HUBUNGAN KOMUNITI MURUT DI BORNEO UTARA DENGAN PERIBUMI DARI WILAYAH LUAR SEBELUM TAHUN 1963

RELATIONS OF MURUT COMMUNITIES IN NORTH BORNEO WITH NATIVES FROM OUTSIDE TERRITORIES BEFORE 1963

Abstract

Abstrak Kajian ini meneliti hubungan antara komuniti Murut di Borneo Utara (kini Sabah) dengan komuniti peribumi dari Sarawak, Brunei dan Kalimantan sebelum tahun 1963 dengan tumpuan kepada aspek interaksi sosioekonomi dan konflik yang timbul. Masyarakat Murut yang mendominasi daerah di Residensi Pedalaman seperti Tenom, Keningau dan Pensiangan adalah sejak asalnya hidup secara mandiri, terasing dan bersifat tradisional. Namun komuniti Murut telah menerima pengaruh dan implikasi akibat daripada mobiliti masuk peribumi luar dari wilayah Sarawak, Brunei dan Kalimantan. Mobiliti masuk peribumi luar ini ke kawasan dominan Murut yang disebabkan khususnya oleh tarikan kekayaan sumber hutan telah mewujudkan interaksi sosioekonomi dan budaya melalui perdagangan, perkahwinan dan amalan perhambaan. Bagaimanapun, kedatangan komuniti peribumi luar terutamanya melibatkan suku Dayak (Iban) dari Sarawak telah mencetuskan persaingan terhadap sumber ekonomi, pelanggaran adat resam dan konflik persengketaan. Analisis menunjukkan bagaimana interaksi ini mempengaruhi sistem sosial tradisional Murut termasuk ancaman terhadap monopoli ekonomi dan keutuhan autoriti adat Murut. Kajian turut meneliti peranan pentadbiran British dalam menangani konflik persengketaan yang wujud. Kajian ini bersifat kualitatif dengan teknik heuristik terhadap sumber primer arkib dan sumber sekunder untuk memahami peristiwa mobiliti peribumi luar dan dasar kolonial terhadap komuniti Murut. Kajian lanjut dicadangkan untuk meneliti naratif lisan masyarakat serta kesan jangka panjang mobiliti masuk peribumi dari wilayah luar ini terhadap pembentukan demografi majmuk, sosioekonomi dan politik Sabah pasca tahun 1963. Penemuan kajian ini diharap dapat memberi pemahaman lebih mendalam tentang perkembangan interaksi antara komuniti Murut dengan peribumi dari wilayah luar dalam konteks sejarah sosial di Borneo Utara sebelum pembentukan Malaysia.

Abstract This study examines the relationship between the Murut community in North Borneo (now Sabah) and indigenous communities from Sarawak, Brunei, and Kalimantan prior to 1963 which is focusing on aspects of socioeconomic interaction and the conflicts that arose. The Murut community who dominated the Interior Residency districts such as Tenom, Keningau and Pensiangan are originally lived in isolation, independently and adhering to a traditional way of life. However, the Murut community experienced external influences and implications due to the inward mobility of indigenous peoples from Sarawak, Brunei and Kalimantan. The arrival of these external indigenous groups into Murut dominated areas are driven by the allure of the region’s abundant forest resources which led to socioeconomic and cultural interactions through trade, intermarriage and the practice of slavery. Nevertheless, the influx of these communities particularly the Dayak (Iban) community from Sarawak triggered competition over economic resources, breaches of customary traditions and territorial disputes. The analysis demonstrates how these interactions influenced the traditional social systems of the Murut including threats to their economic monopoly and the integrity of their customary authority. The study also explores the role of British administration in addressing these existing conflicts. Employing a qualitative approach with heuristic techniques were applied to primary archival sources and secondary materials to understand the events surrounding the mobility of external indigenous groups and colonial policies towards the Murut community. Further research is recommended to examine oral narratives from the community as well as the long-term effects of this external indigenous mobility on the formation of Sabah’s pluralistic demography, socioeconomic landscape and political dynamics post 1963. The findings of this study are expected to provide deeper insight into the development of interactions between the Murut community and indigenous peoples from external regions within the context of North Borneo social history before the formation of Malaysia.