Tragic Orphans The Institute of Southeast Asian Studies (ISEAS) was established as an autonomous organization in 1968. It is a regional centre dedicated to the study of socio-political, security and economic trends and developments in Southeast Asia and its wider geostrategic and economic environment. The Institute’s research programmes are the Regional Economic Studies (RES, including ASEAN and APEC), Regional Strategic and Political Studies (RSPS), and Regional Social and Cultural Studies (RSCS). ISEAS Publishing, an established academic press, has issued more than 2,000 books and journals. It is the largest scholarly publisher of research about Southeast Asia from within the region. ISEAS Publishing works with many other academic and trade publishers and distributors to disseminate important research and analyses from and about Southeast Asia to the rest of the world. 00 TragicOrphans_Msia.indd 2 12/4/14 2:31 PM CARL VADIVELLA BELLE Tragic Orphans INDIANS IN MALAYSIA INSTITUTE OF SOUTHEAST ASIAN STUDIES Singapore First published in Singapore in 2015 by ISEAS Publishing Institute of Southeast Asian Studies 30 Heng Mui Keng Terrace Pasir Panjang Singapore 119614 E-mail: [email protected] Website: <http://bookshop.iseas.edu.sg> All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies. © 2015 Institute of Southeast Asian Studies The responsibility for facts and opinions in this publication rests exclusively with the author and his interpretations do not necessarily reflect the views or the policy of the publishers or their supporters. ISEAS Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data Belle, Carl Vadivella. Tragic orphans : Indians in Malaysia. 1. Indians (Asian people)—Malaysia—History. I. Title. II. Title: Indians in Malaysia DS595.2 I3B43 2015 ISBN 978-981-4519-03-8 (soft cover) ISBN 978-981-4620-12-3 (e-book, PDF) Typeset by Superskill Graphics Pte Ltd Printed in Singapore by Markono Print Media Pte Ltd 00 TragicOrphans_Msia.indd 4 12/4/14 2:31 PM CONTENTS Acknowledgements vii List of Abbreviations ix Introduction xiii 1. The Malay Peninsula: Early History, Melaka and the Colonial Setting 1 2. European Colonialism and the Malay Peninsula 16 3. India and the Development of British Ideologies of Empire 35 4. British Governance of Malaya 46 5. Slavery and Indentured Labour 63 6. Indian Indentured Labour in Malaya 75 7. Kangany Labour in Malaya 103 8. Other Indian Immigration 136 9. Indian Political Development to 1941 149 10. The Japanese Invasion, Subhas Chandra Bose and Indian Wartime Nationalism 176 11. The Post-war Period: Reform and Repression: 1945–48 225 12. From Federation to Merdeka 265 00 TragicOrphans_Msia.indd 5 12/4/14 2:31 PM vi Contents 13. From Malaya to Malaysia: Singapore, 13 May and the New Economic Policy 299 14. The Mahathir Years: A Changing Malaysian Landscape 331 15. Abdullah Badawi, Islamization, and the Rise of Hindraf 388 16. Najib and 1Malaysia: A New Deal? 426 Conclusions 450 Bibliography 459 Index 491 00 TragicOrphans_Msia.indd 6 12/4/14 2:31 PM ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The completion of this book would not have been possible without the generous assistance of many people in Malaysia and Singapore. I must first and foremost thank Ambassador K. Kesavapany, former Director of the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies, Singapore, who gave his full encouragement and continuing support for this work. I would also like to thank Mrs Triena Ong, formerly of the Institute, whose support throughout the process of writing was invaluable and who offered much encouragement at crucial points of this work’s evolution. Mr Stephen Logan, Mrs Y.L. Lee and other staff at ISEAS provided much needed administrative support. There were a number of academics and observers whose contributions were both stimulating and helped me to shape my observations and the final direction of this work. These included Dr Ooi Kee Beng, Dr Geoff Wade, the late Mr Barry Wain, Dr Lee Hock Guan, Dr Leon Comber, and others at ISEAS; Dr K. Anbalakan of Universiti Sains Malaysia; Dr S. Nagarajan of Wawasan Open University, whose assistance can only be described as substantial; Dr Haji Mohamad Thalha who shed light on the Indian Muslim experience in Malaysia; Mr Pathmarajah Nagalingam; Dr Gauri Krishnan, National Heritage Board, Singapore; Dr Andrew Wilford, Cornell University, USA; Mr Ismail Kassim, former Straits Times Senior Correspondent, Kuala Lumpur; Sri Ramli Ibrahim, Artistic Director, Sutra Dance Theatre; Dr R. Thillainathan, Executive Director of Genting Bhd; Professor P. Ramasamy, Deputy Chief Minister, Penang; Mr Janakey Raman Manickam who supplied me with a copy of his book, The Malaysian Indian Dilemma; Mr P. Uthayakumar of Hindraf; Mr J. Terence Netto with whom I shared some illuminating conversations, Mr Liew Chin Tong, MP; Dr S.R. Sivachandralingam of Universiti Malaya; Professor Balachandran Shanmugam; Mr B. Kumaresh; Mr and Mrs Shanmuganathan; Mr V. Chockalingam, who showed me enormous 00 TragicOrphans_Msia.indd 7 12/4/14 2:31 PM viii Acknowledgements kindness during a visit to Malacca; and Mr Kumar Menon, whose forensic questioning of my assumptions led me to rethink some aspects of my book. I would also wish to acknowledge the kind assistance of the late Puan Sri Janaki Athi Nahappan who shared her recollections of Subhas Chandra Bose and the politics of Indian nationalism; Toh Puan Uma Sambanthan, whose encyclopedic memory, insights, and generosity have over many years greatly enriched my own perspectives; and the late Dr S.M. Ponniah whose observations were always profound. Dr Ooi Cheng Ghee of Penang kindly agreed to allow me to use the photograph which graces the cover of this book. There are also a number of people who specifically requested that their contributions remain unacknowledged, but to whom I am deeply grateful. With regard to those who assisted me with accommodation and hospitality, I offer my deepest thanks to Mr and Mrs V. Thanapal who for many years have offered me a home away from home during my frequent trips to Malaysia; Mr and Mrs N. Selva; the late Mr N.S. Sundrasekaran and Mrs Sundrasekaran; Mr. K. and Mrs Ah Leng Thuruvan; Mr Kumar and Mrs Nui Menon; Madam V. Jayaladchumy; Mr A. and Mrs Veronica Athimoolmam; and Ms A. Thanam. I offer my deepest thanks to my wife, Wendy Valli Belle, who has lived with this book for the past three years, who has lived through endless discourses on Indians in Malaysia, and whose support, encouragement, humour, and plain commonsense have been of immeasurable assistance. I dedicate this book, with love, to her. While many have provided assistance in many fields, the opinions contained in this book, are, of course, my own. 00 TragicOrphans_Msia.indd 8 12/4/14 2:31 PM ABBREVIATIONS ABIM Angkatan Belia Islam Malaysia (Islamic Youth Force Malaysia) ACCIN Allied Coordinating Council of Islamic NGOs AMCJA All-Malaya Council for Joint Action AMRWC All-Malaya Rubber Workers’ Council API Angkatan Permuda Insaf (Generation of Aware Youth) BA Barisan Alternatif (Alternative Front) BCE Before Common Era BIA British Indian Army BMA British Military Administration BN Barisan Nasional (National Front) CE Common Era CIAM Central Indian Association of Malaya DAP Democratic Action Party EIC East India Company EWRF Education Welfare and Research Foundation FIO Federation of Indian Organizations FMS Federated Malay States FRU Federal Reserve Unit GATCO Great Alonioners Trading Corporation GLU General Labour Union HINDRAF Hindu Rights Action Force HRP Human Rights Party IIL Indian Independence League IMP Independence of Malaya Party INA Indian National Army IPF Indian Progressive Front IRRA International Rubber Regulation Agreement ISA Internal Security Act 00 TragicOrphans_Msia.indd 9 12/4/14 2:31 PM x Abbreviations ITN Institute Teknologi Negeri (National Technology Institute) JAKIM Jabatan Kemajuan Islam Malaysia (Department of Islamic Development) KMM Kesatuan Melayu Muda (Malay Youth Movement) KMT Kuomintang KMTM Kuomintang Malaya KRIS Kesatuan Rakyat Istimewa Semananjuang (The Strength of the Special People on the Peninsula/Union of Peninsular Indonesians) MAJU Koperasi Belia Majujaya MAPA Malaysian Agriculture Producers’ Association MARA Majlis Amanah Rakyat (People’s Trust Council) McEEU Malacca Estate Employee’s Union MCA Malayan/Malaysian Chinese Association MCP Malayan Communist Party MEWU Malayan Estate Workers Union MIC Malayan/Malaysian Indian Congress MIED Maju Institute for Educational Development MNLA Malayan National Liberation Army MNP Malay Nationalist Party MPABA Malayan Peoples’ Anti-British Army MPAJA Malayan Peoples’ Anti-Japanese Army MPIEA Malayan Planting Industry Employers’ Association MTUC Malayan/Malaysian Trade Union Congress/Council NCC National Consultative Council NECC National Economic Consultative Committee NEP New Economic Policy NESA Syarikat Kerjasama Nesa Pelabagai NGC National Goodwill Committee NGO non-government organization NJILU North Johore Indian Labour Union NLFCS National Land and Finance Cooperative Society NOC National Operations Council NSILU Negri Sembilan Indian Labour Union NUPW National Union of Plantation Workers PAM Planters’ Association of Malaysia PAP People’s Action Party PAS Partai Islam se-Malaysia (Islamic Party of Malaysia) 00 TragicOrphans_Msia.indd 10 12/4/14 2:31 PM Abbreviations xi PEEU Perak Estate Employees’