THE EARLY HISTORY OF

MALAYSIA
Human beings inhabited Malaysia since
ancient times, namely the Paleolithic,
Mesolithic, Neolithic and Bronze Age
Great ports with merchants from all over the

world existed since ancient times in the

Malay Archipelago in ancient kingdoms
such as Kedah, Langkasuka, Srivijaya,
Majapahit and Malacca
Among the many historical facts, the
Malays inhabited the Malay Archipelago
since ancient times
Since 5,000 years ago, several places in
Malaysia, especially those along the
seashores

 or river mouths grew to become very

important ports as Peninsular Malaysia is
located at the crossroad of Chinese, Indian
and Arabian trade routes
Important ports like Kuala Selinsing in
Perak, Jenderam Hilir in Selangor and
Santubong in Sarawak
Malaysia was also rich with natural
resources such as resin, cane and minerals
including gold

 and tin ore

It was named by the Indian merchants as
Suvarnabumi (golden earth) and Ptolemy,
a famous Greek geographer named it
Golden Chersonese (golden peninsular)
The early kingdoms were Funan
(Kampuchea 1st century), Old Kedah (5th
century), Gangga Negara, Perak (5th
century), Langkasuka, Patani (2nd century),
Chih-Tu, Kelantan (6th c)

 Yan-Tan, Terengganu (6th c), Tun Sun,

Segenting Kra (3rd c), Srivijaya, Sumatera
(7th c), Mataram, Jawa (8th c), Majapahit ,
Jawa (13th c)
The Malay Archipelago at that time was
characterized as a nation with one Malay
language and culture.
Even until today, there are similarity in the
language spoken by the Malays in
Kampuchea,

 Patani and the South of Mindanao to

that spoken in Malaysia and
Indonesia
The Malays were the ones who
designed the political, social,
economic and cultural systems in all
the states
The Malay kingdom of Malacca was
founded by Parameswara in 1403
A.D. and grew into a great empire

 In the system of government, the ruler was

the head of state, the Islamic religion and
the army
Important officials such as the Finance
Minister, the Admiral, the Chief of Defence,
Chief Bursar and the Harbour-Master,
assisted the King
The organized government was based on
the Malacca Law and the Malacca Law of
the Sea

THE RISE OF THE MALACCA

EMPIRE
Malaccas strategic location midway along
the trade routes between China and India
and at the centre of the maritime trade in
South East Asia (Malay Archipelago)
Centre for the spread of Islam in the region
Malay language as the lingua franca or
medium communication among the races in
administration, commerce, daily interaction,
missionary activities and learning

 Malacca had capable leaders such as

Parameswara, Iskandar Syah and Mansor Syah
who had an efficient administrative system
Malacca was protected from the strong
monsoon winds and these winds like the
North-east Monsoon brought the Chinese
traders to Malacca and the Indian traders
back to India, whereas the South-west
Monsoon brought the Indian traders to
Malacca and the Chinese back to China

 Malacca had strong ties with China who

gave protection against threats of
subjugation from Siam and diplomatic ties
with other foreign powers such as Java,
India and Siam
The reasonable taxation system attracted
many foreign merchants
The usage of a currency system for trading
purposes facilitated transactions and the
development of trade

 Efficient administration and strong

military system ensured order in the
administration, expand trade and put
an end to piracy

THE FALL OF THE MALACCA

EMPIRE
After the death of the Chief Minister,
Tun Perak, Malacca lacked an
efficient leader

 Struggles for power by the leaders between

the Malays and Indian-Muslims further
weakened the administration
Defamation and bribing were rife and high
taxes forced merchants to go to other ports
Continued misunderstanding and disputes
caused segregation among the people
The discovery of the Cape of Good Hope in
South Africa made it easier to sail to the East

 This made it easier for the

Portuguese to invade Malacca led by
a capable and experienced leader,
Alfonso dAlbuquerque
The Portuguese had better trained
army and weapons (guns and
canons)
They were also helped by traitors of
Malacca

OTHER MALAY KINGDOMS

At the same period of time and in the
centuries that followed, there were other
Malay Kingdoms such as Kedah, Perak,
Pahang, Negeri Sembilan, Terengganu,
Kelantan, Johore and Selangor which had
sovereign rulers with absolute administrative
powers with officials to assist them
They practised a hierarchical ruling system
with the sultan occupying the highest
position,

 followed by the state officials

Perak, Kedah and Pahang practised the
ruling system similar to the Malacca
Kingdom and only Negeri Sembilan had its
own unique ruling system which was
headed by a ruler called the Yam Dipertuan
Negeri
After the fall of Malacca, Johore emerged
as the next most important kingdom in the
region

 The Malay community had its own laws:

Pahang had its PahangLaws, Kedah had
Kedah Laws, Johore had Johore Laws,
Perak had the 99 Perak Laws
These Malay states used the Temenggung
Customs to deal with disputes relating to
criminal, civil, family and maritime laws
The Adat Perpatih was practised in Negeri
Semblian

 In the beginning, the states in the north

were colonized by Siam
After the British colonization, these states
were grouped under the Federated Malay
States and Non-Federated Malay States
Sabah and Sarawak were part of the Brunei
Kingdom and the Sulu Kingdom
After the fall of Malacca, Brunei became a
powerful state and acted as a centre for
trade

 and the spread of Islam

In the 6th century, Sulu, Sabah and
Sarawak were under the domination
of the Sultanate of Brunei

COLONIAL ERA
The Portuguese ruled mainly in Malacca
from 1511 to 1641 (130 years). The main
reason was to control the maritime trade in
the East and to spread Christianity. The
failure to expand their power base was due
to inconsistency between their trading
practices and religion as the merchants
viewed them as an enemy to other Islamic
countries in the Malay Archipelago and
they were always attacked by the Malays

 Traces of evidence left were the Eurasian

community, who are Catholics and follow
Portuguese customs, the romanized
writing, language, terminology (e.g. palsu,
almari, jandela, garpu and tuala in Malay)
and the Malay dance
With assistance from Johore, the Dutch
defeated the Portuguese in 1641
The centre of Dutch activity was not
Malacca

 but Batavia in the Island of Jawa

(Jakarta) and they were only
interested in the tin ore in the Malay
Peninsular
After the Anglo-Dutch Treaty in 1824,
Malacca was passed to the British
Both the Dutch and Portuguese did
not have much impact on the
country

BRITISH COLONIZATION
THE English merchants set up the British
East India Company in 1600 to improve
trade in the region especially China but
later looked for trading zones in the Malay
Archipelago after China was not interested
in trading with the English
On 11th August 1786, after an agreement
between Francis Light and Sultan Abdullah
to protect Kedah from the Siamese threat,

 Penang Island came under the occupation

of the British
On 6th February 1819, Stamford Raffles
occupied Singapore as it was seen as a
suitable new base for the British
This was achieved through the
manipulation by the British of a local issue
of misunderstanding between Chief
Military Officer Abdul Rahman and Sultan
Abdul

 Rahman in Riau
With the occupation of Penang, Sinagapore
and Malacca, the spread of British
colonization in Malaya began
The Anglo-Dutch Treaty of 1824 deserves
attention because it resulted in the division
of the Malay Archipelago into two different
geo-political areas in the 19th and 20th
century
The treaty was aimed at ending all rivalry

 Between the British and the Dutch,

especially in the East
The hostility escalated when some British
people were killed in Ambon, a Dutch colony
But in Europe, the British and the Dutch
government were on good terms
The Dutch king, William of Orange signed
the Kew Letters, allowing the English access
into and thus protection over Dutch colonies
in the

 East until the Napoleonic War was over

A number of terms had been agreed upon in
the treaty but the most important was that
of territoriality : the Dutch handed over
Malacca in exchange for Bencoolen
(Bangkahulu). The area south of Singapore
continued to belong to the Dutch, while the
British controlled the north. They also
agreed to eradicate pirate activities together
Thus, the Johor-Riau Empire ended as Johore

 now belonged to the British while the

Islands of Riau came under the Dutch
The dispute between them over Brunei
Island intensified their rivalry as the British
claimed Brunei was situated north of
Singapore so it belonged to them but the
Dutch thought otherwise
The Straits Settlements consisted of
Singapore, Penang and Malacca were
united

 In 1829 and Penang Island was the first capital

state with a Governor as head
On 1st April 1867, the administration of the
Straits Settlements was transferred from
Culcutta in India to the Colonial Office in
London, by the same act that declared the
Straits Settlements as British colonial territory
This transfer influenced the historical
development of the country
Besides more efficient administration,

 commercial agriculture, such as black

pepper, gambier, nutmeg, clove and sugar
cane grew rapidly, pirate activities were
eradicated and most importantly, the British
began to pay attention to the Malay states
Before 1873, the British government did not
have any policy of intervention in the affairs
in the Malay states in Peninsular Malaya
except for some indirect intervention like
the dispute

 Between Raja Ali and Temenggung

Ibrahim in Johore in the middle of the 19 th
century, the Naning War of 1831, and the
Andersons agreement with Selangor and
Perak in 1825
In September 1873, Lord Kimberley, the
Secretary of the colonial office,
inaugurated a policy of intervention in the
affairs of the Malay States, before that the
British only intervened in Sarawak

Summary of British Intervention

Sarawak (1842)
James Broke occupied Sarawak after
fulfilling his promise to Raja Muda
Hashim to quell the rebels
He was coronated King of Sarawak in
1842
The Sultan of Brunei signed the
agreement to confirm James Brooke
as the governor of Sarawak for fear
of British threat

Perak (1874)
The British intervened with the excuse of
protecting the interests of British merchants
Chaos broke out with the Larut war that
involved the Chinese secret societies, Hai San
and Ghee Hin, and the civil war between Raja
Abdullah and Raja Ismail
Chieftains such as Ngah Ibrahim (Larut Minister)
and Raja Abdullah requested for British
intervention
The Pangkor Treaty was signed on 20th January
1874 and J.W.W. Birch was appointed Resident

Selangor (1874)
Civil war involving Raja Mahadi and Raja
Abdullah
Tengku Kudin and Yap Ah Loy supported Raja
Abdullah; the princes of the Selangor Sultan
and Sayid Masyor supported Raja Mahadi
Intervention was unsuccessful because the
Malay chieftains did not want the British to
interfere
In 1873, a British cargo boat was attacked by

pirates; the British took this as an

excuse to intervene
In August 1874, frank Swettenham was
appointed official advisor to the Sultan
and J.G. Davidson as the Resident

Sungai Ujung (1874)

Struggle for power in Sungai Linggi
between Dato Kelana Sayid Abdul
Rahman and Dato Bandar Kulup Tunggal

 Dato Kelana sought help from the British

and was subsequently acknowledged as
chief of Sungai Ujong but was opposed by
Dato Bandar Kulup Tunggal
The British army led by W.A. Pickering
successfully defeated Dato Bandar Kulup
Tunggal
Sungai Ujong accepted British advisor,
W.I. Tatham

Pahang (1880s)
Civil war broke out due to the struggle
between Wan Mutahir and Wan Ahmad
for the post of Chief Minister
The British were worried over Sultan
Ahmads suggestion to give trade
concessions to Western powers
In February 1888, a British citizen of
Chinese descent was murdered in
Pekan (near the Sultans palace)

 The British took that as an excuse to intervene

Sultan Ahmad accepted the British Resident J.P.
Rodger

Sabah (1946)
Part of Sabah was under the Brunei Sultanate
since the 16th century
It was leased to Charles Lee Moses in 1865 and
subsequently sold to Baron Von Overbeck
The Sulu Sultanate agreed to give up their land
in

Sabah to Overbeck and Dent in

1878
The North Borneo Chartered
Company was established to
administer Sabah
On 15th July 1946, Sabah was
declared a British colony

Analisis of British Intervention

The colonization was spurred by internal
weakness such civil wars and unrest in the
states concerned
No unity among the inhabitants gave the
British the chance and excuse to intervene
The local peoples mistake of requesting
help from the British, especially the traders
in the Straits settlement and the warring
nobles
The presence of important economic

resources such as tin ore and agricultural

products (commercial agriculture)
There was strong competition among the
western powers for colonies to meet the
economic needs of their countries
Change of government in England in 1873
made Lord Kimberley, secretary of the
colonial office inaugurated a policy of
intervention into the affairs of the Malay
States

 The Industrial Revolution in Europe also

encouraged intervention as the industries
needed raw materials such as tin ore and
other agricultural products
The possession of colonies also acted as
ready markets for the industrial goods
manufactured by their industries
The opening of the Suez Canal made the
distance between the east and the west

shorter and easier

The introduction of steamships further
encouraged trading as they can carry more
cargo, travel faster and safer
To make the administrative system more
efficient and to strengthen their hold over
the colonized territory, the British
introduced the Resident system in the
Malay States
The role of the Resident was to advise the

Sultan; but in certain cases, the Resident

had power even over the state officials
Every state was divided into districts,
divisions or residency, parish and villages,
each with its own head
A police force was established for peacekeeping
Public infrastructures such as roads and
railway tracks were built to facilitate the

transport and exploitation of

resources
The British developed their
agricultural activities and introduced
new plants such as rubber
The taxation system and imposition
of licenses on boats and firearms
were introduced
The British enforced the ban on
slavery

of a foreign workforce, especially from

India and China to assist the development
of rubber estates and tin mines
Despite the administrative, social and
economic development, there were
imbalances and lack of uniformity such as:
- development was mainly focused on
areas that were economically profitable
such tin mining areas, towns and states on
the west

coast of the Peninsular

- the immigrants and western investors
monopolized the economic resources, while
the local ethnic community was still tied to
their traditional economy and lived in
villages
- the development of infrastructures were
mainly in areas where British economic
interests were located
- the influx of foreign workers caused many

other problems as they were

isolated from the locals in terms of
living quarters and occupation
- this physical separation was
compounded by the differences in
backgrounds
- there was no interaction between
them and this created an increasing
social gap

Federated Malay States

Through the Federation Agreement in 1896,
Selangor, Perak, Pahang and Negeri
Sembilan were consolidated under one
central ruling system called the Federated
Malay States
There were several factors behind the its
establishment:
i. To address Pahangs financial problems
ii. For the purpose of efficiency and
uniformity in administration

iii. To check the Residents power

iv. For security
. The conditions of the Federal treaty
were:
i. The acceptance by the rulers of a British
officer with the title of Resident-General
ii. His role is to advise on all aspects of
government except issues relating to
Islam and Malay customs

iii. The rulers are still in power in their

own states
. The first Resident-General was Frank
Swettenham
. A Conference of Malay Rulers known as
Durbar was introduced to create better
relationship between the rulers and
British officers
. The outcome of the federation was the

centralization of the administrative power

in the hands of the Resident-General in
Kuala Lumpur and the gradual loss of the
powers of the rulers in their own states
The Resident-General had power over
matters relating to finance and the primary
sources of income, which were duties on
exports that were under the control of the
central government
This meant the employment of more British

officers, resulting in the Malay states to

be administered mostly by British officers
The Malay rulers grew uneasy with the
situation and voiced their feeling of
uneasiness
To strengthen control over the states, the
British established the Federal Executive
Council in 1909
The aim was to increase the power of the

rulers and the Residents in the states

concerned, but the real motive was solely
to increase the power of the British
Governor in Singapore
It consisted of the High Commissioner
(President), Resident-General (later
changed to Secretary in 1901), four
Sultans, four Residents and four unofficial
members (three Europeans and a
Chinese)

 The obvious effect was the weakening of the

power of the Sultan and the State Executive
Council as the Sultan became only an ordinary
member with no decision-making power
Laws were signed and passed by the High
Commissioner and not the Sultan that means
all authority was in the hands of the High
Commissioner
All measures taken were to facilitate their
exploitation of the countrys economy

Non-federated Malay States

Before 1909, Kelantan, Terengganu, Kedah
and Perlis were under the protection of Siam
After the Bangkok Treaty 1909, the Siamese
agreed to hand over these states to the
British and a British advisor was appointed
in each state, but it was rejected by the
states involved s they were reluctant to
accept a British advisor
The British had long attempted to exploit
the

the natural resources of the northern states

In 1826 the British signed the Burney Treaty
with Siam to suppress and control these
states
The Bangkok Treaty restricted the expansion
of Siamese power and protected British
interests in Malaya by making it difficult for
other western powers to penetrate the Malay
states
This treaty facilitated the expansion of British

power in Malaya
Johore accepted a British advisor in
1914
In 1919, the British combined the
five states as the Non-Federated
Malay States
Thus the states in Malaya were under
three political units, namely the
Straits Settlement, the Federated
Malay States and the Non-Federated

Decentralisation of Power
This meant that the important powers relating
to administration of finance and services such
as the railway, customs and postal services
that were once under central control would be
distributed to the states concerned
The decade between 1910 and 1920 were
years of peace in the Federated Malay States
where economy was good and the rulers were
pleased with their position
After 1920, feelings of dissatisfaction crept in
and

this caused the British to decentralize

powers in the states concerned through
stages
In 1920s the rulers were dissatisfied
concerning decision-making power unlike
Non-Federated Malay States rulers
The British intention to combine the
Federated Malay States and the NonFederated Malay States due to the decline
in the world economy in the 1920s

 The struggle for power between the

Resident-General and the High
Commissioner also prompted
decentralization
The reasons in the 1930s revolved around
the need to form a Malayan Union, the
declining world economy and the need to
protect the interest of the Malay society and
to keep check on Chinese political activities
The distribution of power was based on

economic and political motives

It was a way to economize when the
world economy was declining and the
British had the intention of ruling the
whole of Malaya under one
administrative entity, that is the
Malayan Union
This distribution of power was not
successful because the Japanese
invaded Malaya in 1941

The Japanese Occupation

Although the Japanese occupied Malaya
only for three and a half years(from 15
February 1942 to 15 August 1945),
they had a great impact on the country
The conquest of the whole of Malaya
and Singapore was fast and effective,
in only 70 days
They attacked in two directions, from
the west and the east

 After landing in Kota Bharu, they

rushed to Kuantan and then to
Mersing
On 12th December 1941, Jitra was
captured, followed by Penang and
Slim River
In January 1942, they entered Kuala
Lumpur and both the Japanese
military troops met in Johore Bahru
On 15th February a942, Singapore fell

 The main aim of the Japanese was to

establish a Great East Asia
government and they promised to
declare independence in certain
S.E.A. countries

The Japanese Victory

They conquered Malaya quite easily
although the British was better
equipped with firearms and greater
in number. The reasons were:

i. The British were not prepared for the war

ii. They did not anticipate the Japanese
attack from the north
iii. The Japanese had a comprehensive plan in
which they had a network of spies in
Malaya
iv. The Japanese soldiers were in excellent
form because of intensive training and
were led by capable and experienced
leaders (Yamashita and Tsuji)

v. They were enthusiastic and inspired

to fight for the importance and
supremacy of Japan
vi. They had practical war tactics, such
as using bicycles even in the jungles
and villages
vii.The British soldiers lacked the spirit
of war
viii.A large number of the British
soldiers consisted of Indians who

The Effects of the Japanese

Invasion
Had a great impact on the life of the
citizens in Malaysia, socially,
economically and politically
From the social aspect, the invasion
worsened the relationship among the
races because the Japanese were
against the Chinese and on the side
of the Malays
The Chinese took refuge at the edge
of the jungles

 The misunderstanding between the

Chinese and Malays continued even after
the Japanese had surrendered
From the economic aspect, Malaysia was in
complete confusion
Much of the economic infrastructure was
destroyed and economic activities were
disrupted causing the lives of the people to
become worse and inflation continued to
escalate

 From the political aspect, it was found that the

Japanese administration was a period of misery
and the experience raised their political
awareness
The Malays were attracted to the slogan Asia
for Asians which stirred them to build their
own government
The Chinese established the Malayan Peoples
Anti-Japanese Army (MPAJA) to fight the
Japanese and strengthen the Communist Party
of Malaya

 The Japanese used the police force (mainly

Malays) to fight against the MPAJA (mainly
Chinese) thus causing racial friction and
fighting
When the Japanese surrendered, the MPAJA
had the chance to be in power and they took
advantage of the tardiness of the British in
their peace-keeping efforts to terrorize and
took revenge on the Malays
The bloody conflict between the Chinese and

Malays lasted two weeks until the

British established the British Army
Administration
This experience had left lasting
negative racial sentiment between
the two communities

The Era of the Emergency

The emergency period is closely
related to the development and
activities of the Communist Party of

 Communism crept into Malaya in the

1920s through a branch of the
Kuomintang Party that was an ally of
the communists in China
The primary objective of the MCP
was to overthrow the British and
establish the Communist Republic of
Malaya
MCP was an underground movement
except during the years 1945 to

 After the Second World War ended, some

of the MCP guerillas emerged from the
jungle and prepared a strategy to take
over the controlling power before the
British resumed their rule of Malaya
The MCP formed the Malayan Races
Liberation Army (MRLA), better known as
the Three Stars (symbolizing the three
main races) to fight for the establishment
of the Communist Republic of

Malaya
The MCP also set up a supply and
public spy unit known as Min Yuen
with two functions, that is, to get
food and medical supplies for
guerillas in the jungle and to obtain
information on British activities

No support for the Communist

Ideology
The majority of the countrys
population did not support the
communist ideology
For the Malays, it was against Islamic
teachings as it denied the existence
of God
The MCP was dominated by the
Chinese and created suspicion
among the Malays and Indians
There were many among the Chinese

interested in joining the MCP but were

more interested in economic activities and
in improving the economy
In their midst arose several political
leaders who established the Malayan
Chinese Association (MCA) to safe-guard
the interest of the Chinese
The Malayan economy was quite stable at
that time and most Malayan citizens were
against

the violent tactics of the MCP

In 1948, following the Calcutta
Resolution, the MCP launched attacks
on rubber estates and tin mines
causing many deaths and loss of
means of livelihood
Consequently, the British
government took definite steps to
wipe out communism and halt MCP
activities

Communist Uprising and

Terrorism
The Asian Communist Youth Congress held
in Calcutta in February 1948 greatly
influenced the MCP
The MCP failed to achieve their vision of
conquering the country through the
Constitution and peace hence used
violence to defeat the British government
in Malaya
In June 1948, the MCP launched an armed
uprising in Malaya

 Between 1948 and 1951, the MCP

launched several attacks on estates,
mines, police stations and the general
public, especially Europeans
MCP employed guerilla war tactics
Their strategy was to cripple the Malayan
economy, by conquering big cities and
towns in the outskirts (to form
headquarters) and eventually drive the
British out

 On 6th October 1951, the communist shot

dead the High Commissioner, Sir Henry
Gurney while on his way to Frasers Hill
This spurred the British into action to
eradicate the communists and their
activities
Among the measures taken were the
declaration of emergency, the Briggs Plan,
military steps and psychological warfare
(the Templer Plan)

Declaration of Emergency and

Emergency Laws
On 16 June 1948, Sir Edward Gent, a
British High Commissioner, declared
Perak and Johore emergency areas
On 17 June 1948, a state of emergency
was declared on the whole of Malaya
due to the killing of three European
estate managers in Perak
On 23 July 1948, the MCP was officially
outlawed

 The Emergency Laws of 1948 gave

the powers to the police and soldiers
to arrest and detain communist
suspects without trial
The military force imposed
roadblocks and curfews in areas
where communist activities were rife
The registration system was
introduced where citizens aged 12
years and above must register

and own an identification card, now

known as the identity card

The Briggs Plan

Sir Harold Briggs introduced the Briggs
Plan to eradicate communist activities
through relocating the squatter areas from
the edge of the forest to a new village and
to launch a starvation movement which
started in Johore on 1st June 1950

 Towards February 1952, more than

400,000 Chinese squatters were relocated
to approximately 400 new villages
The plan was aimed at restricting the
Chinese from supplying food, medicine
and information to the communist
guerillas who were hiding in the jungles
It weakened Min Yuen activities and forced
the communist out of the jungles

Military Measures
Sir Gerald Templer was appointed the High
Commissioner of Malaya in 1952 to replace
Sir Henry Gurney
He used firm military force to fight the
communists
His tactics included the use of 13
battalions of English soldiers, Gurkhas and
Malays; training 67,000 special Malay
soldiers and forming home guards systems
with 210,000 of them in

1953, and recruiting assistance from

the Commonwealth military, such as
from Australia, New Zealand and
Rhodesia
The strength of the military team
enabled the government to launch
more aggressive attacks and ensured
that food was not smuggled out for
the guerilla communist

Psychological Warfare
Templer launched psychological warfare
upon the communists
He made it easier for non-Malays to obtain
citizenship, pardoning in large numbers
the MCP members who surrendered,
rewarding people who provided
information on the communist terrorists
and giving out pamphlets calling the
communists to give up their fight

 he also introduced the system of white

and black areas
Templer also introduced curfews in
areas where soldiers were hunting for
the communists
His psychological warfare can be said to
be one of the factors for the success in
ending the communist revolution as it
encouraged the people to work together

The Baling Negotiation

After experiencing a decline, the MCP
decided to negotiate with government of
Malaya
It was held in Baling, Kedah on 28 and 29
December 1955
Tunku Abdul Rahman, David Marshall and
Tan Cheng Lock represented the
government while Chin Peng, Chen Tien and
Rashid Maidin represented the MCP
The MCP requested to be legally recognized

but was turned down

The negotiation failed as MCP further
rejected the governments counter
offer and refused to lay down their
arms
On 31 July 1960, Tunku Abdul Rahman
proclaimed the end of the emergency
after the influence and activities of
the MCP declined

Impact of the Emergency

MCPs failure was due to several reasons:
their offensive acts against the Malayan
Union Government, the lack of support from
Malayan citizens, especially the Malays, and
the lack of protection from other communist
countries such as Russia and China
The emergency period that lasted 12 years
left many negative results
The number of people killed included 9,581

MCP members, 2,461 ordinary citizens and

1,851 members of the security forces
The number of injured was 1,383 while those
missing were around 807
Properties were destroyed and the economy
was crippled
New villages with public facilities unlike those
in traditional Malay villages were developed
This widened the social gap among the
people

 Communist movements with mainly Chinese

while the police and army forces being
Malays only made the racial issue worse
The emergency taught Malaysians a few
lessons
It challenged the people to work together to
defeat the communists
The British took immediate action to grant
independence to the country on the grounds

that there was unity among the

citizens of Malaya
The independence granted was a
severe blow to the MCP who claimed
that they rebelled to free Malaya
from the British colonialists