The anti-cession movement of Sarawak ( ms, Gerakan Anti-Penyerahan Sarawak) was a movement in

Sarawak Sarawak (; ) is a state of Malaysia. The largest among the 13 states, with an area almost equal to that of Peninsular Malaysia, Sarawak is located in northwest Borneo Island, and is bordered by the Malaysian state of Sabah to the northeast, ...

to fight against the British attempt to govern Sarawak as a

crown colony A Crown colony or royal colony was a colony administered by The Crown within the British Empire. There was usually a Governor, appointed by the British monarch on the advice of the UK Government, with or without the assistance of a local Council ...

rather than a

protectorate A protectorate, in the context of international relations, is a state that is under protection by another state for defence against aggression and other violations of law. It is a dependent territory that enjoys autonomy over most of its in ...

ruled by the

White Rajah The White Rajahs were a dynastic monarchy of the British Brooke family, who founded and ruled the Raj of Sarawak, located on the north west coast of the island of Borneo, from 1841 to 1946. The first ruler was Briton James Brooke. As a reward ...

s. The movement lasted from 1 July 1946 until March 1950.

Factors

The anti-cession movement of

arose from the violation of a provision in the

1941 constitution of Sarawak The 1941 constitution of Sarawak is the first known written constitution in the Raj of Sarawak Borneo. The objective of this constitution was to approve and fulfill the promise upheld by the third white rajah of Sarawak, Charles Vyner Brooke — ...

, which stipulated that Rajah

Charles Vyner Brooke Vyner, Rajah of Sarawak, GCMG, full name Charles Vyner de Windt Brooke (26 September 1874 – 9 May 1963) was the third and last White Rajah of the Raj of Sarawak. Early life The son of Charles Brooke and his wife Margaret de Windt ( Ranee Ma ...

would grant the right of self-rule to Sarawak. Instead, he decided to cede it to Britain as a

Crown colony A Crown colony or royal colony was a colony administered by The Crown within the British Empire. There was usually a Governor, appointed by the British monarch on the advice of the UK Government, with or without the assistance of a local Council ...

on 8 February 1946. Secondly, the Sarawakian people had believed that the rule of the Brooke family could be expected to lead to independence for Sarawak, but heir apparent Anthony Brooke was not appointed as the next Rajah. In addition, the decision was taken without the consent of the indigenous people. The British did discuss it with the local people, but declared Sarawak a crown colony on 1 July 1946 anyway, with support from British officers and european residents.

Overview of movement

Many Malays joined Datu Patinggi Abang Haji Abdillah and

Datu Patinggi Haji Mohammad Kassim ''Datu'' is a title which denotes the rulers (variously described in historical accounts as chiefs, sovereign princes, and monarchs) of numerous indigenous peoples throughout the Philippine archipelago. The title is still used today, especial ...

to fight against cession of Sarawak to Britain. Many other local associations, such as the

Malay National Association of Sarawak Malay may refer to: Languages * Malay language or Bahasa Melayu, a major Austronesian language spoken in Indonesia, Malaysia, Brunei and Singapore ** History of the Malay language, the Malay language from the 4th to the 14th century ** Indonesi ...

(PKMS), took part as well. Members of the movement sent a letter objecting to

cession The act of cession is the assignment of property to another entity. In international law it commonly refers to land transferred by treaty. Ballentine's Law Dictionary defines cession as "a surrender; a giving up; a relinquishment of jurisdictio ...

to the

Colonial Office The Colonial Office was a government department of the Kingdom of Great Britain and later of the United Kingdom, first created to deal with the colonial affairs of British North America but required also to oversee the increasing number of c ...

in London. They also displayed an anti-cession poster in all the villages of Sarawak, and local people, including women, held

demonstrations Demonstration may refer to: * Demonstration (acting), part of the Brechtian approach to acting * Demonstration (military), an attack or show of force on a front where a decision is not sought * Demonstration (political), a political rally or prote ...

against it. However, when the authorities discovered that most of the members of the movement were civil servants, "Circular No.9" was issued and signed by C. W. Dawson on 31 December 1946, to warn civil servants that it was illegal to participate in political movements, on pain of dismissal from their post. More than 338 public employees, mostly teachers, resigned on 2 April 1947 in protest against the circular. These resignations forced the closure of more than 22 schools in Sarawak. 56 students also quit their university studies to denounce the circular. The largest demonstration took place on 1 July 1947, when the British government appointed Sir Charles Arden-Clarke, former

Resident Commissioner Resident commissioner was or is an official title of several different types of commissioners, who were or are representatives of any level of government. Historically, they were appointed by the British Crown in overseas protectorates (such ...

of Bechuanaland (present-day Botswana) as the first Governor of the British Crown Colony of Sarawak. From that date onwards, demonstrations increased. The British government, intending to put an end to the anti-cession movement, tried to disrupt the close relationship between Malays and the indigenous

Dayak people The Dayak (; older spelling: Dajak) or Dyak or Dayuh are one of the native groups of Borneo. It is a loose term for over 200 riverine and hill-dwelling ethnic groups, located principally in the central and southern interior of Borneo, each w ...

. They also tried to weaken the movement by saying that the colonisation of Sarawak aimed to bring better life to Malays and encouraging the formation of the Young Malay Association (YMA), which supported the colonisation of Sarawak. YMA members were picked at random from the anti-cession camp – if they refused to join, their children would be unable to attend school or work in the Civil Service. The British government also pursued psychological warfare against the anti-cession movement, causing it to decline from December 1947 on. After an unsuccessful attempt, thirteen radical members of the

Sibu Sibu (; Hokchew Romanized: ''Sĭ-bŭ'') is a landlocked city in the central region of Sarawak. It is the capital of Sibu District in Sibu Division, Sarawak, Malaysia. The city is located on the island of Borneo and covers an area of . It i ...

Malay Youth Movement formed a secret organisation called Rukun 13 (The 13 Pillars). This organisation aimed to eradicate all European and Malay officers who were in favour of British rule in Sarawak. Rukun 13 members

Rosli Dhobi Rosli Dhobi (18 March 1932 – 2 March 1950) was a Sarawakian nationalist from Sibu of mixed Malay-Melanau descent during the British crown colony era in that state. He was a member leader of the Rukun 13, an active organisation in the anti-c ...

and Awang Ramli Amit Mohd Deli, together with non-members Morshidi Sidek and Bujang Suntong, assassinated Sir Duncan Stewart, the second Governor of Sarawak, when he arrived in Sibu on 3 December 1949. He died in Singapore General Hospital a week later. This incident led the British authorities to try to crush the anti-cession movement once and for all, by any means possible. All Rukun 13 members were arrested in March 1950. The four assassins were sentenced to death while the remaining members sentenced to jail.Rosli Dhoby - Pejuang Atau Pembunuh)
Documentary on Rosli Dhobi, broadcast by

Astro Prima Astro Prima is a Malaysian pay television channel owned by Astro, launched on 29 September 2003. It broadcasts Malay dramas, documentaries and classic movies. Primawara Slot * ''Jihad Iskandar'' * ''Perempuan Dalam Pusungan'' * ''Mira Sofea ...

. After the end of the anti-cession movement, Sarawak remained under British Government rule until

self-government __NOTOC__ Self-governance, self-government, or self-rule is the ability of a person or group to exercise all necessary functions of regulation without intervention from an external authority. It may refer to personal conduct or to any form of ...

was established on 22 July 1963, after which it co-founded the Federation of Malaysia on 16 September 1963.

References

External links

{{Raj of Sarawak Raj of Sarawak History of Sarawak Politics of Sarawak 1946 in Sarawak 1947 in Sarawak 1948 in Sarawak 1949 in Sarawak 1950 in Sarawak Riots and civil disorder in Malaysia