Recognise Bajau Laut as Malaysians, Zaid tells govt
Published on: Thursday, June 13, 2024
.jpg "Recognise Bajau Laut as Malaysians, Zaid tells govt")
Former law minister Zaid Ibrahim said the Bajau Laut have lived in Sabah far longer than Malaysia itself has existed, without citizenship papers, schools or other basic facilities.
PETALING JAYA: Former law minister Zaid Ibrahim today called for the Bajau Laut community to be recognised as Sabahans and Malaysians through the provision of blue identity cards.
In a post on X, Zaid slammed their recent eviction from their stilt homes in Semporna, saying they had nowhere to go but the “middle of the high seas”.
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“I call on Sabah leaders to take a joint stand on how to treat the Bajau Laut people with compassion. You may not want them to settle anywhere they want, but they must be absorbed into the community with proper guidance. They must be helped so that they can be part of the Sabahan community.
“For that, the Bajau Laut need to be recognised as Sabahans. They need to enjoy all the rights and facilities that other Sabahans have,” he said.
The eviction of the Bajau Laut community in Semporna, Sabah, last week saw their stilt homes torn down in an operation that apparently targeted those living on seven islands in the region, including Pulau Bohey Dulang, Pulau Maiga, Pulau Bodgaya, Pulau Sebangkat and Pulau Sibuan.
Borneo Komrad founder Mukmin Nantang was reported as saying that men had arrived at the Bajau Laut community’s homes on June 4, and demolished and burnt their homes to drive them out.
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Borneo Komrad also shared several videos of the alleged evictions on X, one of which showed several men pushing a dilapidated house until it collapsed.
However, Sabah tourism, culture and environment minister Christina Liew said the operation was carried out due to safety concerns following a shooting incident in Teluk Darvel and cross-border criminal activities in the area.
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She said eviction notices to the community, involving 273 illegal occupants, were issued from May 2 to 4.
Zaid said the Bajau Laut have lived in Sabah far longer than Malaysia itself has existed, without citizenship papers, schools or other basic facilities.
“A responsible government would recognise their hardships, history and traditions. It would take a more robust attitude towards citizenship and issue them citizenship papers.
“A responsible government would also recognise their lifestyles and traditions and try to accommodate them in the context of modern living requirements. It would give them schools, even if they’re floating schools,” he said.
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