Labuan (), officially the Federal Territory of Labuan ( ms, Wilayah Persekutuan Labuan), is a Federal Territory of

Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...

. Its territory includes and six smaller islands, off the coast of the state of

Sabah Sabah () is a state of Malaysia located in northern Borneo, in the region of East Malaysia. Sabah borders the Malaysian state of Sarawak to the southwest and the North Kalimantan province of Indonesia to the south. The Federal Territory ...

in East Malaysia. Labuan's capital is Victoria and is best known as an offshore financial centre offering international financial and business services via Labuan IBFC since 1990 as well as being an offshore support hub for deepwater oil and gas activities in the region. It is also a tourist destination for people travelling through Sabah, nearby Bruneians and

scuba divers This is a list of underwater divers whose exploits have made them notable. Underwater divers are people who take part in underwater diving activities – Underwater diving is practiced as part of an occupation, or for recreation, where t ...

. The name Labuan derives from the Malay word ''labuhan'' which means harbour.

History

For three centuries from the 15th century, the north and west coast of

Borneo Borneo (; id, Kalimantan) is the List of islands by area, third-largest island in the world and the largest in Asia. At the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia, in relation to major Indonesian islands, it is located north of Java Isl ...

including the island of Labuan was part of the Sultanate of Brunei. In 1775, Labuan was temporarily occupied by the British East India Company after the failure of the company's station at Balambangan Island. The Sultan of Brunei, Omar Ali Saifuddin I tried to secure the British East India Company’s support against the Sulu raiders by offering Labuan as an alternative to Balambangan but, instead the company made a second but failed attempt to set up a station on Balambangan. The Sultan's subsequent reoffering of Labuan to the company did not result in the establishment of a permanent British settlement on the island either. British policy changed in the 18th century, when Labuan started to attract British interest again. James Brooke acquired the island for Britain through the Treaty of Labuan with the Sultan of Brunei, Omar Ali Saifuddin II on 18 December 1846. A British naval officer, Rodney Mundy, visited Brunei with his ship HMS ''Iris'' to keep the Sultan in line until the British Government made a final decision to take the island and he took Pengiran Mumin to witness the island's accession to the

British Crown The Crown is the state (polity), state in all its aspects within the jurisprudence of the Commonwealth realms and their subdivisions (such as the Crown Dependencies, British Overseas Territories, overseas territories, Provinces and territorie ...

on 24 December 1846. Some sources state that during the signing of the treaty, the Sultan had been threatened by a

British navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against Fr ...

warship ready to fire on the Sultan's palace if he refused to sign the treaty while another source says the island was ceded to Britain as a reward for assistance in combating pirates. The main reason why the British acquired the island was to establish a naval station to protect their commercial interest in the region and to suppress piracy in the

South China Sea The South China Sea is a marginal sea of the Western Pacific Ocean. It is bounded in the north by the shores of South China (hence the name), in the west by the Indochinese Peninsula, in the east by the islands of Taiwan and northwestern Phil ...

. The British also believed the island could be the next

Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, borde ...

. The island became a Crown Colony in 1848 with James Brooke appointed as the first governor and commander-in-chief, with William Napier as his lieutenant-governor. In 1849, the

Eastern Archipelago Company The Eastern Archipelago Company was a company incorporated by British royal charter in 1847. It was active on the island of Labuan off the coast of Borneo from its creation until its dissolution in 1858. History Henry Wise, an ex-officer of the ...

became the first of several British companies to try to exploit Labuan coal deposits. The company was formed to exploit coal deposits on the island and adjacent coast of Borneo but soon became involved in a dispute with James Brooke. Not proving itself a great commercial or strategic asset, administration of Labuan was handed to the British North Borneo Company in 1890. In 1894, a submarine communications cable was built by the British to link the island's communications with North Borneo, Singapore and

Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delta i ...

for the first time. By 30 October 1906, the British Government proposed to extend the boundaries of the Straits Settlements to include Labuan. The proposal took effect from 1 January 1907. File:The signing of the Treaty of Labuan on 18 December 1846.jpg, The signing of the Treaty of Labuan between the Brunei sultanate and the British delegation on 18 December 1846 at the

Brunei Brunei ( , ), formally Brunei Darussalam ( ms, Negara Brunei Darussalam, Jawi alphabet, Jawi: , ), is a country located on the north coast of the island of Borneo in Southeast Asia. Apart from its South China Sea coast, it is completely sur ...

palace File:Ceremony of Hoisting the British Flag on the island of Labuan, N. W. Coast of Borneo.jpg,

British flag The national flag of the United Kingdom is the Union Jack, also known as the Union Flag. The design of the Union Jack dates back to the Act of Union 1801 which united the Kingdom of Great Britain and the Kingdom of Ireland (previously in per ...

hoisted for the first time on the island on 24 December 1846 File:Map of Labuan (1888).jpg, An 1888 British Map of Labuan Japanese landing off the west coast of British North Borneo, Labuan

Japanese landing off the west coast of British North Borneo, Labuan

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, Labuan was occupied by Japan from 3 January 1942 until June 1945 and garrisoned by units of the Japanese 37th Army, which controlled Northern Borneo. The island served as the administrative centre for the Japanese forces. During the occupation, the Japanese Government changed the island name to Maida Island ( 'Maeda-shima'' on 9 December 1942 after

Marquis A marquess (; french: marquis ), es, marqués, pt, marquês. is a nobleman of high hereditary rank in various European peerages and in those of some of their former colonies. The German language equivalent is Markgraf (margrave). A woman ...

Toshinari Maeda, as a remembrance to the first Japanese commander in northern Borneo. Maeda was killed in an air crash at Bintulu, Sarawak when en route to the island to open the airfield there. As the Allied counter-attack came closer, the Japanese also developed Labuan and Brunei Bay as a naval base. American Support Craft (AWM 108818)

The liberation of Borneo by the Allied forces began on 10 June 1945 when the Australian Army under the command of Australian Major General George Wootten launched an attack under the codename of

Operation Oboe Six The Battle of North Borneo took place during the Second World War between Allied and Japanese forces. Part of the wider Borneo campaign of the Pacific War, it was fought between 10 June and 15 August 1945 in North Borneo (later known as Saba ...

. Labuan became the main objective for the Allied forces to repossess. Soon, the 9th Division of the Australian Army launched the attack with support from airstrikes and sea bombardments until the capture of the Labuan airstrip. Most of the Labuan island area including the main town of Victoria was under the control of Allied forces within four days of the landing on 10 June. On 9 September 1945, the Japanese Lieutenant General

Masao Baba was a general in the Imperial Japanese Army, commanding the Japanese ground forces of the Borneo Campaign of 1945 in the closing months of the war. Biography Baba was born in Kumamoto prefecture, as the son of Lieutenant Baba Masayuki, a career ...

officially surrendered at a place now known as Surrender Point near the Layang-layang beach which he had been brought to the 9th Division headquarters on the island to sign the surrender document in front of the Australian 9th Division Army Commander George Wootten. The name of Labuan was later restored by the British and the island was administered under the British Military Administration together with the rest of the Straits Settlements. Labuan then on 15 July 1946 joined the North Borneo Crown Colony, which in turn became a part of the state of Sabah and

in 1963. In 1984, the Government of Sabah ceded Labuan to the federal government and later was admitted as a federal territory. It was declared an international offshore financial centre and free trade zone in 1990.

Geography

Labuan's area comprises the main island (Labuan Island – ) and six other smaller islands, Burung, Daat, Kuraman, Big Rusukan, Small Rusukan and Papan island with a total area of . The islands lie off the coast of Borneo, adjacent to the Malaysian state of

and to the north of

Brunei Darussalam Brunei ( , ), formally Brunei Darussalam ( ms, Negara Brunei Darussalam, Jawi: , ), is a country located on the north coast of the island of Borneo in Southeast Asia. Apart from its South China Sea coast, it is completely surrounded by the ...

, on the northern edge of Brunei Bay facing the South China Sea. Labuan Island is mainly flat and undulating; its highest point is Bukit Kubong at

above sea level Height above mean sea level is a measure of the vertical distance (height, elevation or altitude) of a location in reference to a historic mean sea level taken as a vertical datum. In geodesy, it is formalized as '' orthometric heights''. The ...

. Over 70% of the island is still covered with vegetation. The main town area of Victoria is located in a position facing Brunei Bay.

Islands

* Labuan Island *

Daat Island The Daat Island ( ms, Pulau Daat) is an island in Labuan, Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and ...

* Papan Island * Burung Island * Kuraman Island * Big Rusukan Island (Pulau Rusukan Besar) * Small Rusukan Island (Pulau Rusukan Kecil)

Climate

Labuan has a tropical rainforest climate with no dry season. Over the course of a year, the temperature typically varies from and is rarely below or above . The warm season lasts from 1 April to 13 June with an average daily high temperature above . The hottest day of the year is 29 April, with an average high of and low of . The cold season lasts from 7 January to 17 February with an average daily high temperature below . The coldest day of the year is 8 September, with an average low of and high of . The weather station for Labuan is located at Labuan Airport. Thunderstorms are the most severe precipitation observed in Labuan during 60% of those days with precipitation. They are most likely around October, when they occur very frequently. Meanwhile, the relative humidity for Labuan typically ranges from 63% (mildly humid) to 96% (very humid) over the course of the year, rarely dropping below 53% and reaching as high as 100% (extremely humid).

Government

Labuan is one of the Malaysian federal government territories. The island is administered by the federal government through the Ministry of Federal Territories. Labuan Corporation is the municipal government for the island and is headed by a chairman who is responsible for development and administration of the island. Labuan has one representative in each of the Lower and Upper Houses of

Parliament In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: representing the electorate, making laws, and overseeing the government via hearings and inquiries. ...

. Typically, the current member of parliament of Labuan will be appointed to become chairman of Labuan Corporation. The island is represented in the lower house of parliament by MP Datuk Rozman bin Datuk Haji Isli of WARISAN and in the upper house by Senator Bashir Alias of UMNO. Below is the list of administrator of Labuan Corporation from 2001 to current date:

Administrative subdivision

The Federal Territory is administratively subdivided into the capital Bandar Victoria and 27 ''kampung'' (administrative villages), and which are ruled by appointed ''Ketua Kampung'' (headmen): # Bukit Kalam # Durian Tunjung # Tanjung Aru # Pohon Batu # Batu Arang # Patau-Patau 2 # Belukut # Sungai Keling # Sungai Bedaun / Sungai Sembilang # Layang-Layangan # Sungai Labu # Pantai # Gersik / Saguking / Jawa / Parit # Sungai Buton # Kilan / Kilan Pulau Akar # Lajau # Rancha-Rancha # Nagalang / Kerupang # Bebuloh # Sungai Lada # Lubok Temiang # Sungai Bangat # Sungai Miri / Pagar # Patau-Patau 1 # Batu Manikar # Bukit Kuda # Ganggarak / Merinding

Security

Security is the responsibility of the federal government, with naval patrol vessels, a garrison, and an air detachment based on the island. The vigilance of the local Coast Guard and Customs and Excise contribute to the maintenance of Labuan's reputation and status as an international offshore financial centre and free trade zone.

Demographics

Population and religion

Labuan Malaysia Kwang-Fook-Kong-Temple-02

According to Malaysia's Department of Statistics, Labuan's population was 86,908 at the 2010 Census and 95,120 at the 2020 Census. The ethnic composition in 2010 in Labuan was: Brunei Malay and Kedayan (30,001), Kadazan-Dusun including/excluding Rungus (7,380), Bajau (6,300), Murut and Lun Bawang/Lundayeh (701), Chinese (10,014),

Indians Indian or Indians may refer to: Peoples South Asia * Indian people, people of Indian nationality, or people who have an Indian ancestor ** Non-resident Indian, a citizen of India who has temporarily emigrated to another country * South Asia ...

(641), other ethnic groups (19,727), and non-Malaysian citizens (12,144). The majority of Chinese people in Labuan are from the

Hokkien The Hokkien () variety of Chinese is a Southern Min language native to and originating from the Minnan region, where it is widely spoken in the south-eastern part of Fujian in southeastern mainland China. It is one of the national languages ...

dialect group (but has been since decreasing due to migration to the

Peninsula A peninsula (; ) is a landform that extends from a mainland and is surrounded by water on most, but not all of its borders. A peninsula is also sometimes defined as a piece of land bordered by water on three of its sides. Peninsulas exist on al ...

as well as overseas); however, there are also many Hakkas, most of whom are migrants or descendants of migrants from mainland Sabah as well as local-born Hakkas, whom are settled for more than 2 to 3 generations in the island dating as long as the colonial period, in which they came as stopover migrants or traders before embarking to the mainland (even when it was still an only island offshore municipality within

state jurisdiction from 1963 to 1984) as well as a negligible minority of Foochows from neighbouring Sarawak, mostly working as government staff and those posted in the petroleum and gas offshore industries and to a lesser extent a large minority of Dayaks also from Sarawak who are resident here and their local-born descendants whom are mostly ethnically Iban with pockets of Bidayuh and Orang Ulu residents. Census the population of Labuan is 76.0% Muslim, 12.4% Christian, 9.0%

Buddhist Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...

, 0.4% Hindu, 2.1% follower of other religions, and 0.1% non-religious.

Economy

The economy of Labuan thrives on its vast oil and gas resources and international investment and banking services. Labuan is very much an import-export oriented economy. Virtually all of its commodities including crude oil, methanol, HBI, gas, flour, animal feed, sea products, and ceramic tiles are exported either to Peninsular Malaysia or overseas. Raw materials, parts, and equipments for industrial uses well as consumer products are imported. In 2004, the total value of Labuan's external trade reached MYR11.8 billion from only MYR5.0 billion in 1995 for a net trade surplus of MYR5.1 billion. Among its major trade partners are India, Peninsular Malaysia, Sarawak, and South Korea. 65% of its exports are petroleum and gas-based products. The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of Labuan is estimated at MYR3.63 billion in 2012 with a growth rate of 5.8 percent. Labuan GDP per capita in 2012 is MYR39,682. The total employment for Labuan is around 39,800 in 2012. The main economic sectors in Labuan is service and manufacturing which contributed 94.6 percent to the island GDP. The service sector consisted mainly of Finance and Insurance and Real Estate and Business Services. Meanwhile, the manufacturing sector consists mainly of oil and gas industry and support. Labuan Malaysia Financial-Park-Complex-01

Labuan Malaysia Financial-Park-Complex-01

The Labuan International Business and Financial Centre Labuan IBFC was created as Malaysia's only offshore financial hub in October 1990 and was operating under the name of Labuan International Offshore Financial Centre (IOFC). At the time it was established to strengthen the contribution of financial services to the Gross National Product (GNP) of Malaysia as well as to develop the island and its surrounding vicinity. The jurisdiction, supervised by the Labuan Offshore Financial Services Authority or LOFSA, offers benefits such as 3% tax on net audited results or a flat rate of Malaysian Ringgit (MYR) 20,000 to trading companies; low operational costs; liberal exchange controls; and a host of other advantages including readily available, experienced and professional service providers. In 2010 the notion "offshore" was excluded from all the statutes of Labuan due to world pressure on the tax havens and offshores. Since its inception, the jurisdiction has expanded to become a base for more than 17,600 offshore companies and more than 300 licensed financial institutions including world leading banks. The IBFC also has over 370 registered foundations, 100 partnerships, and over 63 licensed trusts. Labuan IBFC is embarking on an aggressive growth strategy to become the premier international business and financial centre in the Asia Pacific region. Labuan's business focus is on five core areas: offshore holding companies, captive insurance, Shariah-compliant Islamic Finance structures, public and private funds, and wealth management. Labuan IBFC's position is further enhanced by the launch of the Malaysian International Islamic Finance Centre initiative in August 2006.

Places of interest

There are several attractions and places of interest on Labuan. The

Labuan War Cemetery Labuan War Cemetery ( ms, Tanah Perkuburan Perang Labuan) is a Commonwealth World War II graveyard in Labuan, Malaysia. The cemetery Many of the personnel buried in this cemetery, including Indian and Australian troops, were killed during ...

contains various war graves and memorials to the fallen of World War II. This includes British, Australian, Indian, Sarawakian, Bruneian, North Bornean, and Empire troops, making it the largest war grave with 3,908 graves of fallen soldiers. A memorial service is held on Remembrance Day once every four years. There is also a memorial celebrating the surrender of the Japanese to the Australian Forces in 1945. There are also remnants of Labuan's history as a

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by Kingdom of England, English and Kingdom of Scotland, Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were foug ...

coaling station, including the chimney, a well known local landmark. There is also a Labuan Maritime Museum. Labuan is also the base for diving on four popular wreck dives: the Cement wreck, the American wreck, (the first USS Salute), the Australian wreck and the Blue Water wreck. Labuan has many schools. However, it has only one international school, Labuan International School. Other places of interest include the Labuan International Sea Sport Complex. Newly proposed is the Marina Centre and Labuan Square project which were completed in 2010. Labuan's own institution of higher education is Universiti Malaysia Sabah Labuan International Campus, a branch of Universiti Malaysia Sabah in Sepanggar Bay,

Kota Kinabalu , image_skyline = , image_caption = From top, left to right, bottom:Kota Kinabalu skyline, Wawasan intersection, Tun Mustapha Tower, Kota Kinabalu Coastal Highway, the Kota Kinabalu City Mosque, the Wism ...

. Labuan also has a matriculation college,

Kolej Matrikulasi Labuan Labuan Matriculation College Labuan Matriculation College
, Official website of Labuan Matriculation ...

, the only matriculation college in East Malaysia. Thus, all pre-university students from

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, ...

and Labuan will take their courses here. File:Labuan-war-cemetery.jpg,

File:Labuan Malaysia Clock-Tower-01.jpg, Replica Clock Tower of 1906 File:Labuan MuziumLabuan.jpg, Labuan Museum

Postage stamps and postal history

A post office was operating in Labuan by 1864, and used a circular date stamp as postmark. The postage stamps of

India India, officially the Republic of India ( Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the ...

and Hong Kong were used on some mail, but they were probably carried there by individuals, instead of being on sale in Labuan. Mail was routed through Singapore. From 1867, Labuan officially used the postage stamps of the Straits Settlements but began issuing its own in May 1879. Although initially the design for the first stamp issue was proposed to be depicting a clump of sago palms, for economic reasons, the queen heads design was finally adopted, having been used initially for postage stamps of Grenada. The first stamps of Labuan therefore depict the usual profile of

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 216 days was longer than that of any previ ...

but are unusual for being inscribed in Malay-Arabic ( Jawi) and Chinese scripts in addition to "LABUAN POSTAGE". Perennial shortages necessitated a variety of surcharges in between the several reprints and colour changes of the 1880s. The original stamps were engraved, but the last of the design, in April 1894, were done by

lithography Lithography () is a planographic method of printing originally based on the immiscibility of oil and water. The printing is from a stone ( lithographic limestone) or a metal plate with a smooth surface. It was invented in 1796 by the German ...

. Beginning in May 1894, the stamps of North Borneo were overprinted "LABUAN". On 24 September 1896, the 50th anniversary of the cession was marked by overprinting "1846 / JUBILEE / 1896" on North Borneo stamps. Additional overprints appeared through the 1890s. In 1899 many types were surcharged with a value of 4 cents. The last Labuan-only design came out in 1902, depicting a crown and inscribed "LABUAN COLONY". After incorporation into the Straits Settlements in 1906, Labuan ceased issuing its own stamps, although they remained valid for some time. Many of the remainder were

cancelled-to-order A cancelled to order (also called and abbreviated CTO) postage stamp, philatelic symbol , is a stamp the issuing postal service has cancelled (marked as used), but has not traveled through the post,Bennett, Russell and Watson, James; ''Philatel ...

for sale to collectors and are now worth only pennies; genuine franked/post used stamps are worth much more.

Federal Parliament Seats

List of Labuan representatives in the Federal Parliament (Dewan Rakyat)

Notable residents

* Ayu Mansor - actor, radio announcer * Hassan Sani, Malaysian and Sabah football player * Kelvin Teo, young entrepreneur and season 1 winner of reality show ''Love Me Do'' *

Karen Kong Karen Kong (; Pha̍k-fa-sṳ: ''Kiông Khô-iûn'') is a Malaysian singer. Biography Karen Kong (or Karen K to her fans) is from Labuan Island, Malaysia. She was a student of S.M St Anne, Labuan, S.M.K Labuan, Tunku Abdul Rahman University Co ...

, Hong Kong-based Malaysian pop singer *

Suresh Singh Suresh Singh ( pa, ਸੁਰੇਸ਼ ਸਿੰਘ, Surēśa sigha; born 27 September 1973) is a Malaysian cricketer. A right-handed batsman and right-arm medium pace bowler, he has played for the Malaysia national cricket team since 1995. B ...

, right-hand bowler who plays for the Malaysian cricket national team *

Yussof Mahal Datuk Haji Yussof bin Haji Mahal (born 1 May 1957) was the Member of the Parliament of Malaysia for the Labuan constituency, representing the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO), a component party of Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition, for ...

, politician from Barisan National party and former Member of Parliament for Labuan

Notes

References

External links

Labuan
– Travel information
Labuan Corporation

Labuan Tourism

Labuan International Business and Financial Centre, Malaysia
{{Authority control Federal Territories in Malaysia Islands of Malaysia Islands of the South China Sea History of North Borneo British Borneo History of Sabah Philately of Malaysia Maritime Southeast Asia