‘Respect Sabahan nativity’

The federal government has been urged to recognise and respect the existence of Sabah's Kadazan, Dusun and Murut communities.

LAHAD DATU: Children from Chinese-native parents in Sabah are decrying the National Registration Department’s (NRD) unwillingness to specify their mixed ethnicity in their MyKad applications.

Sources here said the NRD required Sino-Kadazans or Sino-Dusuns to choose between Chinese, Kadazan, Dusun or Murut ethnicity for their MyKads.

NRD is insisting that the community use the generic term “Sino-Native” in the documentation.

The policy has angered the mixed Chinese-native community in the state.

They have refused to subscribe to the NRD ruling and are demanding that their particular native groupings be recognised.

Kadazan, Dusun or Murut communities are inherent to Sabah.

Sensing an implosion following a recent complaint by a Chinese association in Ranau, Sabah deputy chief minister Yee Moh Chai said it was not right for the federal government to deny Sabahans of mixed parentage their nativity.

“In Sabah by virtue of its traditions, customs and beliefs everyone recognises the existence of Sino Kadazan, Sino Dusun and others because inter-marriages here are norm.

“They exist and you cannot deny it. If a Sino Kadazan wants to be known as Sino Kadazan then we must respect it.

“If it is a fair system that we want in this country, then NRD should only register the people’s name minus the particulars like race and religion. It (documents) should only state their nationality as ‘Malaysian”.

“If you want other particulars to be included then you must include all categories and not be selective, ” he said recently.

‘Right treatment’

Yee said as far as Sabah was concerned there were many things that were being done here and that was not done in other parts of Malaysia.

“I think they (peninsula) must recognise and learn from us in terms of harmony and living together. It is the 1Malaysia ideology promoted by the Prime Minister,” he added.

He said blanket policies could no longer apply for Sabah and that the federal government must take into account local situations and accord the ‘right treatment’ in policies to be implemented in the state.

“It is important that whatever policies the federal government wants to implement in Sabah, they must first understand and respect the various groups of people concerned,” he said.

Nativity is a big issue in Sabah where legalised illegal immigrants outnumber natural Sabahans.

In 2009, Sri Tanjung assemblyman Jimmy Wong had his sino-nativity questioned. The issue was raised in the state assembly and eventually a special commission was set up to investigate the authencity of his nativity.

Wong told FMT last week that the commission chairman had confirmed that his nativity certificate was authentic but the matter was still a political issue.