By Ashwin Kumar
SHAH ALAM, June 1 — Selangor Menteri Besar Dato’ Seri Amirudin Shari has today conveyed his Gawai Day greetings to the Iban, Bidayuh and the people in Sarawak.
Though Gawai Day this year is celebrated in a different atmosphere as the country is still battling against the Covid-19 pandemic, Amirudin said he hopes the situation does not prevent those who celebrate the festive season from expressing joy in ushering in the celebration.
“Gawai Day is celebrated to give thanks for a bountiful harvest and before the new farming season begins. Silamat Andu Gawai Dayak 2020,” he wrote on his official Facebook account today.
Gawai Day is an annual festival celebrated on June 1 by the people of Sarawak as well as the Iban, Bidayuh, Orang Ulu and other communities to mark the end of the padi harvesting season.
However, this year, Gawai Day is different as the country is still under the ongoing conditional movement control order (CMCO), which was implemented to break the chain of Covid-19 infections.
Only small gatherings comprising family members are allowed without the tradition of ‘Ngabang’ or visits, practised in previous years where people in the village or longhouses would gather to celebrate Gawai.
