There will be universal peace and happiness
when all nations commit to total disarmament.
The trillions of dollars spent could be used
to alleviate global poverty
and raise standards of living across the world.

Gawai Dayak was first officially recognized and celebrated in Sarawak on June 1, 1965.

It has since become a symbol of the much needed unity, hope and aspiration of the ethnic Dayak people, the majority ethnic group in Sarawak today.

Traditionally, after a bountiful harvest, Gawai is a thanksgiving day in all longhouses across the length and breadth of Sarawak, and for the same reason celebrated by the ethnic Kadazan-Dusun and other related ethnic groups in Sabah.

But things have changed in the last 50 years, a giant step for these loyal and brave people!

Today, they are found in many fields of human endeavors. There are successful doctors, nurses, lawyers, journalists, accountants, senior civil servants, police and armed forces, immigration, fire & rescue officers and diplomats, to name a few.

Most businesses and industries in Sarawak are staffed by ethnic Dayak.

Many have gone into politics as well.

I am exceedingly proud of their achievements and contributions to the progress and prosperity of the country.

At this most trying time with the war on the invisible and crafty Covid-19 still not really over yet, some global communities have decided “to live with the virus” after most people have been fully vaccinated, mainly for economic reasons, with the exception of a number of tumultuous third world countries with vaccines and financial problems.

Global economy is almost crippled beyond description. It affects almost everything on earth: employment, family, food on the table, mental health, ugly white collar crime, rising crime rate…

While we are reopening, all, I am sure, will still continue to be careful and vigilant.

As if this is not enough, then we have some countries which are perpetually at war, directly or otherwise.

Geopolitical tensions, especially between an elephant and the mouse, can have the most disastrous consequences.

Nuclear proliferation is a serious issue of concern.

The only peoples who benefit are manufacturers of arms and “weapons of mass destruction”.

The losers? The ordinary people who suffer untold miseries and sufferings.

All countries should ideally devote their funds, time and energy to make life safer, happier and more bearable for everyone in this rather difficult, troubled and tumultuous world, instead of on lethal weapons especially nuclear weapons with the capacity to destroy humankind.

No war or invasion is moral, defensible or justifiable, whatsoever the reason, with unconscionable taking of life, especially the most vulnerable, the sick, the poor, the disabled, babies and pregnant women and the elderly.

There will be universal peace and happiness when all nations commit to total disarmament. The trillions of dollars spent could be used to alleviate global poverty and raise standards of living across the world. That will be the day to celebrate, THE UNIVERSAL DAY OF PEACE.

I am cautiously optimistic.

Global inflation and threatening famine caused by geopolitical tensions should be addressed immediately.

The much feared climate change and its ill effects on humankind, flora and fauna and the environment, is a monumental issue.

We see such ill effects already even within our own country as torrential rains and serious floods seem to be occurring with greater frequencies.

Serious weather disturbances greatly disrupting and endangering lives such as ferocious forest fires because of severe dry conditions, are experienced now even by countries such as the United States, Canada and Australia.

In our neighboring countries such as the Philippines, typhoons seem to be growing in intensity with each passing year.

While all these man-made and natural disasters affect almost all parts of the world, most unfortunately the less well-to-do are always the most affected.

It is expected that the effects of the pandemic and the geopolitical wars will push tens of millions of people worldwide back to poverty.

I bring such tidings of human despair up on what is supposed to be a joyous celebration to create awareness of how relatively blessed we are to be shielded from many of these instances of sufferings in other parts of the world.

At the same time, we should not take these matters lightly as they will negatively affect us, too.

As food and oil prices go up, inflation will go up and inevitably we will all be affected one way or another, even when the government does its best to cushion the people from more severe effects.

It is also important for us to know that even on matters as grave as climate change and global warming, they are the results of our cumulative individual actions and behavior.

We persist in favoring of energy sources such as coal and fossil fuels even when we know carbon emissions from burning them are the causes of global warming with temperatures rising to nearly unsustainable levels.

Only when we as individuals act to be responsible advocates and consumers of clean and renewable energy will our government feel the pressure to act more firmly to promote its use.

We must turn to sustainable renewable energy by setting up offshore wind turbines which will power millions of homes.

These wind turbines will protect our much abused environment and its flora and fauna.

Solar energy is another form of renewable energy, an option to be seriously considered. Singapore and China are some of the leaders in this field.

The pandemic which we are still grappling with shows that nature will fight back if we push against it to unsustainable levels.

We push back nature in hopes of producing greater wealth for ourselves, but the pandemic has already set back economic growth as the government takes on more debts to fight the ravages brought about by the virus. This is most ironic.

It is often said that health is wealth. The pandemic shows us how true this is.

In this regard, I would like to once again congratulate the federal minister of health for his ministry’s decision to have automated external defibrillators (AED) installed in selected public buildings.

I have advocated this for some years because of my firm belief that AEDs are life-savers in critical minutes when people experience heart attacks, a disease which is sadly becoming more prevalent due to unhealthy lifestyles.

AEDs readily available must go hand-in-hand with the most important cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), which I have been campaigning for many years to be taught in schools and institutions of higher learning.

As we celebrate another Gawai festival, let us be reminded again to celebrate in moderation.

Both humans and Planet Earth must stay healthy for their own sake and for our future generations.

Selamat Ari Gawai, Gayu Guru, Gerai Nyamai!

(Datuk Seri Ang Lai Soon is Sarawak social activist, philanthropist, founder of St John’s Ambulance Sarawak.)