Malaysia’s growing nationalism renews Sarawak’s quest for autonomy to become a ‘state within a state’

Resistance in Sarawak against growing Malay nationalism in the peninsula is almost universal and directly tied to demands for greater state autonomy, observers say

The ultimate goal is the restoration of self-governance for both Sarawak and Sabah as laid out under the so-called Malaysia Agreement

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Kuching, capital of Sarawak state. There is a growing push for autonomy in Malaysia’s Sarawak state. Photo: Shutterstock.

Published: 6:35pm, 22 Apr 2024Updated: 6:43pm, 22 Apr 2024

Even a pay cut to work in the civil service in his home state of Sarawak could not deter Robin Wong from leaving the peninsula to return to his roots, where renewed political and economic clout is now matched by a determination to resist the rise of Malaysia’s Islamist hardliners.

Two years on, the 38-year-old has no regrets about coming home to the Malaysian portion of Borneo.

“I just felt it was time to go back home, and I can at least do my part in helping develop my home state,” said Wong.

Malay elites from the peninsula have long ruled Malaysia, whose rapid development was driven in no small measure by the natural resources of Sarawak and neighbouring Sabah states, where access to basic infrastructure remains a key issue despite its wealth.

But in recent years, Sarawak’s government has been pulling the emotional strings of Sarawakians, who have travelled far and wide in search of work to return home to help drive an ambitious plan towards full autonomy and economic self-sufficiency.

Behind the plan is the state’s Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) ruling coalition, without which Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim would not have secured the parliamentary numbers needed for high office after a deeply divided national election in 2022.