The road to Biawak

THE name maybe that of a reptile but the road in the Lundu District is of strategic importance, economic- and security-wise.

Before the cocoa and oil palm plantations were introduced by private developers during the past three decades, it was the only major road that connected the little settlement of Biawak to the outside world. It is the nearest Malaysian bazaar town on the Malaysia-Indonesia border. Until recent times, the shopkeepers were all Dayak Selako.

Business there is reported to have come to a halt (The Borneo Post – Feb 5, 2011) because of the presence of the Customs, Immigration and Quarantine Station. Shopkeepers claim that the cross-border trading was brisk before the checkpoint was established there.

I find this factor alone hard to believe.

Anyway, it maybe beneficial for the authorities to study the impact of the facilities on commerce and if it is true that cross-border trade has been adversely affected, thereby then a solution must be found for the businessmen of Biawak to resume their trading.

Sociologists from our universities may like to find out why.

Blame the road

During the Chinese Gawai holiday, with a friend’s car, I took off to see the place. I had not been back for at least a year. From Kuching it is 88km and, at the Lundu-Sematan junction at Rukam, the road turns south for 20km to reach the village.

Unfortunately, I had to turn back at the Sedaing bridge because the little Kancil is a two-wheeled drive and as such not quite fit for the road. The road is good for the biawaks (monitor lizard).

How the village at the end of that road got its reptilian name, I don’t pretend to know nor do I care; all I want to find out is why it has taken so long, 47 long years after Malaysia, to seal that road, only 13 miles long. It serves several plantations: oil palm, pepper, rubber, jatropha, Medang Teja, and until recently times, cocoa. Trucks carrying large amounts of timber extracted from the area had been using and at the same time damaging the road. Buses have stopped serving the residents along the road.

Economic activities alone would justify the improvement of the road. The beautiful waterfalls at the foot of the Pueh Mountain maybe developed as a tourist destination once the road is sealed.

This road has been the subject of discussion for the past 40 years. While the bridges crossing two main streams have been well built within the past couple of years, the sealing of the road has been well behind time.

How can we make the contractors speed up the work? Answer: invite the Prime Minister or his deputy to the area. That should bring some dramatic improvements to the road’s condition, almost overnight! The VVIP wishes to see a lot of people to make up the crowd to welcome him, especially at this time of the election cycle. You will see a good collection of cabinet ministers and senior government servants in one place; you will see overhead helicopters shuttling between Kuching and the destination, but most VIPS would be arriving by road, that road.

Its background

Soon after Malaysia was formed in September 1963, that same road was cut through the virgin forest to facilitate the movements of security forces and the villagers from Rukam, Sedaing, Pasir Tengah, Pasir Ulu and Biawak.

But the road ended by the bank of Sungai Pasir Ulu, a few kilometres short of the village of Biawak itself.

Sometime in 1965, Tun Razak visited Lundu, taking Temenggong Jugah, Minister for Sarawak Affairs, with him. Alfred Mason, political secretary to Apai tagged along while I manned the fort, ‘Bukit Batu’, name of the ministry’s pint-sized office in Kuching.

Earlier, I had received a note in Jawi. It was from Anggu Pengarah Otoh, the village chief. He was complaining about how the Biawak people were short-changed when the road only reached the bank of Sungai Pasir, two or three batu from his village. I told Alfred about Anggu’s request for the extension of that road right up to his village.

It transpired, however, that during lunch at the army camp, Alfred mentioned this request to Apai and from Apai it was whispered to General Ibrahim and apparently from the general to the Defence Minister, for the road extension was approved on the spot!

How’s that for the speed of a paperless bureaucracy?

A few days later, the army engineers moved in full force and built the Bailey bridge across the Pasir, completing the end part of the road right up to Anggu’s village within a matter of weeks.

That was more than 40 years ago. The road brought traffic, life and trade to the village. During the durian season, it was a pretty busy place for barter trade. A regular bus service was provided by the Sarawak Transport Company and lorries from Kuching picked up the durians and other produce. After the logging trucks had churned up the road, men from the PWD would fill up the holes made. But public transport was available, twice a day.

As I said, 40 years ago. Today the village looks rather different.

Pathetic sight

Photos of empty shelves at the Biawak bazaar speak a thousand words among which are the words eerily bizarre. I remember it as a cute shopping centre in the middle of nowhere, owned and managed by the Selako/Lara themselves – a remarkable situation compared to the run-of-the-mill Sarawak bazaar!

A monopoly broken

My late friend Anggu, who managed the village with an iron hand, would not allow traders from across the border to deal direct with anyone from Lundu or Sematan. All business transactions must go through the local businessmen there. Even the sale of durians was regulated with people from Aruk and Sejingan relying on credit facilities from their relatives at Biawak.

When Johaniss (The Borneo Post, Jan 5) appealed to the government to protect “our rights over the trees by preventing outsiders from buying the fruits directly from our Indonesian relatives”, I was not surprised at all.

There is a rationale behind this request. The monopoly enjoyed for so many years has been broken as the trade is becoming more and more competitive. Any outside buyer from Kuching or Serian can now deal direct with the Indonesian suppliers, bypassing the traditional Selako towkays like Engkoh or Achan or Lujan or Awang or Kumar.

It appears that the Biawakians have suffered from stiff competition. They will have to learn how to cope with competitors in a global village.

The blame on the Customs, Immigration and Quarantine Station may not be justified. Those facilities are vital for the regulation of activities between the two countries. The villagers should take advantage of those facilities. There is a camp. Malindo, manned by soldiers from both countries; it has been there so many years now, so security of the area is assured.

Serikin – a competitor

Business will pick up again if traders from the other side of the border are allowed to trade their wares like they do at Serikin. You will find that people from Kuching would flock to Biawak at the weekends.

People from Sungai Pinyu would be happy to sell their seafood products and those from Sambas or Singkawang their textiles and so on.

As there is a road to Kandaiee about 10 miles away to the east, people from Sentimu on the other side of the border would be able to sell their products at Biawak. Incidentally, the route between Kandaiee and Sentimu was the favourite of smugglers during the Japanese Occupation (1941-45).

Another growth centre proposed

Once the road to Biawak is sealed, business life will start there all over again.

The Customs and Immigration officials will be kept busy and the quarantine staff working full-time.

There lies the foundation for a successful growth centre. The border trade will grow, which is good for all the traders from both countries.

Talking about growth centres, the one proposed here is an outfit, in addition to the one announced during election time five years ago, for Bau. Two growth centres miles away from each other will do no harm, indeed they are a sign of economic development, which people in those areas badly need.

A sealed road and a growth centre will turn around the economy of the Biawakians, I’m sure.

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