KOTA SAMARAHAN: The Iban community should feel proud for having their own alphabet much like the English, Thai, Japanese, Korean, Chinese and Indian.
Social Development Minister Tan Sri William Mawan said yesterday that the Dunging Alphabet was easily the “ultimate symbol” of Iban identity in the world.
Greater public awareness must be fanned to ensure they (Iban community) understand this, he said at UiTM during the presentation of Certificate of Completion to students of its Iban alphabet training (Tulis) programme.
Mawan said greater support to promote the Iban alphabet and the language to the world has to start from the Iban community themselves.
“We seek greater cooperation from protagonists of the Iban language, relevant associations, universities and the education fraternity to assist in promoting and developing the Iban or Dunging Alphabet.
“You must create more programmes, hold yearly forums, and turn talks into actions towards this end.”
Mawan said he believed it was not impossible for the Iban Alphabet to grow to such an extent that an Iban vernacular or vision school be set up in the future.
“It is something forseable.”
Fearing that politics might hamper the advancement of the Iban language, Mawan hoped that the development and promotion of the alphabet would not be politicised by any quarters.
“I hope that efforts to advance the Iban language through the alphabet system will not to be politicised by any quarters. Such efforts must be shared by the community and the government of the day.”
The alphabet should not be left to become a museum artefact, but for it to be “a living subject” the teaching of the alphabet must spread far and wide.
“I am one of those who sincerely believe that the Dunging Alphabet should not be confined in a museum in the future. It must be used as a tool of written communication.”
Mawan noted that the idea of having the Tulis class was mooted during the Forum Jaku Iban 2011 (FJI 2011) held here last year.
During the forum, which was attended by about 400 participants from all over the state, it was then recommended that the 59 characters of the alphabet system be promoted further. The idea was also encouraged by Deputy Chief Minister Datuk Patinggi Alfred Jabu Numpang.
UiTM Sarawak’s Special Interest Group for the Advancement of Cultures and Revitalisation of Ethnological Studies of the Dayaks (Sacred) then developed Tulis. Several committee members of Forum Jaku Iban 2011 then signed up for the pilot project in October under the guidance of Sacred chairman Associate Professor Dr Bromeley Philip.
“What the Forum Jaku Iban committee members and Dr Bromeley did by starting their training session at UiTM Sarawak is very important to the Iban community,” he said, and gave Bromeley a pat on the back for setting up Sacred which aimed to revitalise the Iban language.
At the function, Mawan also launched a reference book entitled “The Iban Alphabet” written by Bromeley.
Earlier, he presented two cheques to Sacred. One was from his Ministry for RM5,000 and the other from FJI 2011 committee (RM2,000). He also pledged a personal donation of RM5,000.
Among those present were UiTM deputy rector (Academic Affairs) Associate Professor Dr Rosita Suhaimi, Bromeley, and FJI 2011 co-Advisor Dato Sri Edmund Langgu Saga.