The Story of the Dinding District, Separated from Perak for 109 Years

Many in our community today have forgotten the name Dinding district or the Dinding territory located in the state of Perak. Today, the Dinding district is known by another name, which is the Manjung district.

The Manjung district today includes the areas of Beruas, Sitiawan, Lumut, and Pantai Remis. In case you didn't know, the Dinding Strait is located between Lumut and Pulau Pangkor. The location of the Dinding district lies between Pulau Pinang and Melaka. Because its location appeared very strategic in the middle of the Straits of Melaka, the Dinding district was always a target for colonial powers to conquer. As we are already aware, the Dutch once built a fort in the Dinding district (Pulau Pangkor) in 1670 as a warehouse to store tin ore obtained from the State of Perak during their colonization. During the reign of the late Sultan Jaafar Safiuddin Muadzam Shah (the 23rd Sultan of Perak), the Larut War broke out, which shattered the unity among Chinese miners. As a result of the war, secret societies known as Ghee Hin and Hai San emerged, which spread to Pulau Pinang during the second war. The British government in Pulau Pinang at that time was forced to intervene in the matters occurring in the state of Perak. Consequently, many British military boats were sent to Larut to eradicate piracy and robbery activities by the growing number of secret societies in Perak. For your information, loyal readers of orangperak.com, the British government eventually demanded a large sum of money from the late Sultan Jaafar to cover the costs of controlling and eradicating the secret society activities. Unfortunately, it is said that at that time, the Sultan could not pay and requested assistance from Ngah Ibrahim to make the payment. In return, in 1864, Ngah Ibrahim was bestowed the title Orang Kaya Menteri Paduka Tuan, with the Larut district as his territory. As soon as Sultan Jaafar passed away, a new problem arose regarding the struggle for the Perak throne. This was compounded by the ongoing war between the Ghee Hin and Hai San secret societies in Larut over mining areas, which had yet to be resolved.

Sultan Abdullah Muhammad Shah II (the 26th Sultan of Perak)

Raja Abdullah, who was claiming the Perak throne, requested British assistance to resolve the two problems plaguing the state of Perak. There were several special conditions imposed on Raja Muda Abdullah at that time after he was installed as the Sultan of Perak. Thus, the Pangkor Treaty was signed on January 20, 1874, aboard the HMS Pluto, which was anchored in the Dinding Strait. In case you didn't know, one of the conditions set by the British was that the Perak state government had to cede the Dinding district to them. Since the treaty was signed, the Dinding district was administered from Pulau Pinang by the British, and the Dinding district became part of the Straits Settlements. The British held power in the Dinding district until they faced administrative and political issues within the Pulau Pinang administration.

Pangkor Treaty

After many years had passed, the British finally requested the Colonial Office to return the Dinding district area to the Perak state government because the operating costs in the Dinding district were increasing and were not profitable. The British also felt that the Dinding district area did not contribute much benefit due to its distance from Pulau Pinang.

Sultan Iskandar Shah (the 30th Sultan of Perak)

At that time, Sultan Iskandar Shah (the 30th Sultan of Perak), who had been striving since 1917 to reclaim the Dinding district for the state of Perak, finally saw a bright opportunity, and his efforts were nearly achieved. On June 6, 1934, an agreement was signed by the late Sultan Iskandar Shah (the 30th Sultan of Perak) aimed at returning the Dinding district area to the state of Perak. This agreement was finally approved by the British Parliament on November 16, 1934. A sacred date that should be remembered by all residents of the Manjung district is February 16, 1935. On this date, the Dinding district was finally returned to the Perak state government after being separated from Perak for 109 years since it was colonized. With that, the Dinding district was returned to Perak after being in the hands of colonizers for so long. After the handover of Dinding, the Perak state government integrated Bruas and the southern coastal areas into the Dinding district. In 1973, during the reign of the late Sultan Idris II (the 33rd Sultan of Perak), the Dinding district was given a new name, the Manjung district, and that name has remained to this day.