Batu Sumpah Keningau

The oath stone at the District Office Keningau

The Batu Sumpah Keningau or Keningau Oath Stone in the Malaysian city ​​of Keningau is a memorial that commemorates the promises made by Malaysia on the occasion of Sabah joining the Malaya Federation on September 16, 1963.

Description of the monument

The monument is a megalith that was recovered from the Sungai Pegalan near Kampung Senegang , a small village on the road between Keningau and Tenom . The stone was worked by Garukon Gurun, a former member of the North Borneo Constabulary .

On the front of the oath stone is an approximately 100 × 70 cm plate manufactured by John I. Thornycroft & Company in Singapore, which bears an inscription in Malay , which follows the old spelling before the spelling reform in 1972:

Batu Sumpah Peringatan Mengikut Parlambaga'an 1. Ugama Bebas Dalam Sabah. 2. Tanah2 Dalam Sabah Di-Kuasa Oleh Kerajaan Sabah. 3. Adat Istiadat Anak Rayat Sabah Di-Hormatkan Dan Di-Pelihara Oleh Kerajaan. Sabalek Pula Rayat2 Sabah Di-Dalam Interior Bersumpah Ta'at Setia Kapada Kerajaan Malaysia.

or translated:

Oath stone to commemorate the constitution 1. In Sabah religious freedom should prevail. 2. Land affairs remain under the jurisdiction of the Sabah government. 3. Adat and traditions are respected and upheld by the government. In return, the people of Sabah's interior pledge loyalty to the Malaysian government.

Historical background

The proposal to add further states to the Malaya Federation , which had become an independent state within the Commonwealth on August 31, 1957 , met with fierce resistance from the influential tribal leaders of the territories concerned. The Legislative Assembly of North Borneo finally approved the Malaysia Agreement on September 12, 1962, provided that the " 20-point agreement " drafted by Tun Fuad Stephens would be part of the treaty - nevertheless, the conservative forces within the Orang Kaya stood -Kaya , as the tribal leaders were called in Sabah, remained reluctant to accept the proposal.

After further consultations, opposition leader GS Sundang of the United Pasok-Momogun Kadazan Organization party suggested that a so-called traditional "oath stone" be erected to manifest the Malaysian state's guarantees towards Sabah and in return demand the loyalty of residents in the interior of Sabah would.

The establishment of an oath stone had an extremely high symbolic value for the inhabitants of inland Sabah. The stone gave them the certainty that by joining Sabah to the Malaya Federation, their interests - namely land rights, religion and customs - would be preserved in the spirit of the "20-point agreement" and protected by the state. This finally resolved the negative attitude that the Orang Kaya Kaya had towards the idea of ​​a merger.

Installation site

The then District Officer of Keningau, Richard Lind, was commissioned to set up the Schwurstein. The stone was erected on August 31, 1964 in the presence of Tan Sri V. Manickavasagam as the representative of the Malaysian government, the Prime Minister of Sabah Donald Stephens , GS Sundang from the Pasok Momogun party , the State Secretary Yeap Kee Aik, the District Officer Richard Lind, OKK Sedomon , OKK Angian Andulag as well as numerous representatives of the municipalities and the various ethnic groups. The original installation site was initially in front of the old district office of Keningau, in the immediate vicinity of the district hospital. In 1982 the oath stone was moved to its current location in front of the new District Office to make room for a two-lane road.

Others

To celebrate Malaysia Day, the Parti Keadilan Rakyat party initiated the traditional Maningolig ritual at the oath stone on September 16, 2010 under its party leader Jeffrey Kitingan. The white rooster intended for sacrifice did not die as intended, but lived on despite the slashed neck. Jeffrey Kitingan stated that this was likely a symbolic reminder that all terms of the deal had not been met.

Web links

Commons : Keningau Oath Stone  - Collection of Images

Individual evidence

1. ↑ ^{a b} Documentation of the Sabah Museum in the Warisan Muzium Keningau branch ; explored on site on July 30, 2012
2. ↑ Asmah Haji Omar: The Malay Spelling Reform ( Memento of the original from July 6, 2010 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , Journal of the Simplified Spelling Society, 1989-2 pp. 9-13 
3. ^ The Borneo Post: The story behind Keningau's oath stone , November 30, 2010; Accessed October 3, 2012
4. ↑ Explanatory board for the Schwurstein at the District Office Keningau; explored on site on July 30, 2012
5. ↑ Daily Express: Sacrificial Batu Sumpah rooster survives ritual  ( page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , October 19, 2010; Accessed October 3, 2012  

Remarks

1. ↑ The Adat quoted in the translation denote the legal and customs system of the local people.

Coordinates: 5 ° 20 ′ 34.9 "  N , 116 ° 9 ′ 41.7"  E