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KOTA KINABALU – The Sabah Tourism, Culture and Environment Ministry has taken a step back in its plan to have the historic Agnes Keith House in Sandakan become a tourist hotspot for fans of the paranormal.
Minister Datuk Jafry Ariffin said the Museum Department’s proposal to include the 74-year-old building once owned by United States author Agnes Newton Keith in the state’s “dark tourism” push has drawn mixed reactions.
“I wish to stress that the idea was just a proposal to add value to tourist destinations in Sabah via the storytelling method.
“This includes promoting stories, myths and legends on the numerous tourist spots in Sabah.
“Many parties were a bit surprised by the proposal. Maybe, they don’t really understand the concept of ‘e-scary’ tourism.”
The initiative aims to allow visitors to stay a night at the Agnes Keith House and understand better the lives of Agnes, her husband Harry Keith and their son George.
Jafry said nothing in the programme would disturb the colonial house’s value, and instead, it would encourage visitors to have a deeper appreciation of history.
“I have instructed the museum to revise the plan before implementing it. This includes getting the views of industry players.”
The term “dark tourism” was coined by two professors from Glasgow Caledonian University, namely Malcolm Foley and John Lennon, in 1996.
Jafry said the concept has existed for a long time in Sabah, citing as an example the Kundasang War Memorial, which was built to commemorate 2,428 Australian and British soldiers who died in Sandakan detention camps during World War II.
The Agnes Keith House, formerly known as Newlands, served as government quarters. Agnes and Harry, a British official assigned to forest conservation efforts in Sabah, built it between 1946 and 1947 on the site of a destroyed home following the Japanese invasion several years earlier.
The house earned a reputation as being haunted following accounts of ghostly sightings there. – The Vibes, June 29, 2021
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