Sarawak United Peoples' Party

The Sarawak United Peoples' Party, or SUPP (; ; Iban: Gerempong Sa'ati Rayat Sarawak) is a multiracial centre-right local political party of Malaysia based in Sarawak. The SUPP president is Dr. Sim Kui Hian. He succeeded the post from his predecessor, Peter Chin Fah Kui in 2014. Established in 1959, SUPP is the first political party in Sarawak. It has its roots in left-leaning ideologies, nationalism and championing for the cause of the working class. Formerly it was one of the Sarawak component members of Barisan Nasional from 1970 until June 2018. Together with other Sarawak-based BN component parties, SUPP always has had tension in its relationship with its Peninsula-based partners. After the 2018 general election defeat of BN had proven that the model was no longer viable, and following a key meeting between all Sarawak-based BN coalition parties on 12 June 2018, SUPP has decided to leave BN to co-form a new Sarawak-based coalition of Gabungan Parti Sarawak. History Being the first local political party, Sarawak United Peoples' Party's origins are tied to Sarawak's history of 20th century political awakening. After World War II, the last Rajah of Sarawak, Charles Vyner Brooke ceded Sarawak to Britain in 1946, thus making it an official British Crown Colony – to the dismay of many locals. This eventually gave rise to local anti-cession and anti-imperialist movements which further sparked local political awareness. The triggering event was Sarawak's new Constitution of 1959 which fell short of expectations for many who hoped to see significant progress to self-governance. The need for an organised political front to champion Sarawakian interests finally led to the formation of SUPP on 4 June 1959, with Ong Kee Hui as its founding president. With a "Sarawak for Sarawakians" ideology – SUPP's movement gained widespread support, including winning big in the local elections of November 1959, alarming the then ruling British colonial government. When the proposal for Federation of Malaysia was first mooted in 1961, SUPP came out strongly to oppose the idea. Ong argued for Sarawak's independence before setting up a greater federation. In December 1962, the British colonial government launched a crackdown on all dissenting groups in Sarawak. Many party members were detained, some even deported from Sarawak for alleged communist activities as, at the time, some members had links with Communist-affiliated organisations.