After the 2nd World War, the United Nations being mindful and conscious of human rights and the need for peaceful and friendly relations between people based on universal respect for the principles of equal rights, freedom and self-determination of all peoples in the world, passed and adopted on 14 December 1960 General Assembly Resolution 1514 of the right to self-determination.

The right to self-determination under this General Assembly Resolution 1514 is a right for people who are colonized in any part of the world to determine their political status and the freedom to pursue their economic, social and cultural development.

This United Nations General Assembly Resolution 1514 gave colonies the right to seek exit from colonialism and imperialism from their colonial masters. Sarawak and Sabah, therefore, has a right under United Nations General Assembly Resolution 1514 to pursue this right of self-determination and to seek independence by peaceful and lawful means.
Parti Bumi Kenyalang is determined to pursue this right to set Sarawak free and independent from the federation of Malaysia by peaceful and legal means.

At that time when this United Nations Resolution 1514 was passed and adopted by the United Nations, Singapore, Brunei, North Borneo (now Sabah) and Sarawak were British colonies.

To overcome the right of self-determination by the Singapore and Borneo people whether or not they wanted Malaysia formed, the Cobbold Commission was formed by the British government. Unfortunately, the Cobbold Commission set up in 1962 which came with the Cobbold Commission Report, according to many legal experts and activists was a fraud. The Commission was headed by former Bank of England governor, Lord Cobbold. Its members included Wong Pow Nee, Chief Minister of Penang, Mohammed Ghazali Shafie, Permanent Secretary to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Anthony Abell, former Governor of Sarawak and David Watherston, former Chief Secretary of Malaya.

There was no referendum held to determine the wishes or every citizens of the Borneo States whether or not they agreed to the formation of Malaysia or be part of Malaya or Malaysia. There was also no referendum in Malaya a that material time whether the people in Malaya had wanted Malaysia to be formed or whether they wanted Singapore, Brunei, Sabah and Sarawak be part of their territories or be part of Malaysia.

Therefore, the finding or assessment of the Commission that the people of Borneo wanted Malaysia was formed or be part of Malaysia was shrouded with many unanswered questions until today. Experts are of the view that the United Nations had been misled by the Commission of the agreement for Malaysia to be formed.

Thousands of people lined up in the streets or even took arms to oppose the Greater Malaya or Malaysia. Therefore, for the Commission to come to the conclusion that Malaysia was favoured by the people could be disputed. Members of the Commission were handpicked by the British and Malayan governments and therefore, there was doubts that they could be impartial. There was no evidence that the members of Commission was able to speak and understand the native languages here. There was also no evidence that the natives who were called by the Commission for the inquiry into the formation of Malaysia here at that time were able to understand English.

The Cobbold Commission Report drafted by the Commission was then used to draft the Malaysia Agreement 1963(MA63). Caused by the fraud of the Commision Report, the MA63 was an invalid international agreement or Treaty. At that same time being still colonies of United Kingdom, Sabah and Sarawak at that time had no legal capacity to enter the agreement.

Therefore, the Cobbold Commission was a sham by United Kingdom and Malaya to circumvent and defy the United Nations declonization of Sabah and Sarawak. Without the Cobbold Commission Report there could not be a Malaysia Agremeent 1963 being drawn to hand over Sabah, Sarawak and Singapore to Malaya to enlarge the federation of Malaya. The records in the United Nations did not say Malaysia is a new country. Malaya was a change of name from Malaya to Malaysia after Singapore, Sabah and Sarawak were acquired by Malaya to enlarge its territories.

Legal experts opined that the transfer by the government of the United Kingdom the territories of Sabah and Sarawak was illegal. Of a combined total population of 1,198,950 people in North Borneo and Sarawak in August 1962, the Cobbold Commission received 2,200 written letters and memoranda (0.183% of the population) and 4,000 or so people appeared to give their views orally (0.334% of the population). How could these small groups of people able to represent to voice of the majority to agree to Malaysia.

The Cobbold Commission’s members made it appear that MAJORITY of Sabah and Sarawak peoples agreed in a REFERENDUM to join the Federation of Malaysia. This was NOTTRUE. The 1963 Malaysian Federation was fraudulent and must be nullified because it was not a referendum as required by international law.

Therefore, it is difficult for the federal government or Malaya to deny Sabah and Sarawak are not colonies of Malaya. One could understand from study of history in schools that if a country is a colony, colonial masters have a right to take away the resources, land and taxes of the colonized countries. This is what is happening today for Sabah and Sarawak where the marine wealth, oil and gas resources are taken by the federal government. Oil and gas of Sabah and Sarawak are now vested in the hands of Petronas and it is up to Petronas how to deal with these resources.

In North Borneo, the population in 1960 was 454,421. They had 304 graduates which wasabout 0.07% of their population.In Sarawak, the population in 1960 was 744,529. They had 548 graduates which was also about 0.07% of their population.The Cobbold Commission sent out open invitations to the people of North Borneo/ Sabah and Sarawak to give their views both orally and in written form.Of a combined total population of 1,198,950 people in North Borneo and Sarawak, the Cobbold Commission received 2,200 written letters and memoranda (0.183% of the population) and 4,000 or so people appeared to give their views orally (0.334% of the population).

This was no referendum at all but a lame exercise to perverse the course of justice by Malaysia and Great Britain. With only 852 graduates in total, it is unclear how many of these graduates bothered to give their views about Malaysia.

In any event, North Borneo and Sarawak did not have the intellectual capacity to form a pool of educated leaders to decide their political destiny in 1962. Having known all these facts, the 1962 Cobbold Commission was a perversion of the course of justice under the rule of law jointly perpetrated by Great Britain and Malaysia using deception with the end view of unlawfully dispossessing North Borneo and Sarawak of their rights.

Therefore, legal opinions are that Malaysia was not a properly constituted federation and ought to be dissolved.

Therefore, there is no pride in the hearts of many to celebrate the formation of Malaysia or Malaysia Day come every 16 September each. This is evident that each year you can see less Malaysian flags being flown each year, People are more interest to put up the Sarawak Colonial flag. Of course, to celebrate 31 August will literally mean or admission by the federal government and the governments of Sabah and Sarawak that Sabah and Sarawak are indeed colonies of Malaya.

The coming of July 22 Celebration which are only days away will lend injury to Sarawakians of deceptions by colonial masters and or by certain authorities in Sarawak that Sarawak was granted independence, in which, it never was until now by the British or by the federation of Malaya or Malaysia. There was no Act of Parliament passed by United Kingdom parliament to grant Sarawak independence until now. There is no evidence at all that Sir Alexander Waddell, the Colonial Governor in Sarawak did say Sarawak was granted independence when the governor appointed Dato Stephen Kalong Ningkan as the Chief Minister on 22 July 1963. The Colonial GOvernor was very much in control until he left the Astana after Malaysia was formed.

Voon Lee Shan,
President, Parti Bumi Kenyalang
30 June, 2023