As of 2022, Malaysia has a total of 32 official public holidays but not all are observed nationwide.
Subscribe to our Telegram channel for the latest stories and updates.
So a group of NGOs are insisting that the federal government declare the Kaamatan and Gawai festivals celebrated by East Malaysians as national public holidays, once and for all.
In Sabah, Kaamatan takes place between 30 and 31 May, while Gawai is celebrated in Sarawak every 1 and 2 June. The two are separate harvest festivals celebrated by a diverse group of ethnicities in East Malaysia.
Read More: No, Kaamatan And Gawai Are Not Interchangeable
Both festivals are gazetted as public holidays at the state level, but not nationally.
But public servants in Peninsular Malaysia who were born in East Malaysia can officially get one leave of absence to celebrate the festivities if they apply for it.
Sarawak’s former Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Joseph Entulu Belaun once said that the two festivals carry the same weight and mean just as much to the people of East Malaysia as Hari Raya Aidilfitri and Chinese New Year do to the rest of the country.
Former Sabah Chief Minister Datuk Seri Shafie Apdal once explained that the holidays would allow thousands of East Malaysians in the Peninsular to properly plan for and celebrate the occasions in their hometowns.
As of 2022, Malaysia has a total of 32 official public holidays at the federal and state level.
But only federal holidays are observed nationwide.
So depending on where you live, work or study, you’ll get at least 12 national holidays for;
Celebrations like New Year’s Day, Good Friday, Thaipusam and others are considered state holidays, where each state gets to decide if they want to observe them or not. The same applies to federal territories too.
Opinions we’ve seen online seem to show that the rakyat is in support of Kaamatan and Gawai being declared national holidays.
Yes please and also more holidays 🥳 https://t.co/Mvy55sWgBb
Many agree that gazetting the festivities as national holidays was the right thing to do to celebrate Malaysia’s diversity, let families and friends spend time together, and of course, let people enjoy more days off.
Why not right. In addition to celebrating differences, multiculturalness, and educating the malay majority on festivals of others, we all can definitely use the additional day off. I say go for it.
YESSSSS!! give people time to balik kampung to celebrate their festivals meanwhile we can enjoy the holiday!!! https://t.co/9LOJCwgLIE
Others also pointed out that we need to recognise other religious and cultural occasions here in Malaysia and make them national celebrations too.
Good Friday needs to be a national public holiday too because I had to be absent for class for going to church. Last year we had to reschedule an exam because a higher institution for bumiputera didn’t know about Good Friday and blame the students for not bringing it up earlier. https://t.co/bx3UyXKL7V
Meanwhile, there were those who suggested that, because of demographic reasons, it would be more practical to let each state pick and choose to gazette Kaamatan and Gawai as needed.
Its not practical in the first place, Sarawak dont even have a public holiday for Deepavali…
There are reason why State is given power to have their own holiday. https://t.co/naTU0HoVEc
This is almost as specific to their state (actually even MORE specific to their tribe/s) as a sultans birthday tho. https://t.co/tlYFsnlgvk
Some commenters also think that we can also simply “swap around” the other holidays that we have to accommodate and appreciate more diverse celebrations.
this I agree. If we need to substitute public holidays because we have too much of it, just tukar it with other Islamic but not-so-Islamic public holidays like Isra’ Mikraj, Maulidurrasul or/and Nuzul Quran. https://t.co/VPL2I3HMYe
Additionally, in 2021, Tourism, Arts and Culture Minister Datuk Seri Nancy Shukri revealed that there was public outcry for Kaamatan and Gawai to be included as national holidays.
Both Kaamatan and Gawai are already highlighted in Tourism Malaysia’s “Cuti-Cuti Malaysia” campaign.
Nancy mentions that including them on the list of festive holidays would be a great way for Malaysia to strengthen our unity, showcase our diversity and boost our tourism.
Share your thoughts with us via TRP’s Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
Typing out trending topics and walking the fine line between deep and dumb.
© 2021 The Rakyat Post. All Rights Reserved. Owned by 3rd Wave Media Sdn Bhd