(excluding 57 million in losses by Sarawak oil company) due to the destruction of oilfields, airstrips, and rubber plantations.

On 10 May 1946, a report was compiled and sent to the Colonial Office in London, which included the following:[4] ... there was sufficient acquiescent or favourable opinion in the country as a whole to justify the question of cession being brought before the Council Negri of Sarawak, and they strongly urged that there should be no postponement of that action.According to ABC Radio Melbourne, Rajah Charles Vyner Brooke would receive £1 million as compensation for the cession of Sarawak.

From 1870 until 1917, the British had tried to interfere with the internal affairs of Sarawak, but this was met with stiff resistance from Rajah Charles Brooke.

[5] From 15 to 17 May 1946, the cession bill was debated in the Council Negri (now Sarawak State Legislative Assembly) and was approved by 19 to 16 votes.

[3] On the same day, Rajah Charles Vyner Brooke gave a speech on the benefits for Sarawak as a Crown colony:[4] ...

Nevertheless I took this decision because I know that it was in the best interests of the people of Sarawak and that in the turmoil of the modern world they would benefit greatly from the experience, strength and wisdom of British Rule.The first governor did not arrive until 29 October 1946.

Initially they organised talks, hung posters, signed memorandums, and took part in demonstrations in order to express their dissatisfaction over the cession.

Anthony Brooke also tried to oppose the cession but was banned from entering Sarawak by the British colonial government.

In Awang Rambli's opinion:[4] It is useless that we organise such demonstrations for prolong periods of time while waiting for miracles to happen.

There is no other better person to kill other than the governor.Thus, the second governor of Sarawak, Duncan Stewart was stabbed by Rosli Dhobi in Sibu on 3 December 1949.

Following the incident, Anthony Brooke tried to distance himself from the anti-cession movement for fear of being associated with the plot to kill the governor of Sarawak.

The people of Sarawak were also afraid to lend support to the anti-cession movement for fear of backlash from the British colonial government.

Although the anti-cession movement ended as a failure, Malaysian historians regarded this incident as a starting point of nationalism among the natives in Sarawak.

The appointment was made by King George VI, and later by Queen Elizabeth II until the formation of the Federation of Malaysia in 1963.

In 1954, the Council Negri had legislative and financial authority and consisted of 25 members: 14 officials from the civil service, and 11 non-officials representing various ethnic and interest groups.

The government also began constructing a system of local authorities before the war and by 1954 about 260,000 people were living in incorporated areas.

Consumption and investments made up only a small part of the economy as the majority of the population were working in the agricultural sector.

Its revenue was derived from unpredictable sources of income such as grants from the British colonial development and welfare fund, loans, and surpluses from export duties.

[3] After the Japanese occupation, Rajah Charles Vyner Brooke signed the last supply ordinance for the budget expenditure in Sarawak in 1946.

The majority of expenditure went into "Arrears of Pension" (amounting to one million dollars), probably to pay for government servants who were held by or working during the Japanese occupation.

This was followed by expenditure for the treasury, public works, pensions and provident fund, medical and health, and Sarawak Constabulary.

Following the formation of British Crown colony, public works and the treasury became the immediate priority for the post war reconstruction and restructuring of government finances.

The 1951 budget put more emphasis on the allocations for local authorities, native affairs, defence, and internal security, which overshadowed the expenditures on public works.

Tertiary education only started to appear in Sarawak in 1961 following the formation of Batu Lintang Teachers' Training College.

According to a research done by Alexander Gordon Crocker, such budget expenditures showed that the colonial government was trying to develop Sarawak instead of exploiting the natural resources in the state.

At the beginning of the colonial period, 72% of the population were subsistence farmers, 13% were growing cash crops and 15% were paid workers.

However, due to the difficulty of recruiting the necessary manpower, only two mobile dispensaries were operational at the Rajang River to cater the needs of the rural communities.

[17] The colonial government recognised that British education and indigenous culture was influencing a new generation of Iban teachers.

[17] The BLB published a total of 191 issues of "Dolphin" magazines from November 1961 to September 1977, targeting upper primary and secondary school students, in order to provide alternative reading materials after banning the leftist literature during the Sarawak Communist Insurgency.

[18] After the war, artists in Sarawak especially in Kuching area chose gentle themes and social wellbeing as their drawing subjects such as scenery and nature, and indigenous characteristics such as cockfighting and traditional dances.