JUNE 2 — In 1937, Martin and Osa Johnson released their film ‘Borneo’, shot in British North Borneo, or what is now known as Sabah. Rainforests, apes and tribal huntsmen were paraded and prodded at for entertainment but the filmmakers failed to translate their local languages, nor did they seem interested in finding the deeper meaning behind their rituals from the natives’ point of view.

In short, it was an exploitation film.

Their approach towards the indigenous people of Borneo was one of asinine wonder however this is forgivable given the era. In 2014 however it seems that little has changed and it is particularly vexing when the same approach comes from our own countrymen. Over and over again East Malaysians have had to bear witness to our representation in Peninsular media, which when they’re not ignoring our existence, continue to ‘exoticise’ us to the point of absurdity. The Petronas Kaamatan and Gawai web campaign exemplifies just that.

Case in point, the first video of the 12 part series from 2013 opens with host Pamela Chong narrating, “Many Malaysians are surprisingly unaware of the fascinating world that lies just East of the peninsular…” You can imagine that even with the best of intentions, starting a Kaamatan and Gawai web campaign by implying that Sabahans and Sarawakians are not Malaysians does not bode well with us. Every now and then people still ask me knowing I’m from Sabah, how long I’ve been in Malaysia when they actually mean to ask how long I’ve been in Kuala Lumpur.

It is high time that we put an end to the idea that Peninsular Malaysia is the default Malaysia whereas Sabah and Sarawak are ‘the others’. It is an insult to the Malaysia Agreement, which this country was founded upon. It is also a major faux pas on Petronas’ part especially considering Sabah and Sarawak are the country’s major oil producers.

The cultural disparity between East and West Malaysia exists because West Malaysia controls our national media and East Malaysians are not more involved in telling our own stories. Our Malaysian film industry and box office predictions are divided into Malay, Indian and Chinese and the rest of us in the two largest Malaysians states are not considered an actual target audience. This happens for a variety of reasons, some unavoidable but essentially there are no mainstream films made for or from Sabah and Sarawak for a nationwide audience although the reverse most certainly exists. This could also be a good thing because it maintains Sabahans and Sarawakians to be racially undivided. On the flip side, this also feeds the stereotype of the ‘ignorant West Malaysian’, who hangs his head low because without any real fault of his own, he has never been to Borneo-Malaysia or experienced it fully. Yet that’s the very point of films, of TV, to take us to places where we’ve never been. It’s hard to reverse this when East Malaysia’s media is so muted, but when given a chance to express itself is altered to suit West Malaysian values.

Because I work in the Film and TV industry myself I know first-hand that aspects of our culture such as rice wine, non-halal traditional foods and pagan rituals are often censored from public broadcast. East Malaysians are made to speak in Bahasa Malaysia instead of in our native languages, which is detrimental to the survival of our cultural heritage. I have watched a tele-movie on Astro set in Sabah where the entire main cast was exclusively West Malaysian. It’s like there’s a conspiracy to turn Sabahans and Sarawakian bumiputeras into cultural Malays. East Malaysians however have never tried to censor West Malaysian cultures. In fact, we’ve embraced it in many significant aspects; in our education, food and language even to the extent of forsaking our own. So why is the image of East Malaysians always tailored to suit the Peninsular instead of showing us for who we are? Why did none of the online national news portals wish East Malaysians a Happy Kaamatan and Gawai?

Sabah and Sarawak has its own rich culture and history. We are not an extension of Peninsular Malaysia. Going back to the Petronas Kaamatan/Gawai ad, attempting to demystify Borneo-Malaysia by featuring a West Malaysian host interacting with caricatured ‘native Borneons’ only alienates the two sides of the countries further.

I joked with a friend about doing a parody travelogue where East Malaysians travel to Kuala Lumpur on Federal Territory Day, eat traditional foods such as banana leaf and drink traditional drinks like the Milo Dinosaur. We’ll refer to KL-ites as natives and tell them we’re from Malaysia. Then we’ll take the long journey from there to Subang Jaya and ask them to teach us their traditional dances. If they tell us they don’t make handicrafts we’ll look at them funny. You kind of get what I mean now.

There is room for ‘traditional native narratives’ but when they are the only narratives, it becomes problematic. It evokes the wrath of East Malaysians who aren’t allowed to tell our own stories, which in return intimidates West Malaysians who have no remote access to a proper introduction. Don’t even get East Malaysians started on the plethora of faux pas that emerge on national media during Merdeka and Malaysia Day. That’s a whole other article altogether.

I am proud of my cultural heritage and I try my best to incorporate it into my own films but it irks me to be constantly represented in other medias as “those exotic Borneo natives” instead of as real people. Look at any 1Malaysia poster or any picture depicting our national demographic. A Malay, Indian and Chinese person in plainclothes is distinguishable but if they are to feature East Malaysians they must be in ethnic costume, feather hats and sigahs because the nation has yet to recognise the faces of their countrymen 51 years later.

West Malaysian corporations, broadcasters, media moguls - let Sabahans and Sarawakians tell our own stories. Not just to help us preserve our own fading culture and politically empower the East but to bridge the divide between East and West Malaysia for as a country. There’s so much to learn from one another. We have a lot of catching up to do.

Happy Kaamatan and Gawai.

* Nadira Ilana is a Kuala Lumpur-based filmmaker from Sabah. She makes documentaries but leans more towards narrative films. You can watch her Freedom Film Fest documentary ‘The Silent Riot’ on Youtube.

** This is the personal opinion of the writer and does not necessarily represent the views of The Malay Mail Online.