Tutong- Some 4,000 Lun Bawang from Brunei Darussalam, Sabah, Sarawak and Kalimantan will converge in Lawas and Limbang this weekend to celebrate the harvest festival.
The Lun Bawang Festival will be held at the Lawas district field from June 1-3 (Friday to Sunday).
The Lun Bawang, also known as Brunei Murut, in Temburong said they will participate in cultural activities and competitions to renew kinship and family relationship.
They number less than 1,000 in seven Temburong villages.
In Sarawak, the Lun Bawang number 21,000 or less than one per cent of its 2.3 million populations. They are residing mostly in Lawas and Limbang, northern Sarawak.
Known as the Lun Dayeh in Sabah, they number between 3,000 and 4,000 in Long Pa‘ Sia in Sipitang and Temon, near Lawas.
Inter-marriages are common among the Lun Bawang in Borneo, and they maintain close family ties.
The festival, an event in the Sarawak tourism calendar, would showcase the Lun Bawangs‘ unique cultural heritage.
There will be nightly stage shows to feature the community‘s traditional music and dances.
A beauty contest for Lun Bawang maidens and warriors and a bamboo band contest among 10 teams will be the highlights.
The winning band will represent the community at the forthcoming Borneo Inter-Cultural Festival in Sibu.
On June 2, a cultural parade in Limbang town would be held after the festival by Sarawak Urban Development and Tourism Minister Datuk Wong Soon Koh. There will be a tug-of-war contest, and other games including football, badminton and volleyball
Source: www.brudirect.com (29 Mei 2007)
