MIRI: ‘Gawai dalam ati kami’ (Gawai in our hearts). That’s Gawai Dayak this year for Veronica Rimong, an Iban lady in her 50’s from Rasau, Dalat.
In the past, Veronica and her family would gather together for the festival but now, they can’t. They have to comply with the government’s standard operating procedures during the current conditional movement control order (CMCO) which bans mass family gatherings.
“Our family members had, earlier on, planned to go back to our longhouse in Sarikei but that trip is now cancelled,” she told New Sarawak Tribune.
“Perhaps, we can still communicate with each other online.
“I guess we all have to adapt and find creative ways to spend quality time together with our family members.”
For the Dayak, this year’s Gawai Dayak celebration will definitely be different.
The state government has advised the Dayak to ‘forgo’ the ‘ngabang’ (visits) in order to cut the Covid-19 transmission.
Gawai Dayak is celebrated yearly on June 1 in Sarawak.
The festival is observed not only by the Iban but also other Dayak tribes in Sarawak, such as the Bidayuh, Kayan, Kenyah, Kelabit and Murut.
