KUCHING: The Hindu community is gearing up for Deepavali which falls on Nov 12.
While the celebration may still not be a public holiday in the state, the community no less thrilled to celebrate the Festival of Lights with their family and friends.
New Sarawak Tribune interviewed the community to hear their wishes and hopes for the coming Deepavali celebration after Bandar Kuching MP Kelvin Yii handed over vouchers to them.
Nethiyananthar Balalingam,46, assistant to Stampin MP, Chong Chieng Jen
I wish everyone a Happy Deepavali. I hope the State Government will consider a public holiday for the coming Deepavali celebration. Currently, we are cleaning our houses and on the day itself we will visit our elders to receive blessings from them. I am very happy to live in a multiracial community.
Rajesolsana Thirayum Suppiah, 64, Housewife
Usually for Deepavali, I would bake cakes and make biscuits. I would invite people to come, I am happy. I am also grateful for Chong for assisting us and helping my husband who is currently bedridden. I celebrate with my family, and if visitors come I will prepare some food. There’s no public holiday and that is burdensome but hopefully in the future there is a holiday.
Suzy Lekeh, 38, Housewife
I hope Sarawak can have a holiday soon. Currently we are already starting our preparations. Preparing murukku, biscuits and mostly are self made. Sarawak is big. My family celebrates Christmas and Gawai, and my husband celebrates Deepavali.
R. Steven, 68, Pastor
My aspiration is that we want all the people to be united. Although, we may think differently, speak differently, in the end we need to be united to achieve something. That is my goal, this place is set for every group not only for the Indian community.
So when we do any function, we open the door for all the races so we can be here in one mind and that we can be united. That is the difference in Sarawak, people are different, the government is different.
We are all united and we don’t differentiate, and we all are in one umbrella just like one body has many functions. We are God’s children so we need to be united.
