S4S to organise independence day parade on July 22

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Peter (right) and parade coordinator William Bong speaking at the press conference yesterday.

Peter (right) and parade coordinator William Bong speaking at the press conference yesterday.

KUCHING: Civil rights movement Sarawak for Sarawakians (S4S) will be organising a parade from the MBKS foyer to Padang Merdeka to mark the state’s independence on July 22 at 7am.

The march, which expects more than 5,000 participants, will be led by their organising chairman and human rights activist Peter John Jaban.

“We will be expecting participants from Limbang, Miri, Sibu, Bintulu and Kapit to converge in the state capital to join the parade,” said Peter at a press conference yesterday.

He explained that the parade will mainly be held to strengthen the awareness that July 22 is the historically correct date when Sarawak gained independence from the British Colonial Government.

This is why every Sarawakian across political and racial divides should participate in the parade to strengthen solidarity, he said.

He added that S4S is a civil movement which requires no membership.

“There will be a convoy of cars, bicycles, motorcycles and four-wheel-drive vehicles to lead the marchers towards Padang Merdeka,” said Peter, who is also the first Malaysian to have been recognised as one of the ‘100 Information Heroes’ by Reporters Without Borders, a non-governmental organisation (NGO) based in Paris, France in conjunction with World Press Freedeom Day last year.

The parade, he said, will also become a platform for the people to voice their wish for the state government to declare July 22 as a state public holiday and gain full autonomy in the state’s oil and gas sector.

“The tussle for the 20 per cent oil royalty is ridiculous. Why are we asking 20 per cent from the federal government over something (oil and gas) which is ours to begin with?” he quizzed.

Meanwhile, Peter assured that the parade is strictly bound to the Peaceful Assembly Act and the organisers had personally handed a letter to the Kuching District Police chief ACP Roslan Bek to inform the authorities on the parade’s objectives.