The Birth of Labour Frontier

Historical Period: Late 19th century

Location: 6, Lorong 6, 93100 Kuching, Sarawak

Artist: Leonard Siaw

Date Finished: July 2021

Background of the Murals

In the late 19th century, trading ships travelled between Kuching and Singapore. From the 1920s onwards, many large government and private warehouses were built along the Sarawak River. This showed how busy the Kuching harbour was at that time.

Many workers with dark, sun-tanned skin worked at the harbour every day. They carried heavy goods from the ships to the warehouses and back again. These workers were known as coolies, a word that came from the Chinese words “ku3 li4”, meaning hard labour.

The coolies were divided into small groups, and each group had its own leader. These groups were known as “coolie keng.” Every day, the coolies would gather at the Old Bazaar and wait for ships to arrive so they could get work. Because there were many workers competing for jobs, fights and disagreements often happened.

Most of the coolies gathered around Upper China Street and Bishopgate Street, where some shophouses were also used as their resting and living places. Before the 1970s, Numbers 51, 52, 61 and 62 of Upper China Street, as well as Number 19 Bishopgate Street, were well-known as coolie keng.

To reduce conflicts between the coolies, the Kuching Wharf and Port Labourers’ Union was officially established in 1948. The union first operated at 78 Wayang Street before purchasing 22 Carpenter Street in 1953. This building has remained the union’s permanent address until today.

Eventually, the harbour activities along the Sarawak River moved elsewhere. As a result, the coolies slowly disappeared from the Old Bazaar. Today, they remain mainly as an important part of Kuching’s history and collective memory.