BELAGA: The preservation of indigenous customs in Sarawak is not merely a cultural obligation but a living legal foundation that must be safeguarded for future generations.
Deputy Minister in the Premier’s Department (Bumiputera Law and Custom), Datuk Jefferson Jamit Unyat stated this during a work visit to the Belaga Native Court and a dialogue session with community leaders in the district, according to a press statement today.
“The indigenous communities in this state must firmly uphold the customs inherited from their forefathers.
“These customs form their identity and serve as the foundation of the Bumiputera Courts legal system,” he said.
The Bukit Goram assemblyman also highlighted the state government’s ongoing efforts to document and publish customary law books for Sarawak’s various ethnic groups, describing the initiative as crucial to preventing ancestral heritage from being lost amid rapid development.
Among the documented codes is the ‘Adat Kayan-Kenyah 1994’, an officially published Code of Customary Law covering the Kayan and Kenyah communities.
Customary practices of other groups including the Iban, Bidayuh, Penan, Bisaya, Lun Bawang and Kelabit have also been recorded to date.
Jefferson underscored the Native Court’s vital role in adjudicating breaches of customary law within communities and stressed the responsibility of traditional chiefs and community leaders in helping resolve disputes including those involving Native Customary Rights (NCR) land.
The visit included the Chief Registrar of Native Courts of Sarawak Datuk Jonathan Lugoh; Kapit Resident Elvis Didit; Belaga District Officer Bidah Lujah; Political Secretary to the Sarawak Premier Thomas Balan Bang; Belaga Police Chief DSP Jimbai Bala; Temenggong Ajang Sirek; and several community leaders from the Orang Ulu communities of Belaga District.
