For years Sarawakians have been blissfully complacent that our state is insulated against the problems of illegal foreign immigrants and religious discord.
Illegal immigrants, especially those from Southern Philippines, taking over swathes of state land have always been viewed as a ‘Sabah’ problem.
Our state is too far geographically for them to come and our state government would never issue them Malaysian identity cards like what happened in our neighbouring state.
As for religious discord … Sarawakians have always prided themselves as a tolerant people accepting and even thriving in our societal kaleidoscope of diverse races and faiths.
Religious discord does not exist in our Land of Hornbills …it happens only in Peninsular Malaysia where Ibrahim Ali, Ridhuan Tee Abdullah and their ilk keep the pot boiling.
However, recent events have given us a rude awakening and we are faced with the reality that the seeds of these two problems have been planted in our midst.
The Suluks have been quietly settling in the coastal areas of Miri for some time now but their numbers are still small.
It is not clear how long those who have settled here have been in the state but it is disturbing to note that we almost committed the same mistake as Sabah did by not doing anything about them and letting their number grow.
Thankfully, Chief Minister Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Adenan Satem acted swiftly and decisively when the presence of Suluk fishermen in Miri was highlighted by The Borneo Post recently.
Annoyed that the enforcement agencies had not seen the urgency of dealing with illegal immigrants although they were alerted of their presence last year, he ordered a roundup of those who entered the state illegally and deport them back to their country.
This exercise stopped the problem of illegal immigrants in our state before it got too big to handle like what is happening in Sabah.
However, the state government must remain vigilant to prevent them from coming back in the future.
On Thursday the alleged conversion of a 13-year-old Iban Christian schoolgirl to Islam by her teachers without her parents’ consent cast the long shadow of religious tension over the state.
The undercurrent of resentment over attempts to convert Christian natives in the state by Muslim preachers from Peninsular Malaysia has been simmering for some time.
There has always been an understanding in the state that there should not be any attempt to proselytize members of any religious groups by members of different faiths.
It is this unwritten agreement that made Sarawak free from religious tension and contributed to our racial harmony.
The presence of Muslim missionary groups from Peninsular Malaysia, have caused unease among the people in the state.
However, it was the alleged conversion of the schoolgirl by
her teachers that rang the alarm bells.
Christians in the state are up in arms that the teachers who were posted to the state from Peninsular Malaysia to teach have taken advantage of their influence over their students to spread their religion.
Aside from breaking the law as under the Child Protection Act anyone under 18-years-old cannot be converted to any religion without the consent of their parents, the teachers have sowed mistrust among parents of students.
This is a disturbing development that could disrupt the state’s religious harmony and must be stopped before it gets out of hand.
While we are perturbed that problems we have always thought would not beset our state are actually happening in our midst, we must also be thankful we
have the chance to nip them in the bud before they take root and grow.