The Story of Singapore's

Home , Malayan Union, Malaysia Agreement

History

Singapore- Malaysia Merger Cloze Passage 28 – Singapore – Malaysia Merger

The story of Singapore’s merger with Malaysia began with the formation of the Malayan Union. It is imperative to understand that both nations only came into existence quite recently. Prior to the Second World War, the various regions of the peninsula were former British colonies, each governed autonomously by local Sultans. There were four Federated and five Unfederated States, as well as the three Straits Settlements – Penang, Malacca and Singapore – which formed one administrative entity.

imperative – of vital importance autonomously – the freedom to act independently M entity – a thing of distinct and independent existence

World War II significantly weakened the British empire, and many of the colonies started pushing for independence. The British had to consolidate the administration, which meant creating a centralised government for the various states, with the (1) ______of effective self-governance for Malaya eventually.

On 1 April 1946, the Straits Settlement split Penang and Malacca, to merge with the nine Malay states, forming the Malayan Union under one government. Singapore, the third Strait Settlement, was excluded, and remained a crown colony. This was partly due to Singapore’s economic and strategic importance to the British as a free port and naval base, and partly because of its large Chinese majority.

Not everyone was happy; a centralised government administered by the British reduced the powers of the local Sultans. Furthermore, constitutional and political equality through citizenship offered to the Chinese and Indian immigrant communities faced widespread opposition from the Malays, leading to civil disobedience led by the political group United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) in Malaya.

The Malayan Union was replaced (2) ______the Federation of Malaya scheme on 1 February 1948, recognising the special position of indigenous Malays as bumiputera, while tightening the citizenship requirements for the immigrant communities. These economic, education and social policies gave preference to the Malays over other ethnic groups. Singapore was excluded again, but the British believed this was temporary, and believed a merger between Singapore and the Federation would happen “in a wider union at a later date”.

The Case for a Merger

In the 1950s, the two biggest political issues in Singapore were a push for independence from the British Empire, as well as the global rise of a communist movement. A Legislative Assembly was formed in 1955 to give the local population of Singapore more self- governance through general elections. To win, all political parties – including Lee Kuan Yew’s People’s Action Party (PAP) – campaigned for Singapore’s independence from Britain, via a merger with the Federation.

consolidate – combining a number of things to create a stronger whole constitutional – relating to set of rules or principles in governing a state M indigenous – native entrepot - a port where goods are brought for import/export, collection and distribution

Lee saw Singapore’s exclusion from the Federation in 1948 as a poor judgement of the British. Additionally, he believed Singapore’s economic survival depended on the merger. Entrepot trade was declining, and Singapore was an island sans natural resources. Through its resources and industries, the Malayan hinterland would offer a bigger common market, thus (3) ______jobs and generating economic growth. Securing this economic viability was essential for the British to grant Singapore its independence.

Merging with the Federation was PAP’s promise to the people of gaining independence, while weakening their political opponents who had communist links.

Reservations

The PAP government had to convince the government of the Federation of Malaya on merging. Led by Prime Minister Tunku Abdul Rahman – head of UMNO, Malaya was reluctant, largely because of the sizeable Chinese population in Singapore. A merger would make Chinese the largest ethnic group, as the combined Chinese population of 3.6 million would outnumber the 3.4 million Malays. By letting Singapore in, the Tunku considered a Chinese-majority as a threat to UMNO’s political dominance in Malayan politics. Yet the Tunku faced an even bigger political concern – communism.

In 1955, a group of British, Malaya and Singapore government representatives formed the Internal Security Council (ISC) as a safeguard against communist activities in Singapore. If Singapore achieved independence without merging with the Federation, Malaya would lose its casting vote in the council, jeopardising its own security. More worryingly, if Singapore gains independence without joining the Federation, this would prove the PAP wrong, potentially leading to the chance of their being replaced by a radical far-left ruling party that was less willing to cooperate with the Malayan government.

The Tunku’s Proposal

In 1961, the Tunku changed his mind and announced the decision to create the Federation of Malaysia, which would also (4) ______the Borneo territories of Sarawak, Brunei and North Borneo (present-day Sabah). The addition of 700,000 indigenous people and 176,000 Malays from the Borneo territories into the population mix would dilute the predominance of the Chinese among the electorate.

viability – capability of success jeopardise – to put something in a situation where there is harm,

M or risk of failure radical – revolutionary

The Tunku welcomed Singapore (5) ______the following conditions: Singapore would join as an autonomous state, maintaining absolute rights to determine its internal affairs, save in the matters of internal security, defence, and external affairs. It could also keep a “very large” percentage of its state revenue. However, Singapore citizens would only be granted the title of “nationals” instead of “citizens” of this new Federation of Malaysia and could only vote in Singapore. Politically, it also had to accept a disproportionately smaller representation based on its population size in the House of Representatives - 15 instead of 24 seats.

This merger announcement surprised Singapore, but Lee willingly supported the Tunku’s proposal. A joint statement was made agreeing on the merger terms, and a white paper was (6) ______in November 1961. However, the details on financial and economic matters, including tax and the implementation of a common market were not specified. A memorandum outlining recommendations for the formation of Malaysia was signed in February 1962, and the PAP battled the Council of Joint Action who opposed the proposals, winning 70% of local votes in (7) ______of the merger in 1962.

On 9 July 1963, the terms of the agreement were finally disclosed, prior to the signing of the Malaysia Agreement. To establish a common market, Singapore had to contribute 40 percent of its revenue to the Federal government and provide a $150-million development loan to North Borneo and Sarawak, of which two-thirds would be interest-free for five years.

revenue – income implementation – to put into effect a plan or decision M memorandum – a document recording the terms of a contract or other legal details

Singapore’s Political Fallout

Unhappy with these terms, 13 assemblymen from the PAP’s left-wing withheld their support at the 1961 Anson by-election, and were expelled from the party. They formed the Barisan Sosialis and (8) ______they supported a merger with Malaysia, they campaigned against the PAP’s merger terms. They felt that Singapore should not compromise its proportional representation in the Federal parliament in Kuala Lumpur, and its citizens would be viewed as “second-class” if they only held “nationals” status in the Federation.

Lee responded to these criticisms with a series of radio talks, explaining that the 15 seats allocated (9) ______the same number assigned to Kuala Lumpur and Melaka, and the maximum the Tunku allowed. Meanwhile, he renegotiated the status of Singapore citizens in the federation with the Tunku, who conceded Singapore citizens as “Malaysian citizens” after merging, but only in name as voting rights were still limited to Singapore. In the Battle for Merger, Lee denounced the left-wing Barisan Sosialis as furthering the ideology and agenda of the communists.

Referendum, Merger and Separation

After two weeks of campaigning, a National Referendum was held in 1962, providing three options to Singapore citizens deciding on how the merger would unify Singapore with Malaysia. These options were either 1) on terms outlined in the white paper, 2) as a state on an equal basis as the other 11 states, or 3) on equal terms as that of the Borneo territories. Seventy percent of the population chose the first option and with this success, the PAP government began finalising its merger with Malaysia.

With the ratification of the Malaysia Agreement, the merger was finalised on 9 July 1963. The date for the formation of the Federation of Malaysia was set for 31 August 1963 but was delayed to 16 September 1963 for the United Nations to complete a study on the region’s sentiments on the merger. Nonetheless, Lee chose to declare 31 August as Singapore’s independence from British colonial rule, leading Sabah and Sarawak to do likewise. The formation of the Federation of Malaysia was officially declared on 16 September 1963.

The 23-month union continued to be plagued with challenges posed by political clashes between the PAP in Singapore, and the Alliance leaders in KL over social, economic and financial issues. Despite multiple attempts to resolve these problems, the fundamental differences in political views ultimately led to the (10) ______of Singapore on 9 August 1965 from the Federation of Malaysia, to become a sovereign nation.

compromise – an agreement to a dispute where both sides make concessions ideology – a system of beliefs and ideas

M ratification – the act of signing a treaty or agreement sovereign – in possession of ultimate power