Manjung Was Once Part of the Straits Settlements
Many are aware that the states of Penang, Melaka, and Singapore were once British Crown Colonies under an administration known as the Straits Settlements.
However, this time we would like to revisit the fact that the Manjung district, once known as Dinding, was also under the administration of the Straits Settlements. The Dinding territory, now known as Manjung, covered areas such as Sitiawan, Lumut, Pantai Remis, Pulau Dinding (now Pulau Pangkor), and Beruas. The story of the Dinding territory and its interaction with foreign powers began when Nakhoda Mohamad Taib opened the Kuala Sepit Port with the permission of Sultan Jaafar (the 23rd Sultan of Perak), who also granted him the authority to administer the Dinding region.
He opened the Kuala Sepit Port, which was located at the mouth of the Dinding River (now the Manjung River). At that time, the Dinding territory was a quiet and dangerous area, as its strategic location for traders had made it a hideout for pirates. Efforts by the Perak government to eliminate the pirate threat in the Dinding Strait had been ongoing for a long time but were unsuccessful. At the time, pirates were active throughout the Strait of Malacca.
In 1826, the Sultan of Perak made an agreement with a British trader named James Low to cede Pulau Dinding to the British so that they could help Perak eradicate the pirate threat. However, the British at that time still adhered to a policy of non-interference in the affairs of the Malay states and could not assist the Sultan. Nevertheless, Nakhoda Mohamad Taib succeeded in defeating the pirates in the area. He also transformed the Kuala Sepit Port into an international hub visited by merchant ships from across the archipelago and other continents. He governed Dinding successfully for 16 years, even though the Perak throne was in turmoil at the time due to a succession dispute. Nakhoda Mohamad Taib passed away in 1873, and the administration of the Kuala Sepit Port and the Dinding territory was continued by his son, Nakhoda Mohamad Ariff, and later by Penghulu Besar Mohamad Nordin.
The Pangkor Treaty of 1874, signed between Sultan Abdullah and the British aboard the HMS Pluto, resulted in the Dinding territory being ceded to the British. Penghulu Besar Mohamad Nordin could no longer renew his authority as the Dinding territory was no longer under the rule of the Perak government. After the Pangkor Treaty of 1874, the Dinding territory was no longer part of Perak but became a region under the administration of the Straits Settlements. The people in Kuala Sepit and its surrounding areas were deeply saddened by the Sultan's decision. Refusing to accept British colonial rule, they migrated en masse, eventually leaving the area deserted and overgrown with dense forest. Consequently, the Kuala Sepit Port ceased to function as a port, and its operations were moved to the Lumut Port in the 1890s.
After some time, the throne of Perak was taken over by the 30th Sultan of Perak, Sultan Iskandar Shah. Since 1917, he had strived to return the Dinding territory to Perak. Finally, after much effort, he succeeded when the British Parliament passed ‘The Dinding Agreement (Approval) Act, 1934’ on 16 November 1934. The official ceremony for the signing of the treaty to return the territory was held on 16 February 1935.
However, this handover faced strong opposition from the Chinese community of the Straits Settlements, led by Tan Cheng Lock, because they felt the return of Dinding did not reflect the will of all the residents there. To celebrate the return of the Dinding territory to Perak, a mosque was built and named Masjid Al-Adly. The mosque still stands beautifully today. May this event serve as a lesson for us all in safeguarding the homeland we love.
