The Global Timber Trade, Individual Agency, and the Rise of Sarawak's Foochow Timber Tycoons

This chapter provides a historical overview of the emergence of the politically dominant, ethnic Chinese timber tycoon politicians who would eventually dominate the local Sarawak United People’s Party leadership (a key component of the Sarawak’s Barisan Nasional government), by taking into consideration several key factors behind their emergence (i.e., local geography, Foochow Methodist Chinese settlements in the lower Rejang basin, individual agency, colonial capitalism). Briefly, Foochow agriculturalists brought in under the Brooke Rajahs capitalized on the geographic conditions of the region, skillfully navigated Hokkien-controlled transnational trading networks, and, in the postwar period, entered the global timber market by embracing British colonial capitalism. Their transition into modern politics, having usurped the role of the traditional kapitan (lit., “captains”) in all but name before becoming involved in political parties and emerging as communal representatives in the state government, is discussed in detail. Here, I emphasize the underlying economic bases in order to provide a more nuanced discussion of how a timber-based ethno-patronage system plays out in Sibu before the formation of Malaysia. Case studies of two key timber tycoon families, the Lings and the Laus, are discussed.