Why the Term “Dayak” Matters

by Terence A Anthony

THE IBAN PEOPLE, ALSO KNOWN AS SEA DAYAKS | SOURCE: WIKIVISUALLY.COM

Since Malaysia day is fast approaching, I thought it would be a good time to write about Sarawak and its people. The region was where I came from and was one of the bodies that formed Malaysia alongside Malaya, North Borneo (now known as Sabah) and Singapore.

However Sarawakian representation in the media has been sparse and if there is, it would tokenistic. As much as I feel glad that Zee Avi is on tv singing about our favourite noodles, I cannot help but feel as if she is being exploited to get audiences during Sarawak state elections. What goes on in my mind is that finally care for us but instead, I feel that they only cared us for ratings and votes. But alas, that is the life as a minority everyday everywhere.

For those unacquainted, you must be wondering what’s Dayak? Dayak refers to the natives of Borneo stretching from Sarawak to parts of Kalimantan on the Indonesian side of the island. So if you’ve heard anyone spouting names of ethnicities like Bidayuh or Iban, they’re referring to us Dayaks.

In a recent court ruling, we finally obtained the right to designate ourselves as Dayak a simple but liberating act. For the first time since the formation of Malaysia, the right to associate ourselves with whatever term we want has been returned to us. For some, it might seem trivial. But for those who have been struggling with identity politics and as part of a society that has long been searching for a place, this is a step towards victory.

Side-lined as “Lain-Lain”

Before the court ruling, there are only two ways for us Dayaks to designate ourselves in official government documents. First is by ticking the “lain-lain” option. With roughly translates as “others.” It’s a catchall term for anyone the government doesn’t know how to describe and distil into. Are you Eurasian? Well then you’re lain-lain. Are you a Filipino with a Malaysian passport? You’re still “lain-lain!” The other choice is to pick “lain-lain bumiputera” or bumiputera Sarawak, which still leaves you as “others” too only that the bumiputera part is emphasized.

So despite us being one of the indigenous groups we are being automatically categorized as “others” in a government where we barely have any representation. It is even ironic that a bigger part of the current ruling coalition has argued that they are the only group of people in politics, defending the indigenous identity, culture and interest.

For years our people have been fed this idea that we are not part of bigger society and should sit at the fringes. It may seem trivial at first glance but try living life where you get reminded that you’re secondary to all of the other races. Not to discredit the problems with poverty or alcoholism that the Indian have to face on a daily basis or the lack of representation in the government that the Chinese community have to go through, but it is depressing to not even be recognized as an ethnic in your own country.

So communities who are not native to Malaysia are correctly identified but not the indigenous communities? While I’m happy for people to have the right ethnicity label they have always wanted, it is troublesome for natives to have them being side lined in the process. They have been kind to immigrants but they get slapped in the face by a Malay-dominated media and government.

Some may argue that we have bumiputera status, thus our concerns are alleviated. We have access to multiple welfare schemes that are only open to bumiputeras. But then if no one in a kampong in Sarawak feels as if they are a part of a bigger community do you think they would apply for it?

If a group of people feel as if they’re being told they are considered to be “others” then they often feel demotivated to actually ask for help. This may seem trivial for the privileged but that sense of belonging could demotivate people or feel insecure in life. It is the same logic where women are given scholarships and opportunity to pursue STEM yet they don’t go for it because they don’t feel that they belong in stem. They have been conditioned to think that STEM is a man’s territory instead of theirs. It is the same reason why when the Black community in the United States are given the opportunity to study in predominantly white institutions they feel that they will be shun or eliminated from social life there. They have to “act” like a “matured” person (which is normally a short hand for white) instead of acting “ghetto” (which is a short hand for being Black). With that immense pressure on their shoulders to fit into a society that can’t really communicate in, lest they get made fun of their accent or the inability to relate to everyone else, do you think they will go up and talk to a lecturer or go for counselling?

Why would I hold a textbook that tells me that there are only 3 races in Malaysia (Malay, Chinese & Indian) when my environment tells me that my people came from this land? Even when we are in the textbook, it is a caricature, made by someone clueless who probably is nervous to ask questions to a Dayak.

If you are reminded that you are an outsider in an institution that preaches exclusivity, do you think people will feel belong? Now just changing a tag in a government document wouldn’t change the urban rural divide Dayaks face or the lack of media attention, but it is a move towards the right step.

Asymmetry of Power

The other problem with designating us as others is that it is a tag given by someone outside our community. We had no say in how the identity was formed. Even if people manage to identify us as Ibans or Bidayuhs, the idea does not come from us. Recently, a scan from textbook went viral, showing an Iban lady and a Kadazan lady in “traditional costumes.”

Little children are taught that those costumes represent people of a certain race or skin colour. The problem is that these 1 dimensional associations are made by non-Dayaks. It is almost as if were animals to be studied in a biology or zoology textbook. The only thing missing are arrows and labels to designate anatomy or parts of our “costumes”. This risks the problem of stereotyping us. They do not show the different spectrum of lives that we have and it pigeonholes us into specific characters.

With the ability to call ourselves whatever we want, at the very least we can reclaim some parts of our identity. When another party comes in to tell others how we act, we lose control over that narrative. Other people then view us through the lenses of those descriptions. Even if a person that is also a minority and has no intention to injure or hurt us, their world view has been shaped by those who were the majority at that point. They have internalized narratives that Dayaks have no control over. It’s the same way how even other minorities in the United States can internalize anti-Blackness when they themselves face prejudice on a constant basis.

Dayak Lives Matter

Some people argue that the term Asian-American is artificial. It lumps multiple cultures together, just because they were born in America. The Vietnamese-American experience is different from the experience of another person born into an affluent Taiwanese-American family. Yet in the media, it is used a calling card for anyone of Asian descent to work together.

They managed to use it as a community tool and they created that community. Instead of being labelled as others, anyone with ancestors from the continent managed to leverage off it. The best part of all is that they own it.

At the end of the day, I believe the term Dayak is similar, acting as a calling card. It is something that we chose for ourselves to project an identity outwards. When we go to Kuala Lumpur or Singapore, we finally have a reference point. The world feels less lonely and we are not just “others.”