THIS month and the next are particularly festive times in Sabah and Sarawak, with two major events.
Sabah’s Kadazandusun, Murut, and Rungus communities mark the harvest festival Kaamatan on May 30 and 31; and on June 1 and 2, Sarawak’s Dayak community celebrates its own harvest festival, Gawai.
These festivals have become quite the tourist draw, with increasing numbers of international visitors.
But for locals, it is, of course, much more personal, as these are the times of year when family members will balik kampung, just as millions do nationwide during Chinese New Year and Hari Raya.
But because much of the Bornean diaspora is spread throughout Peninsular Malaysia, working in big cities like George Town, Johor Baru, Kuala Lumpur, and Petaling Jaya, they have a longer journey to make as they have to cross the South China Sea, of course.
And therein lies the problem: Unlike people on the peninsula who can travel by road or rail to their hometowns, Sabahans and Sarawakians have to fly to get back home, and it is getting more and more expensive to do so.
Airfares usually soar during festive periods. What’s more, once they do cross the sea, if their kampung is in the interiors of Sabah or Sarawak, there’s more expensive travel by road and rail – or boat or a small airplane.
Gawai and Kaamatan are occasions for reunions, a time to strengthen family ties, but costly airfare is forcing more and more Sarawakians and Sabahans to remain in Peninsular Malaysia.
Some complain that airfares have doubled or tripled during festivals, forcing them to choose between paying next month’s rent, for instance, and seeing grandma one more time.
The irony burns: international tourists will fly in from far away for these festivals, but some Sabahans and Sarawakians can’t go home from just across the sea.
Can the Federal Government look into more ways to help?
The Transport Ministry has already told airlines not to use supply-and-demand for setting their fares but to also consider their corporate social responsibilities.
But flight tickets remain costly.
And airlines are businesses after all, so perhaps there is more the government can do to bring down ticket prices, if only during festive periods?
After all, family ties are but a microcosm of national ties, and we should do everything we can to strengthen both.
