsidised Britain's economy as one of its richest colonies before 1957.
"...the Malayan controlled Federal Government is now telling Sabahans and Sarawakians (intentionally or not) that Malaysia was nothing more than a “takeover” project for Malaya and that Sabah and Sarawak are now Malayan states/territories so they (Sabah and Sarawak) must now adopt Malayan historical independence" (Jeffery Kitingan)
The word "takeover" must hit many of us like a sledgehammer . Did they actually use this word? What arrogance! Yes but for once they are telling the truth.
Let us commemorate "Malayan Takover Day or Malayanization Day" 16 September!
Fly the Malayan colonial flag at half mast and upside down as a mark our distress and loss of our independence!
(From a posting in Wikisabah News 27/08/12)
MERDEKA DAY – ABSOLUTELY NO RESONANCE IN SARAWAK OR SABAH
THE MALAYSIAN FAIRY TALE
“Peninsular Malaysia and the states of Sabah and Sarawak are separated, it seems, by a greater gulf than the mere expanse of the South China Sea.” This is a comment by Keruah Isit a Sarawak human rights activist in an article at Hornbill Unleashed on a Penan leader's visit to Malaya for Merdeka Day 1994.
This sentence sums up the east-west relationship like Pakistan and Bangladesh!
Despite the Malayan gov’t's great efforts to perpetuate the myths and fairy tales manufactured on the British creation of Malaysia- it succeeds only in creating a national identity crisis!
On one hand it tries to promote 1Malaysia meaning a multicultyral country made up of many different races. On the other it promotes the UMNO Malay supremacist apartheid system favouring one race
So why bother with all the charade?
We all have a long long way to go in understanding the real story of how Malaysia was created.
1. Malaya only existed as a federation from 31 August 1957 when the British gave UMNO independence and not to the Malayans who shed their blood in fighting the British for independence. UMNO replaced the British as the new colonial master led by the “Kedah Prince”
2. “Malaysia” did not exist in 1957 but was created by the British and UMNO on 16 September 1963. It is a shame that most of the youths have been so misled with myths and fancy stories about their history. The biggest myth still being promoted is the superimposition of Malayan independence day on the date of the creation of “Malaysia”.
Just google or go to You Tube you will find many truths which have been mangled or hidden in UMNO designed history books!
3. Malaysia was the original British 1942 plan to consolidate Malaya Singapore and the British Borneo protectorates (colonies from 1945) under one colonial administration. This idea was opposed by the ruler of independent Sarawak and also Malayan leaders.
4. In the 1960s the demand for independence in the British Borneo colonies became very strong and the popular idea was to united the 3 colonies into an independent state called North Kalimantan. The British were against this idea and proposed their old idea and called it the Malaysia proposal or plan. This time with UMNO in power Malaya enthusiastically supported the idea which coincided with the UMNO Malay supremacist apartheid “Greater Malaysia” agenda to expand their territories to Borneo.
5. This was immediately opposed by the independence movement in Borneo and Malaysia was imposed on the people against a background of Brunei Sabah and Sarawak people opposing the idea. On Dec 6 1962 the anti-Malaysia uprising broke out in rejection of British/Malyan “Malaysia Plan”. This became the Sarawak guerrilla war of independence fought till 1990. No one knows this history?
6. Malaysia was imposed on Sabah and Sarawak despite widespread opposition on 16 Sept 1963. It was not a free choice as no referendum was ever held to guage the people’s wishes required under the UN De-colonisation rules.
7. Readers need to read beyond what the gov’t controlled mew media is saying. In Sabah and Sarawak most people do not see any relevance of Malayaan independence day in their lives. They have a seething anger about being re-colonised by UMNO Malaya and seeing their natural resources like oil being looted for the development of Malaya. The pride felt by many Malayans in their gleaming new public buildings like the Petronas -Sabah Sarawak Towers, Putra Jaya and palaces and infrastructures have been built with Sabah Sarawak oil money.
8. Thus very few awared people in Sabah and Sarawak will “celebrate” Mederka Day or “Malaysia Day” which they have come to see as an abuse of their human rights and right to independence.
Comment by SARAWAKIANS — HU- August 30, 2012
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