Evolution of Kuching as a city

FOR those of us born in Kuching after the end of World War II (often referred to in Sarawak as the Japanese War) in 1945, the past 80 years have seen the most changes as our beloved city has evolved beyond recognition.

Officially declared a city on Aug 8, 1988, we will celebrate its 36th year of cityhood next month.

Let’s take a quick look at its growth and evolution.

According to Wikipedia, Kuching was the third capital of Sarawak in 1827 under the Brunei Sultan’s administration; only in 1841 was it declared the formal capital after the country was ceded to English adventurer James Brooke.

In 1941, the Brooke administration held a ‘Centenary Celebration’ – and the town was occupied by the Japanese forces from 1942 to 1945. After the war ended, culminating in the surrender of the Japanese, the third and last Rajah of Sarawak, Sir Charles Vyner Brooke, had ceded Sarawak to Great Britain, thus becoming a ‘Crown Colony’.

Following the formation of Malaysia in 1963, Kuching was later granted city status in 1988 and has been divided into two administrative regions – the only such incidence in Malaysia.

Kuching North and Kuching South are managed by their own commissions and headed by two separate mayors.

Kuching was only officially named by Charles Brooke, the second Rajah, in 1872 – it was previously called Sarawak. Depending on who you asked, its original name could have been attributed to a fruit, a cat, or an old well within the town.

From an estimated population of around 6,000 in 1848, then it was 20,000 in 1880, and about 30,000 in the early 1900s.

Kuching’s greatest increase has been between 1950 and 2024, swelling from 74,000 to 652,000 – an increase of 552 per cent!

Obviously, the city limits have been expanded, from just the town proper, which was indicated to be within a then three-mile radius from the Main Bazaar, to 146.02 square miles for Kuching North and 27.73 square miles for Kuching South.

The ethnicity of Kuching is divided into five main groups, as indicated in percentages (as at 2022): Malay constituting 36.2 per cent; Chinese 34.1 per cent; Iban 20.5 per cent; Bidayuh 4.9 per cent, and other groups, 3.6 per cent.

The dispersion of residency among them has been rather distinct, with the Malays found mostly in the Petra Jaya and Samarahan regions, the Iban and the Bidayuh in the up-country, and the Chinese in the urban areas and townships.

However, they all would converge on the main centres for work, business and leisure activities with the Bumiputeras found mainly in the civil service, along the coastal areas and in the rural farms; and the Chinese manning most of the business and trading activities including retail and import-export trades.

I have, however, observed that much of the stereotypical activities undertaken by the various groups in the population have changed vastly in the last 20 years with just one constant – the civil service being staffed mostly by the Bumiputera component.

The retail trade has seen a slow, but sure, integration of partnerships between the Chinese and the Bumiputeras – both the Malay and the Dayak.

My own personal experience of Kuching’s growth has been one of ‘shock-and-awe’. For one thing, the development, construction of utilities and communications, increasing residential and commercial building projects, and an overall scale of industrial activities, have made Kuching a humming hive of rapid urbanisation and a solid creation of wealth for its expanding populace.

I often look back with wonder to the simple days of my youth, when I first entered school at age six in 1956. Our population was at 60,000; there were barely 100 or so motorcars on the limited number of roads, and the Mile 3 Bazaar was considered ‘being in the countryside’.

In the 1950s, all the roads were two-lane and limited to within 10 miles or so; only later did paved roads reach Serian, Bau and Matang.

The traffic was limited to bicycles and motorcycles, cars, small lorries and buses.

The routes were limited. The bridge across the Sarawak River at the Satok area was still the suspension bridge, not meant for vehicular traffic.

To get across the river, ‘sampans’ (small boats) were used.

The General Post Office at Rock Road, the Treasury and the central police station were the best-looking landmarks in town, as the present St Thomas’ Cathedral was only built in 1953.

The most imposing building on the waterfront was The Borneo Company headquarters at Thomson Road (now Jalan Tunku Abdul Rahman where the Kuching Hilton Hotel is).

There were less than 20 coffeeshops around town, and they were mostly at Main Bazaar, Carpenter Street and Jalan Padungan.

The only supermarket was Ting & Ting’s, which opened its doors in 1957 at Tabuan Road and closed in 2019.

Other shops selling imported goods could be counted on one hand: Joo Chan, Tan Sum Guan, Tay Hak Hak and Goh Say Lak.

As a customer, you could easily get personalised service as either ‘Mr Ting’ or ‘Mr Woon’ would be there for you.

Today with chain stores like Everrise with its 13 outlets, and Choice with its six, their respective owners would be busy at work on expansion. What were once ‘Mom-and-Pop’ stores with very limited selections of goods have grown to multi-giant chains with thousands of listed choices of products from all over the world.

Shopping floor spaces have grown from single shoplots, to those as big as an entire cinema hall of the 1970s!

The world of food and beverages and the retail trade have advanced beyond recognition.

They now range from previously simple traditional coffeeshops with plain marble-top round tables and old rickety wooden chairs serving bowls of ‘kolo mee’ or ‘laksa’, to artfully-designed bistros and sophisticatedly crafted menus.

Of course, along the way prices have zoomed upwards. How would they afford the five-figure rentals and all the extra fixed overheads otherwise?

The beauty about Kuching, from my perspective, is that although change has been in the air for the past few decades, it is still possible to find those places where the ambiance, and the choice of food and drinks and even tastes have remained suspended in time; where you can still get a simple cuppa, order a favourite dish, and it would taste nostalgic.

Certainly you would not be able to get them at the same 1960-1970 prices, but that’s progress and inflation for you!

Sadly though, their days too are numbered. Whether it is because the operator or owner has grown older or became incapacitated and can no longer carry on, and none of his relatives are keen to take over; or the more likely scenario of the landlords increasing their rentals.

We are seeing the sunset of such places, which had reminded us of our youthful days.

Kuching has a great many positive vibes going for it. It is one of the friendliest cities in the world, its people are harmonious and happy, and there is an air of chill and relaxation about it as a whole.

Its streets and public places are clean and there are hardly any vagabonds, beggars or homeless wandering around. It is safe and secure, and there are no issues pertaining to any sort of racial or religious strife or tension, seen or unseen.

It has in place one of the best and most efficient civil services; its medical facilities are world-class, and the institutions of education are excellent.

Wherever you go, you can get a sense of the old and the new, as well as something in transition.

If you take a stroll around the city and its suburbs, you would appreciate the greenery and the cleanliness.

There are many public gardens and parks, recreational facilities and museums.

Very often, you come across some events, celebrations or fairs, be they trade, food and drinks, religious, or simply a family or communal affair.

Most of the inhabitants speak English and Malay or Mandarin, and they are helpful and ready to help with directions or even lend a hand.

There are many negative sides of a growing city too, and Kuching has not been able to escape some of those: the awful and stressful traffic during peak hours; the flash floods; and the drought.

Public littering remains a major problem, especially after big public events

There are also litterbugs on the roads, using the greenery as their litter bins; the civic-unconscious elements who still smoke in off-limits places or bring pets to eateries; the queue-breakers at many places; the loud and rowdy ruffians whom we encounter from time to time.

Driving etiquette on the roads remains an elusive dream for many Kuchingites; the number of vehicular traffic has grown to such a stage that this needs special attention.

Our road systems and their future planning need a bold ‘re-juggling’ to get it right, or pretty soon we might be looking at gridlock jams at the many intersections of our busiest roads in the city.

We also have a lack of public transport, which needs urgent attention.

I also feel that we have an overbuilt situation in the commercial sector. From what I can tell, this is now happening too in the rush to develop more residential high-rises all around the city – surely, we would reach a saturation stage at some point soon?

Overall, the future for our beloved city Kuching is secured.

With the present political stability, healthy economic well-being and an ever-growing population generating wealth in all sectors, it is my humble opinion that ours is now the best and most liveable city in the entire Malaysian nation.

* The opinions expressed in this article are the columnist’s own and do not reflect the view of the newspaper.