Sibu Town Square Commercial Centre

Sibu is an inland town at the central region of Sarawak and the capital of Sibu District in Sibu Division, Sarawak, Malaysia. The town is located on the island of Borneo and covers an area of 129.5 square kilometres . It is located at the confluence of the Rajang and Igan Rivers, some 60 kilometres from the South China Sea and approximately 191.5 kilometres north-east of the state capital Kuching. Sibu is mainly populated by people of Chinese descent, mainly from Fuzhou. Other ethnic groups such as Melanau, Malay, and Iban are also present, but unlike other regions of Sarawak, they are not as significant. The town population as of 2010 is 162,676.Sibu was settled by James Brooke in 1862 when he built a fort in the town to fend off attacks by the indigenous Dayak people. Following this, a small group of Chinese Hokkien people settled around the fort to carry out business activities safely in the town. In 1901, Wong Nai Siong led a large scale migration of 1,118 Foochow Chinese people from Fujian, China into Sibu. This influx of Foochow Chinese people led to Sibu being popularly referred to as New Fuzhou. The first hospital in Sibu, as well as the Sibu bazaars, were built by the Brooke government. The Lau King Howe Hospital and a number of Methodist schools and churches were built in the 1930s. However, the town of Sibu was burnt to the ground twice, in 1889 and in 1928, but it was rebuilt after that. During the Japanese occupation of Sarawak, the Japanese installed a new Resident at Sibu in June 1942 and Sibu was renamed to Sibu-shu in August 1942. After the Japanese surrender in 1945, Sarawak was ceded to the British as a Crown Colony. This has caused dissatisfaction amongst young Melanau people in Sibu who were pro-independence. As a result, the second British Governor of Sarawak, Sir Duncan George Stewart, was assassinated by Rosli Dhobi when he visited Sibu in December 1949. Rosli was later hanged to death at Kuching Central Prison in 1950. Sibu and the Rajang basin also became the centre of communist activities from 1950, which continued even after the Sarawak independence in 1963. A Rajang Security Command was then established to curb Communist activities in the area. Communist insurgency in Sarawak was significantly impaired in 1973 and later ended in 1990. Sibu was upgraded to municipality status in 1981. The town received a royal visit in September 2001. The town is also a gateway to the Sarawak Corridor of Renewable Energy since 2008. In 2011, the 110th anniversary of Foochow settlement was celebrated in Sibu. Sibu is the main tourist gateway to the Upper Rajang River, with its small riverine towns and its many Iban and Orang Ulu longhouses. Among the notable landmarks in Sibu are Wisma Sanyan, the tallest building in Sarawak, Lanang Bridge and the biggest town square in Malaysia, near Wisma Sanyan. The Lau King Howe Hospital Memorial Museum is the first and the only medical museum in Malaysia. Sibu Central Market is the biggest indoor market in Sarawak. Some tourists attractions in Sibu are the Sibu Heritage Centre, Tua Pek Kong Temple, Bawang Assan longhouses, Sibu Old Mosque, Jade Dragon Temple, Bukit Aup Jubilee Park, Bukit Lima Forest Park, Sibu Night Market, Borneo Cultural Festival , and Sibu International Dance Festival . Timber and shipbuilding industries are the two major economic activities in Sibu.
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