What has emerged as the most interesting thing from the Ba'kelalan state by-election on Sept 18, is the way the Lun Bawang turned their backs on the Barisan Nasional (BN) and supported the independent Baru Bian.

However, he lost the election to BN's Nelson Balang Rining ( photo ), who won with 2,843 votes.

The Lun Bawang make up one of Sarawak's smallest but most devout Christian ethnic groups, forming a little more than half of the 7,700-strong electorate in the state seat.

This anti-BN sentiment was unusual. Since the early 1990s, the state ruling coalition comprising various ethnic-based parties have always been able to count on the Dayaks - as the Iban, Orang Ulu (Kayan/Kenyah/Kelabit/Penan/Lun Bawang/Muruts) and Bidayuh are collectively referred to - for backing.

In the last state elections, the BN won all but two of the 62 seats, with Chief Minister Taib Mahmud's Parti Pesaka Bumiputra Bersatu Sarawak taking the lion's share.

The rest went to the Chinese-dominated Sarawak United People Party, the Sarawak National Party, which is now replaced as a component member by Sarawak Progressive Democratic Party (SPDP) and Parti Bansa Dayak Sarawak.

BN only conceded the largely urban seat of Kidurong (Bintulu) to the Democratic Action Party and the 100 percent Iban Meluan seat to an Independent (who has since joined the BN through SPDP).

Since the early 1990s the rural and coastal vote has always been solidly for BN, largely because voters see it as the only one capable of bringing development to them - taken to mean roads, water and electricity supply, telephones, schools and clinics.

In the Ba'kelalan constituency, people's needs are the same. However, given its remote location and mountainous terrain, fulfilling election promises becomes more difficult.

Why did 53 percent of the rural Lun Bawang break away and pick up the courage to vote for the independent candidate, even in the face of threats to withhold projects in their areas?

More specifically, what compelling reasons could there have been for the majority of the God-fearing ethnic group to turn against the other Lun Bawang candidate picked by the state BN leadership?

Baru, who contested at the last minute after resigning from PBDS, felt he was answering "a calling from up high" that he could not refuse.

In an interview with a local newspaper, he was quoted as saying that he was aware of the odds in the face of "the awesome machinery and resources of the BN".

"Win or lose, it doesn't matter," he had said, adding that it was a duty in the interests of his people.

Good reputation

The Australian-trained lawyer is held in high esteem in his own community largely because of his family background.

His father was a well-known pastor for the Sidang Injil Borneo (SIB), a homegrown evangelical mission that has a lot of influence among the Orang Ulu communities in Baram, Limbang, Lawas Trusan, Bario, Ba'kelalan and Long Semado.

Baru himself is respected for defending native customary rights (NCR) lands in Trusan, which is part of Ba'kelalan, as well in as other parts of rural Sarawak.

He dedicates much of his time, as do many of his siblings, to church work which has endeared him to many local parishioners. During the election campaign, Deputy Chief Minister Alfred Jabu ( photo ) indirectly warned Baru and many volunteer workers of involving the church in politics.

It backfired, angering many people with some even accusing Jabu - who belongs to the mainstream Anglican Church - of being anti-SIB.

"He shouldn't have raised that issue at all, as it angered the people even more," said a parishioner who requested anonymity.

Even on polling day, many BN leaders spoke of "a tough campaign throughout" and conceded the difficulty in penetrating the Lun Bawang areas.

"The Lun Bawang sentiments were very strong and the BN knew it was difficult," said a senior journalist who covered the by-election.

Community sentiment

Baru, who obtained 1,391 votes, said the main area of contention was about "a few people deciding the choice of candidate and imposing it on the rest. It is about not respecting the people's wishes".

"It was about making a stand on the issue and upholding our dignity and about gaining the respect of other people for us. It boils down to the rights and principles of the Lun Bawang people."

He also claimed he would have received more votes if some BN leaders had not used intimidating tactics like threatening to expose elderly voters and civil servants who did not vote BN, or to withhold development projects.

Baru said he won in all the Lun Bawang villages that he was able to visit and deliver his message, and lost marginally in other areas. He said the loss was bigger in areas he was unable to cover due to various constraints, largely communication difficulties.

The rest who voted for Baru were the intellectuals and younger voters who managed to go back and vote.

Although Lun Bawang make up about 4,000 registered voters, only 56 percent chose to cast their vote. Although Baru secured 53 percent of the vote, it was not enough to win - he lost badly in Iban areas and did not do as well as expected in Kelabit areas.

"But I am not about to give up. I'm already setting my sights on the next state elections, which is about two years down the road.'

Many believe he will do better in a general election, with BN machinery and resources spread throughout all 62 state constituencies.

Outside the Lun Bawang community, the choice of candidate was barely an issue. To the Ibans - who make up about 20 per cent of the electorate - it was about who could bring both immediate and long-term benefits to them.

Those in rural Sarawak place high priority on development and therefore tend to support perentah Barisan (Barisan rule).

Even BN leaders were surprised over the high Iban turnout, which helped to increase the winning margin significantly.

The BN faithful - including other Lun Bawang and Kelabit - continued to vote BN because they wanted to see whether development projects will be delivered in Bario and Ba'kelalan over the next two years.

"These are projects like electricity supply projects that the late Dr Judson Tagal ( photo , the state Assistant Minister who died in the July 12 helicopter crash near Bario) had been working on," Baru said.

Eye to future

The question now being asked is whether the Lun Bawang will come out in greater numbers next time and vote in such a way it could pose a even greater challenge to the BN and whether the BN could even lose.

Between now and then, what will BN do to win back the support of the Lun Bawang? Or is Baru's 'victory' among the Lun Bawang majority in Ba'kelalan merely a flash in the pan reaction to a choice of candidate that they saw as an insult to their dignity, respect and intelligence?

Some observers have noted there may be winds of change in the rural landscape. Behind the change is clearly a new driving force of intellectuals in diverse communities.

As a Lun Bawang intellectual commented, "they should not be forced to subscribe to a single monolithic ideal, while those who have different ideas are pushed to the side".

Could this be the start of change of distribution of political power through an assertion of individual ethnic politics in Sarawak, running through party and non-party lines in future?

TONY THIEN is malaysiakini's Sarawak-based stringer.