Lahad Datu

Lahad Datu
District and Town
A view of Lahad Datu town.
Lahad Datu
Coordinates:
Country	Malaysia
State	Sabah
Division	Tawau
Population (2010)
• Total	199,830
Website	www.sabah.gov.my/pd.ld

Lahad Datu is a town and district located in Tawau Division, in the east of Sabah, Malaysia on the island of Borneo. It occupies the peninsula on the north side of Darvel Bay. Its population was estimated to be around 199,830 in 2010. Lahad Datu is surrounded by stretches of cocoa and oil palm plantations. It is also an important timber exporting port. The town has an airport for domestic flights.

History

Tobacco Estate in Lahad Datu during the British period.

A settlement is believed to have existed here in the 15th century, as excavations have unearthed Ming dynasty Chinese ceramics. Just east of Lahad Datu is the village of Tunku, a notorious base for pirates and slave traders in the 19th century.

Based on a jawi manuscript in the Idahan language dated 1408 A.D, it is believed that Islam was first introduced to Malaysia in Sabah. The jawi manuscript gives an account of an Ida'an man named Abdullah in Darvel Bay who embraced Islam.

Filipino intrusion

Main articles: 1985 Lahad Datu ambush and 2013 Lahad Datu standoff

On 23 September 1985, 15-20 armed foreign pirates landed on this town, killing at least 21 people and injuring 11 others.

On 11 February 2013, several armed Filipino supporters of the Sultanate of Sulu, calling themselves the Royal Security Forces of the Sultanate of Sulu and North Borneo, arrived in Lahad Datu district and occupied the village of Tanduo. They were sent by Jamalul Kiram III, a claimant to the throne of the sultanate. His stated goal is to assert the Philippine territorial claim to eastern Sabah as part of the North Borneo dispute. In response, Malaysian security forces surrounded the village. After several negotiations with the group and by the Philippine and Malaysian governments to reach a peaceful solution were unsuccessful, the standoff escalated into an armed conflict which ends with 56 of the self-proclaimed Sultanate followers died and the others been captured by the Malaysian authorities. The Malaysian side also suffers 10 life lost because of the conflict with most of them are the security forces including other six civilians.

Economy

A palm oil plantation in Lahad Datu, palm oil has become the main economic source for the town.

Lahad Datu Central Market.

Lahad Datu also has several palm oil refineries. The Palm Oil Industrial Cluster (POIC) is located near the Lahad Datu Port and received its first vessel on 1 March 2013. It consists of 1,150 acres (5 km²) of land developed (with a centralised bulking facility and a jetty, currently under construction, which will have a draft of 20 meters, making it one of the few deep sea ports in the world) specifically for palm oil downstream industries. To date, 18 companies have bought land in POIC with 8 companies involved in the production of palm biodiesel. POIC is a wholly state-owned company under the purview of the Ministry of Industrial Development. Its chairman is the current minister, Datuk Dr. Ewon Ebin and the chief executive officer is Mr.Wong Yu Chin (ASDK,BSK).

Transportation

Lahad Datu is served by many different methods of transportation. Taxi and buses are abundant and provide connectivity around the town itself and other districts such as Sandakan and Tawau. Additionally, it is also served by regional airline MASWings which provides daily direct flights to and from Kota Kinabalu.

Tourism

The district has several tourist attractions, including Danum Valley Conservation Area, Tabin Wildlife Reserve and the Madai Caves

External links

• (Malay) Lahad Datu District Office