2021.02.21 Legend behind Makam Datuk Permaisuri of Miri

 

NOT far from Kampung Pujut Tanjung Batu, along the Sungai Baong lies the tomb of a queen who gave up her life of royalty to live among commoners in Miri.

Buried at the site over 100 years ago was Datuk Permaisuri Kemala, a Johor Royal Family member of the Riau Empire which had close ties with the Brunei Sultanate.

The site can be reached by a four-minute boat ride from Pujut Tanjung Batu jetty or 10 to 20 minutes on foot through a forested area from a junction along Jalan Miri By-Pass.

Yii (third right) pouring ‘air mawar’ on Datuk Permaisuri Kemala’s grave during his visit there last year.

In the old days, the Sultanates of Brunei and Johor-Riau had been maintaining close ties which were strengthened by the arranged marriage between the Johor-Riau princess and a Brunei prince.

After the grand wedding celebration and being in Johor for quite a while, Datuk Permaisuri Kemala’s husband sought his in-laws’ permission to bring his wife back to Brunei.

KK Usman shows the Makam Datuk Permaisuri site.

According to accounts passed down the generations, during the journey, the ship carrying Datuk Permaisuri Kemala, her husband and her in-laws encountered bad weather and sank off the Miri coast.

Painful decision

As the royal members were struggling in the raging sea, the prince made a painful decision to rescue his mother instead of his wife.

He reasoned he could always get another wife but nothing could replace his mother who carried him in her womb for nine months.

Datuk Permaisuri Kemala had no choice and she left her fate in God’s hand. She eventually lost consciousness and floated to a nearby village.

On finding the princess who was washed ashore, the villagers took her in and nursed her back to health. She was accorded royal treatment after attesting her status to them.

Permaisuri can be reached by a four-minute boat ride from the Pujut Tanjung Batu jetty.

Not long after the incident, her husband who was, at that time, living in Brunei heard that his wife was still alive and living among Mirians. All this while he though his wife had drowned.

Overjoyed, he immediately sailed over to Miri to look for her and tried to persuade her to return to Brunei with him.

Datuk Permaisuri Kemala happily welcomed her husband’s arrival but she was still bitter at his desertion of her, and since she was well treated by the villagers, she decided to stay on in Miri till her last breath.

he jetty pavilion leading to the cemetery
was upgraded by Datuk Peter Chin.

She set up schools as well as devoted her remaining life to spreading the teachings of Islam in Miri. Because of these good deeds, the princess was greatly loved and respected by the people.

One version

When she passed away, she was laid to rest in a burial ground further inland, known today as Makam Datuk Permaisuri.

“This is one version of the legend as told by our elders. There is no verified version as they were all words of mouth passed from one generation to another,” said Pujut Tanjung Batu village headman KK Usman Sulaiman.

He said he was told by his grandparents Datuk Permaisuri Kemala was taken in by a Jatti Miriek family, a native community in Miri, and she lived until her demise at Kampung Dagang.

Usman added that Datuk Permaisuri Kemala was laid to rest at the old Jatti Miriek Muslim Cemetery, Kampung Pujut Tanjung Batu, because in the old days if a person in the Miriek community passed away, he or she must be buried upstream.

“That’s why her tomb is located along the Sungai Baong, further upstream and far from Kampung Dagang where she actually lived her remaining life,” he explained.

A worn out signboard of Makam Datuk Permaisuri.

Failure to materialise

Meanwhile, the Miri City Council (MCC) is looking to revive a 2004 plan to develop the over 100 years old Makam Datuk Permaisuri site into a park and a tourist spot.

According to Miri Mayor Adam Yii, the initial project, estimated at RM5.7 million, didn’t materialise after it was first proposed due to lack of funding.

In 2004, the Council came up with a plan to develop, upgrade and beautify the place. At that time, Miri was preparing to become a city by 2005.

But the project did not take off as planned. Former Miri MP Tan Sri Peter Chin later arranged for some allocation to improve the wooden pavilion and the small bridge leading to the gravesite.

Since the plans and drawings all had been done in 2004, the Council will now reorganise it by reviewing the project papers and seeking funding.

“We’ll also form the project task force that will include the Majlis Islam, local community leaders and also NGOs (non-governmental organisations) which have been active in preserving and promoting this historical place.

“The task force will look into ways to implement the project. The council will prepare the project papers and look for the funds needed,” Yii said.

The 2004 project plan included a proper jetty and boardwalk, water features, a courtyard garden, food stalls, a visitors’ complex, a fragrant garden, an orchard, an administrative office, chalets, a barbecue area and a viewing deck.

In 2004, there was a proposal to develop the over 100 years old Makam Datuk Permaisuri site into a park and a tourist spot.

“Datuk Permaisuri Kemala is a legendary figure in the history of Miri. Although there are a few versions of the legend, it’s historical in any case.

“We hope with the successful implementation of the project, this location will become one of the tourist and historical sites as well as an added attraction for Miri. We’ll work towards that objective,” Yii added.

‘S’wak Biovalley Pilot Plant a game changer in agro-sector’

Kuek (right) briefs Uggah on the facility while others look on.

MIRI: The agriculture sector in Sarawak is expected to undergo drastic changes through the Sarawak Biovalley Pilot Plant facility (SBPP), says Deputy Chief Minister Datuk Amar Douglas Uggah.
He said this was one of the strategies to transform agriculture in the state, which has great potential in the (agricultural) sector.
“Technologies will help to increase productivity. Technologies will not only enhance quantity, quality and sustainability, but it will also make the agricultural sector more cost efficient.”
Uggah, who is also  Minister of Agriculture, Native Land and Regional Development, visited the SBPP facility at Curtin University campus here yesterday, where he was briefed  by the R&D dean Prof Clem Kuek on the purpose of the facility, which serves as a bridge between lab scale studies and commercial production in bio-economy.
“The pilot plant provides an opportunity to scale up using industry-relevant processes and equipment, the bench scale results achieved by various research institutions and industry in Sarawak and rest of the country,” he said.

It also has a phytoprocess floor where the development of research on the extraction of compounds of commercial value from plants is conducted. Nearby is the bioprocess floor where the capabilities of microorganisms can be developed into products for the chemical, food and agricultural industries.
The RM60.6 million-SBPP project is managed by Ministry of International Trade and Industry, Industrial Terminal and Entrepreneur Development with Curtin University Malaysia as adviser on the design and the equipping of the facility.
The Ministry of Education, Science and Technological Research will take over ownership of the facility in the fourth quarter of this year.

https://www.theborneopost.com/2019/10/12/swak-biovalley-pilot-plant-a-game-changer-in-agro-sector/

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Interesting encounters at Piasau Utara Fish Market

FISHMONGER Kassim (name has been changed) called out excitedly to customers at the Piasau

Utara Fish Market.

To the Malay women who stopped by his stall, he was happy to introduce tenggiri (Spanish mackerel) and prawns.

“Sliced or whole before I pack up for tomorrow,” he said to them. To the Chinese woman who just walked in with a camera, he recommended ‘pah tiek poh’.

“Madam, the Chinese love this fish, which has good firm flesh and the head is best for soup. Buy for Chap Goh Meh.”

Kassim then walked over to a fish tray on the table and to the surprise of my friend and I, pulled out a huge garoupa, prompting several customers to gather around.

The garoupa looked like a little baby elephant and could easily have weighed 50kg.

“I can only cut it up for tomorrow. Just hooked early in the morning — still very fresh. Maybe someone will call me this afternoon to sell it,” he said.

Petros names Hamid Bugo chairman

Profiles of the board of directors

KUCHING: The Chief Minister’s Office yesterday announced the appointment of Tan Sri Datuk Amar Dr Hamid Bugo as  chairman of the newly formed Petroleum Sarawak Berhad (Petros).
Hamid is a former state secretary who once served with Malaysia LNG Sdn Bhd in Bintulu.
The other board members are Dato Mohammad Medan Abdullah, Sharbini Suhaili, Zuraimi Sabki and Heng Hock Cheng.
On August 11, in the headline story “Who are the pioneering five?”, The Borneo Post took an educated guess of the Petros Board Members, among those speculated are Medan and Heng.

Miri Airport upgrading to be completed end of 2019 — Lee

Lee gestures during the walkabout at Miri Airport
with MAHB officials to check the proposed upgrades
of facilities under the optimisation plan.

MIRI: The Miri Airport upgrading project will be completed by the end of 2019.
Upon completion, the airport would be able to cater for three million passengers per annum and have more modern facilities to better serve domestic and international passengers.
Among the new facilities would be a separate departure hall for domestic passengers and more immigration clearance counters and an arrival gate for Rural Air Service (RAS) passengers, Assistant Minister of Tourism, Arts and Culture Datuk Lee Kim Shin said.
“These would be carried out under Miri Airport Optimisation Plan pending the upgrading and rebuilding of Miri Airport in the long term plan,” he said at a press conference before a walkabout at the airport yesterday.

‘Policies up for review to make S’wak tourism more vibrant’

Abdul Karim stresses a point in his presentation on ‘Sarawak Tourism Blueprint’ at Sarawak Dialogue.

KUCHING: Sarawak is relooking at its strategies and policies to address several issues in the tourism sector and to improve what the state has to offer to visitors.
Minister of Tourism, Arts, Culture, Youth and Sports Datuk Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah pointed out the need to improve the overall standard and quality of products and services within the tourism industry – from accommodation, restaurants, tour guides to packages – so as to grow the sector and make Sarawak a preferred tourism destination.
“Our national parks are very popular with both local and foreign visitors but there is still room for improvement as I notice that the facilities are not up to expectations.

Sultan of Brunei yes to Sarawak, Brunei, Sabah seamless travel

MIRI: Datuk Patinggi Abang Johari Tun Openg has made travelling through Sarawak, Brunei and Sabah smoother by putting up the request to the Sultan of Brunei.
The present system whereby passports are stamped 14 times at the CIQs of Sarawak, Brunei and Sabah respectively will be a thing of the past when  Malaysia and Brunei introduce digital scanning at their respective Immigration checkpoints.
On Nov 1, the chief minister at the earth-breaking and launching of second Limbang Bridge project at Pabahanan in the Ranggau Valley Development area said he would like to see travellers to and from Brunei enter both countries without too much hassle.

Three sovereign states form Malaysia — Penguang

Datu Dr Penguang Manggil

MIRI: Malaysia Agreement 1963 (MA 63) and the Inter-Governmental Committee (IGC) report documents set up the terms and conditions in which three sovereign states have agreed to form the Federation of Malaysia.
The three sovereign states have agreed to form the Federation of Malaysia with an understanding that there are guarantees in the Federal Constitution to protect their respective rights and privileges. Singapore, which also signed, later left the federation.
Assistant Minister of Local Government and Marudi assemblyman Datuk Dr Penguang Manggil said he had participated in the debate on MA 63 in the last DUN sitting and had the opportunity to examine some of the relevant documents including MA63 and the IGC report.

Embrace your heritage, young Kedayans told

The Kedayans from Brunei and Miri gather for a group photo.

MIRI: The young Kedayans of today must uphold their tradition such as the rituals in ‘Makan Tahun’ (annual grand feast) in that it marks their identity as one of many ethnic groups in Borneo.
In this regard, local Kedayan leader Penghulu Salim Ibrahim discloses that many young Kedayans do not even know what a ‘junjung’ looks like.
A ‘junjung’ is a traditional Kedayan farm hut, usually built at paddy fields or along the coastline near their villages.

This ‘junjung’ by the group from
Kampung Pintasan in Tiris
is elaborately decorated.

Even today, the majority of the Kedayans here and in Bekenu, Sibuti are farmers and fishermen.
“We must continue to preserve our customs and culture of the Kedayans, who are scattered across Borneo – there are even some who are living in Peninsular Malaysia.

Much to be done to keep Tusan beach clean

Beach cleaning conducted by Rotary Club of Miri Oil Town recently.

View of Tusan Beach.

MIRI: Tusan beach may have been identified as the latest place of interest in Miri, thanks to the ‘Blue Tears’ that had helped Tusan to gain popularity through social media.
However, visitors to the beach strongly feel that more should be done to make the beach attractive. A local, who wanted to be identified as Wilson, recently told The Borneo Post that his foreign friends whom he brought to Tusan beach were unhappy with the filthy condition of the tourist spot.
“They told me they were very upset that instead of a beautiful beach which they expected, they were greeted by rubbish scattered everywhere along the beach,” he said.

City apiculture — a thriving hobby-business

Cikgu Michael Sabang opens
a hive to show the honey pots
(left) inside.

MIRIAN Aki Bujang remembers when he was still young, his grandparents could easily spot a kelulut (stingless bee) hive on the way to their padi field.

He would happily shout: “That’s the sweets for the little ones! Soon, we would be extracting honey from the tree trunk. Yes, those were the good old jungle days.”

Aki told thesundaypost many stories about ulu life — how they looked for honey by watching the tapang trees and how they waited for the kelulut (stingless) bees or meliponines to come home.

Invention of sandfly repellent earns SMK Lutong spot in Petronas’ AAY 2017 grand finale

Chloe (front, centre) and her team show the processes involved in making their organic sandfly repellent during the state-level AAY 2017 round in Miri.

KUCHING: Necessity is indeed the mother of invention, as demonstrated by 16-year-old Chloe Yeo Lok Yee and her SMK Lutong team.
The Form 4 student, whose school is just a stone’s throw from the sandfly-infested Lutong beach in Miri, is allergic to the insect’s bite.
It is because of this that she has been avoiding the beach.
“I get skin inflammation every time I get bitten. The repellents available in the market are not effective.”

Student inventions AIR-MACS, Aelius have potential to be commercialised

Rakin (second row centre), flanked by Ekni (on his right) and Mohd Dzul, together with Hasimah (right) and Salmah (left) gesture during the presentation of AIR-MACS.

MIRI: Two projects undertaken by students under Petronas All About Youth (AAY) programme this year would provide cheaper and eco-friendly alternatives to air conditioners and powerbanks if they could be refined and patented.
AIR-MACS, an alternative to air conditioner was invented by 20 students from SM Sains Miri while Aelius, an alternative to powerbank is a project of 20 students from Kolej Tun Datu Tuanku Haji Bujang.

Business signboard not advertisement of service — Dr Sim

Dr Sim (seated, fourth left) and members of associations and representatives of local councils in a photo-call after the meeting.

KUCHING: Minister of Local Government and Housing Datuk Dr Sim Kui Hian does not agree with the argument that a business name signboard is an advertisement of service.
Contemplating an amendment to by-laws that are apparently peculiar, Dr Sim said the local council by-laws should be ‘people-friendly’.
Short of saying the law on business name signboards requiring an advertisement licence is absurd, Dr Sim said the law would be amended to provide clarity when the time comes.

Entrepreneur creates Sarawak version of keropok lekor

Machinery has speeded up the production of keropok lekor.

MIRI: There is no dispute that keropok lekor, a favourite snack among Malaysians, is originally from East Coast of Peninsular Malaysia – Terengganu and Kelantan.
Despite many similar products produced in all corners of the country, the original version is the tastiest.

Keropok lekor entrepreneur Fatimah Abdul Hamid, 57, has a vision to create Sarawak’s own version of keropok lekor.
“Keropok lekor is made from ingredients like fish, sago flour and salt; cooked and later deep-fried, it is best eaten hot. Connoisseurs of lekor can detect any subtle differences in taste.

Ali, dubbed the coconut man.

Ali, dubbed the coconut man.

ALI’s coconut stall is situated at the corner of the Saberkas Complex in Miri and people are happy to buy from him.
He not only sells coconuts but also cuts the fruits up for customers and chats with them under the tree as they savour the soft tender coconut flesh and the refreshing water.
Sometimes, three or four people would sit down for a chat — or just one man might drive by and order a fruit directly from the driver’s seat!
Dubbed the coconut man, Ali has been selling fresh coconuts for some years now. He built up his stall from a small wooden shack to a fairly reasonable kiosk with a storeroom, reinforced by wire mesh and grilles, and an open space with a stove for frying fritters.
He has a section for coconut shakes, a new product. There is a little banner here – an old one by the looks of it. But he is not worried about it.

The untold tale of Pua Kumbu

Cutting Rengat leaves for the blue dye.

THE 1865 fantasy novel ‘Alice in Wonderland’ written by Lewis Carroll, tells the story of a girl named Alice falling through a rabbit hole — entry into the unknown, of adventure and beauty. Such was the case of Dr Weylene Jeffery Jehom when she stumbled into the enigmatic world of the Pua Kumbu, only that this time it was not the fictional fantasy adventures but an authentic and sacred journey.
The Pua Kumbu, the Iban hand-woven textile, represents the heart of the Iban culture. And just like the Alice in the Wonderland — Weylene became ‘curiouser and curiouser’ towards the art of Iban weaving, that she spent two years just searching for the weavers and master weavers. Her sole desire was to experience the traditional culture and raw skills of dyeing and weaving.

Kelabit museum highlights megaliths

The launching of the Kelabit community museum was graced by Deputy Chief Minister Datuk Amar Douglas Uggah Embas during the 12th Pesta Nukenen (Food Festival) in Bario recently.

MIRI: Bario, located in the Highlands of Borneo and homeland of the indigenous Kelabit tribe, is not only known for its peaceful agricultural atmosphere but also famous for its megalithic monuments.
Universiti Malaysia Sarawak (Unimas) Faculty of Applied and Creative Arts deputy dean (student affairs and alumni) Dr Yakup Mohd Rafee said the Kelabit community in the highlands of Bario should be proud that they are rich with all sorts of fascinating heritage and culture.

Bario – a Highlands experience

The town centre where dignitaries watch the traditional performances.

A SINGAPOREAN tourist stepped on the scale to have his body weight verified by the counter officer as he checked in for a Twin Otter flight, operated by Sarawak’s Rural Air Service, to the Bario Highlands.
His fellow Singaporeans and Kuala Lumpur friends travelling with him, were amused they had to weigh in for their first-ever flight aboard the 19-seater light aircraft to the highlands for the Bario Food and Cultural Festival 2017 (Pesta Nukenen) from July 27-29.
Apparently, they did not expect this, at least not at Miri Airport which is classified as an international airport. But it was all taken in good spirits and their trip to the Bario Highlands turned out to be an enjoyable and memorable one.

Paragliders take to the skies at Sg Pagar

Paragliders and paramotorists from Brunei, Sabah and Malaysia in a group photo at Beraya beach.

MIRI: The Sungai Pagar paragliding site at Beraya in Sibuti has the potential to become a hub for aerial sport tourism due to the location of its takeoff site from a cliff facing the South China Sea and the Beraya seafront.
This sport needs wind and height for takeoff and landing, and this makes cliffs such as the Sungai Pagar site at Beraya beach the best location for paragliding.
Paramotor sports is increasingly well-known among tourists and locals alike in Miri and Sarawak as a whole. This sport started in Miri at the old Lutong Airstrip as far back as the early 90’s, with paragliding starting in 2012.