History of the Second Battalion of the

by lWO Daniel Wee

L579 History of the NCO Paper USASMA Faculty Advisor: CWO Kenneth Hodge Group Room LIO 3 March 2006 Outline

I. Introduction

II. Body

A. Birth of the Second Battalion, Singapore Infantry Regiment (2 SIR)

B. Internal Security

C. Combat Operations during Confrontation

1. Operation Oak Tree

2. Operation Easy Chair

3. Operations in

D. Sad sojourn at Farrer Park

E. Reorganising after the departure ofMalaysian Forces

F. Converting into National Service Battalion

III. Conclusion WEE 1

HISTORY OF THE SECOND BATTALION,

SINGAPORE INFANTRY REGIMENT

I. Introduction

The purpose of this research paper is to give an accurate and in-depth account of the history of the Second Battalion which by large the history of the Singapore Armed Forces. This paper will provide detail events and operations of the unit.

When the Japanese invaded Singapore on 7th February 1942, she fell in a mere eight days.

As a consequence of our over reliance on the British and allied forces to defend us, Singapore fell to the rein of the Japanese for three dark years. On 6th August 1945, two atomic bombs were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki and thus ended Japan's attempt at imperialism. On 1i h

September 1945 Singapore was once again free. It then became clear that Singapore needed to build her own defence force. So in 1957 the First Battalion, Singapore Infantry Regiment (l SIR) was formed.

The history of the Second Battalion, Singapore Infantry Regiment (2 SIR) is inextricably linked to the formation of the First Battalion. As early as February 1951, that the Legislative

Council of Singapore passed a unanimous decision that the formation of the nucleus of the

Singapore Regiment should be "considered immediately" (Proposed formation of 2 SIR, 1957,

42). The raising of the First Battalion, Singapore Infantry Regiment (l SIR) took place in March

1957 and the establishment of 2 SIR was to be immediately mooted that very same year.

However raising another battalion was a very costly affair for the young Singapore government that had other financial concerns such as the development of the local economy and citizens' welfare improvement. Therefore the forming of the Second battalion did not to take place physical until five years later. WEE 2

II. Body

A. Birth of the Second Battalion, Singapore Infantry Regiment (2 SIR)

The year 1962 marked another milestone in the continued growth of the Singapore

Infantry Regiment. It was in this year that the Regiment witnessed the raising of another battalion, 2 SIR. On 21 February 1962, the Singapore Government officially announced plans to recruit for the second battalion as part of the overall expansion of Singapore and Malayan military forces as a consequence of the impending creation of the new state of and the imminent departure of British military forces. Men for the new 2 SIR were recruited from all over the new Malaysian state. (Yee 2)

The officer appointed to assumed command as the first Commanding Officer (CO) of 2

SIR was LTC Tom Bell Maxwell Lamb. Hailing from Scotland, LTC Lamb was a British veteran of the Second World War. Aside from LTC Lamb being seconded from the British military, some Officers and Non-Commissioned Officers (NCO) were transferred from 1 SIR and the Federation Army to staff various appointments as well (Chin 44).

The British Government agreed to assist the Singapore Government in the raising, equipping, and accommodating of 2 SIR up to a maximum of $10 million (Chin 43).The battalion was housed and trained at Temasek Camp which was built at the cost of $1.1 million.

The battalion was inaugurated on 19 August 1963 by Yang di-Pertuan Negara, Yusofbin Ishak, the first president of Singapore (Yee 2).

B. Internal Security

On 16th September 1963, Singapore joined the Federation of Malaysia. The euphoria of independence however met with the resistance from Indonesia in accepting the new Malaysian WEE 3 state. Indonesia thus launched "Confrontation" against Malaysia in the form of sabotage and infiltration. It was in this context that the Singapore Infantry Regiment and more specifically 2

SIR was called to transform itself from a "metropolitan force" maintaining internal security in the city state to a military force engaging in (Koh and Lo 12). The weapons that the battalion used at that time were weapon left behind by the British forces, the Lee Enfield mark 4 and 5, and the British Self Loaded Rifles (SLR).

Racial riots broke out in July and September 1964, in the midst of Confrontation. The two battalions assisted the local police in bringing civil disturbances in the city under control by imposing and maintaining curfews. The battalion's roles were especially critical when the riots escalated into violence and destruction of property. 2 SIR was deployed in the Geylang and Joo

Chi at areas, which were the most seriously, affected areas given the close proximity of the

Chinese and Malay communities. 2 SIR being a multi-ethnic force was heavily involved in maintaining order between the volatile mixtures of riotous elements from both communities. On

21 July 1964 the curfews were gradually eased after four days and finally lifted on 2 August

1964 (Teo 14).

However, within a month, clashes broke out again on 2 September 1964. As 1 SIR was away for a tour of duty in Perak, 2 SIR was once again called upon to restore law and order together with 8 RMR (Royal Malay Regiment) in the recurring explosive area, Geylang.

C. Combat Operations during Confrontation

In November 1964, LTC Latiff Bin Hussein, a Malaysia officer, took control command of 2 SIR from its first CO, LTC Lamb. With the change of command, 2 SIR remained in

Singapore to continue its protection of key instillations as well as to act as stand-of force in the event of local disturbances (Teo 15). WEE4

1. Operation Oak Tree

From November 1964 to August 1965, 2 SIR successfully executed a series of combat operations in lohore but not without the Regiment's first loss. It was in there that she first received her baptism of fire (fee 10).

On 24 February 1965, the unit was activated for "Operation Oak Tree" when a light RAF Reconnaissance aircraft spotted an abandoned boat at the coast around the 1ason

Bay/Mersing area with footprints leading into the jungle. "Charlie" , 2 SIR, was thus tasked to investigate the sightings (fee 10).

According to newspapers, one was ambushed by Indonesian forces, leaving 9 men dead and another five wounded (Straits Times STIR0016912). This led to the activation of the entire battalion to seek out and destroy the enemy elements that executed the ambush. Survivors of the "ambush" took up to six days to trickled back to the company headquarters located near the beach. On 2 March 1965, the rest of 2 SIR was activated to hunt down the infiltrators. Search parties despatched to recover the bodies of those killed in action found them the following day. The bodies of the slain soldiers were sent back to Singapore for a military burial (fee 11).

On 4 March 1965, LTA Daljeet Singh together with his mortar platoon made first contact with the enemy. In this first encounter, an enemy soldier was killed. This marked 2 SIR's first combat success. On 6 March, LTA Daljeet's platoon killed another four enemy soldiers in another subsequent encounter. From 11 to 13 March, LT A Daljeet's platoon scored three more kills near the charcoal kiln at the foot of Bukit Belungkor. LTA Daljeet's

Platoon Sergeant further killed another three enemy soldiers in yet another contact with the enemy. This brought the total number of kills of the platoon to eleven. Another platoon led 2L T WEE 5

Syed Osman was sent to reinforce LTA Daljeet's platoon. In a chance encounter, 2LT Osman and his men managed to kill all remaining seven Indonesian infiltrators operating in the

Belungkor area in a brief engagement. After clearing the Kampong Bahru area of enemy elements, the battalion was displaced to Asahi Rubber Estate after reports of enemy sighting. On

23 March 1965, 2LT Osman's platoon discovered the campsite of the enemy and a fierce fire fight took place. In the wake of the battle, five enemy soldiers were killed while the remaining eight managed to escape but without their weapons. In a subsequent night ambush, 2LT Osman's platoon killed another two enemy soldiers and 2LT limmy Yap later captured the remaining six infiltrators (fee 12).

2. Operation Easy Chair

2 SIR was reactivated for "Operation Easy Chair" in lohore again on 1 June 1965 , only a month after returning to Singapore. For this operation, the battalion was sent to the

Ponti an area on the west coast of lohore. CPT Mahinder Singh led his platoon to capture five soldiers while capturing the remaining two. On 11 June 1965, the operation ended, marking 2

SIR's operations in lohore (fee 14).

3. Operations in Sabah

On August 1965, Singapore was separated from the Federation of Malaysia. Despite the separation 2 SIR was still sent to the Sabah border for to protect against the Indonesian infiltration as part of 4 MIB (Malayan Infantry Brigade). This was a highly symbolic gesture as leaders of both sides still concurred on the indivisibility of the defence of both states. There was however no spectacular battles in the likes of those in lohore. In February 1966 the operations ended and the unit returned to Singapore (fee 15). WEE6

D. Sad sojourn at Farrer Park

Given the new context that Singapore found itself following its separation from

Malaysia, there was a radical rethinking of the concept of common defence between the two countries. Singapore leaders realised the need to build up an independent defence force that no longer relied on the presence of British or Malaysian forces for the defence of the nation.

Malaysian leaders disagreed with this interpretation and believed that Article V of the Separation

Agreement gave the MAF the right to remain in Singapore for the defence of both countries.

This led to the episode that saw 2 SIR's sad sojourn at Farrer Park (Teo 15).

In February 1966, Malaysia troops continued to be stationed at Temasek Camp that was required by the men of 2 SIR returning from their six-month tour of duty in Sabah.

Since Tunku Abdul Rahman interpreted the right of MAF to remain in Singapore, he contended the responsibility of the Singapore Government to provide alternative accommodation for the

Malaysian troops before they vacated the premises. It was even suggested that 2 SIR be sent to the mainland while the Malaysia unit continued to occupy Temasek Camp. The Singapore

Government rejected this request and offered to send this dispute for arbitration by a commonwealth or an international tribunal. The offer was turned down the Malaysians. It was clear that the Singapore Government's main concern was that if the Malaysian forces were allowed to stay in Singapore, it would set a precedence for the permanent stationing of

Malaysian forces in Singapore, compromising on Singapore's independent military capacity.

Therefore, while negotiations between the governments were in progress, men of

2 SIR found themselves displaced from their own home after returning from a gruelling campaign against Indonesian infiltrators in Sabah. Instead of receiving a well-earned rest in their camp, the "heroes of Kota Tinggi and Pontian" were "neglected and shabbily treated" after WEE 7 performing with distinction in the defence of Malaysia. Despite the obvious hardships suffered, the men, like true soldiers, endured all that was dished out and waited for the two governments to sort out the issue. Therefore, for almost seven months, they forced to live in make-shift tents at the Farrer Park Sports Field, enduring grossly inadequate washing facilities, performing drills and other forms of training on the poorly drained and muddy fields. Aside from the use of swimming pool in the vicinity, there were no other recreational facilities for men. Eventually with the temporary housing of the Malaysian forces at Khatib camp, the men of 2 SIR finally returned to their home, Temasek Camp in September 1966 (Teo 16).

E. Reorganising after the departure of Malaysian Forces

Having been thrust into independence, it was now imperative that the Singapore Infantry

Regiment reorganised and reconstituted as an entity separate from the command of 4 MIB and the control of Malaysian officers. In January 1966, the Singapore Government assumed administrative control over the SIR and initiated steps to replace all Malaysians in order to create a solely Singapore force officered and manned by Singapore citizens. In February 1966, the

Singapore Infantry Brigade (SIB) was established to command both 1 and 2 SIR (Koh and Lo

25).

By early 1966, the Malaysian COs relinquished command of the SIR battalions. In 2

SIR, LTC J. P. Duncan, a seconded senior British officer replaced LTC Latiff Bin Hussein.

Besides the replacing of Malaysian officers, there were also another four hundred and fifty

Malaysian rank-and-file men in the battalion that needed to be replaced. In addition, many local

SIR officers and NCOs had been seconded to staff the newly established SIB and SAFTI, therefore exacerbating the shortfall in personnel. To resolve this problem, a recruitment drive was conducted to fill up the vacated posts (Koh and Lo 26). WEE 8

F. Converting into National Service Battalion

In November 1966, the Singapore Government announced that all new government and statutory boards' employees of military age were to undergo military training from 1 January onwards. Therefore in March 1967, 2 SIR took in its first batch of civil servants for military training. On 13 March 1967, the National Service (Amendment) Bill 1967 was passed by the

Government with the first batch of actual National Servicemen to be conscripted in July 1967.

(Kah and La 28).

For 2 SIR, the year 1967 was a highly significant and momentous year, not just with the implementation of National Service. It also marked the end of a chapter in a short but eventful decade of regular soldiering for the battalion. With the growth of the SAF and the introduction of National Service, it was inevitable that the first two battalions of the SAF were converted to conscripted battalions. In October 1967, the decision was made to convert 2 SIR to a National Service battalion. It was converted in phases beginning from October 1967 to April

1968.

III. Conclusion

With the conversion of 2 SIR into a National Service battalion in 1968, the unit indeed stood at a threshold of a new era, not just for the SAF but for our infant nation. Recalling its humble and hesitant beginnings to its tumultuous rite of passage into maturity, firmly embracing its motto "Excellence in All Endeavours, Second to None", the Second Battalion of the Singapore

Infantry Regiment thus courageously embarked on its new journey an as a National Service

Battalion with renewed vigour and pride. Work Sited

Sources from Government Documents (No Author)

"Proposed fonnation of 2 SIR" Singapore Legislative Assembly Debates, 17 December 1957: 42

Sources from Books

Chin, K W, "Joined Financing of Battalions" Defence ofMalaysia and Singapore, 30 July 1960: 43.

Koh and Lo.l "Distinction: a profile of pioneers." The Second Singapore Infantry Brigade, 1993: 23 - 31.

Yee, Gerard, "2nd Battalion Singapore Infantry Regiment." Military Education Singapore, January 2003: 2 +.

Sources from Journal

Teo, Alden. "Pioneering Spirit of2 SIR." This Month in History Vol. 31 IssA, Apr 1999: 12 - 20.

Sources from VeD

"The History of the Second Battalion" Our History, 2003.

Sources from Microfiche

"Ambush in Johore." Microfiche. Straits Times, 3 March 1965: ST/R0016912.