_, / .' l I \ UNITED NATIONS NATIONS UNIES INTERO!=I=ICE• MEMORANDUM TO: The Date: 19 March 1963

FILE NO.:------THROUGH: ~~~ FROM: D. Protitch Under-Secretary for Trusteeship and Information from Non-Self-Governing Territories SUBJECT: Background Notes on the proposed Federation of

In compliance with your request, I enclose three copies of a background note surveying events which have led to the proposed Federation of Malaysia. It has been attempted to cover in the note the major events which have occurred in the individual Territories concerned and which have emerged from consultations and negotiations among the parties and governments involved. They have been brought as up-to-date as the official and unofficial material at our disposal has permitted us to do. I hope that you will find this note useful and will be glad to provide any further material on the subject that you may require and that may be available in the Department's files. ...

DEPAR~NT OF TRUS'lEESHIP AND INFOBMATION FROM NON~LF-OOJERNING TERRITORIES

Background notes on the proposed Federation of Ma1aysia

In 1953, a standing conference of , North and

later known as the Sarawak--Brunei Conference was established.

Its objective was to stu~ and promote consultation and co-operation between

the three Territories on matters of mutual concern. It was presided over

by the United Kingdom Canmissioner General for South-East Asia and comprised

the Govemors of Sarawak and North Borneo and the Sultan of Brunei, each

accanpanied by up to three representatives from his Territor,y. In 1958,

the Governors of Sarawak and North Borneo proposed, without success, a

federation of the two Territories with Brunei.!/ en 25 J~ 1960 the Prime Minister of Sarawak, Mr. Lee Kuan Yew,

speaking of his Government's attitude to a merger with the Federation of

Malaya, said that the "merger between and Malaya" was possible

as soon as the Governments of the two Territories were agreed upon it.

Since, however, the Government of the Federation of Ma.la;ya had not agreed

on such a merger at that time, it could not take place as yet or in the

immediate future.Y

en 30 January 1961, Tengku Abdul Rahman, the Prime Minister of the

Federation of Malaya, stated that the could not agree

to a merger, not because of the Chinese element in Singapore, but because

certain elements among the Chinese were 11China minded". Attempts by Singapore to

1/ Canmonwealth Survey, Vol. 7, No. 20, p. 972. y Ibid., Vol. 6, No. 24, P• 1135. - 2-

bring about a common market between the two countries had not been success-

ful either. However, on a num.ber of occasions beginning in 1957, the

Tengku had advocated a wider association not only with Singapore, but also

with the British dependencies in Borneo. He said on 27 May 1961 in

Singapore that Malaya as a nation could not stand alone and in isolation.

Sooner or later she would have to have an understanding with Britain

and the peoples of the Territories of Singapore, North Borneo, Brunei and

Sarawak. While it was premature for him to say how this closer understanding

could be brought about, he considered that it was inevitable, and that a

plan would be prepared whereby these Territories should be brought closer

together in political and economic co-operation. en 11 July 1962, following

a visit to the Bornean Territories, he again spoke in favour of this concept

which he tenned "Greater Malaysia". 1/

The Governors of Sarawak and North Borneo and the United Kingdom

High Commissioner in Brunei visited Singapore towards the end of June 1961

to have discussions with Lor.d Selkirk, the Camnissioner General for the

United Kingdom in South East Asia about the "Greater Mal.a.ysia11 proposal.

In a joint statement issued which emerged fran the talks, it was said

that the three Borneo Territories should get closer together before the;r made any move to join a Malaysian Confederation. Ho..w ever, the talks had

reached no specific conclusions •.Y' Conmenting on the proposals in Kuching

on 1 July 1961, the Governor of Sarawak said that Sarawak would be in a

!/ Commonwealth Survey, Vol. 7, No. 16, p. 779 • .Y' ~., No. 20, p. 972. ..

- 3 -

better position to join a confederation after closer links had been

established with North Borneo and Brunei. There were many complex

questions arising from the differing stages of economic, educational

and constitutional development. The priorities and perspectives

could not be fully judged until more was known of the form such an

association might take and how the general and particular interests of

all concerned could best be accommodated.11

In Borneo and Sarawak opinions on "Greater Malaysia" were not una-

nim.ous. The Saz:awak United Peoples' Party stated on 8 July 1961

that it would be best to postpone the question until after the country

had achieved independence, but it would be prepared to join with others

in examining the implications of the plan. On the other hand, the

Negara Sarawak Party was of the view that it would be preferable for the

country to enter such a merger as an independent Wlit; Sarawak would

become a loser if it were first to unite with Borneo and Bl:-unei before joining the greater federation.~

JJ Commonwealth Survey, Vol. 7, No. 20, p. 972. ~ Ibid., p. 973. - 4 -

A ~~sian Solidarity Consultative Committee composed of representatives from Mal~a, Singapore and the three Borneo Territories was then formed b,y delegates to a conference of the Mal~a-Borneo Group of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association, to initiate and encourage discussions and foster other activities for the early realisation of "Greater Malaysia". At the committee's first meeting in Jesselton in August 1961, an assurance was given b,y the leader of the Mal~an delegation that there was no question of bigger units absorbing smaller units in the Mal~sian proposal. Mal~sia would be a new political unit formed b,y the coming together of the fifteen potential members, that is, the eleven States of Malaya, Singapore and the three

Borneo Territories1 as individual partners. There would be considerable local auton~ for the States to ensure that their interests were safeguarded. The delegates also discussed such subjects as language rights., freedom of religion., educational polic.y1 land rights, immigration problems and economic relations., but the committee was in no position to commit the countries representedy to specific proposals for the establishment of "Greater Mal.aysia".

y Commonwealth Survey, Vol. 71 No. 201 p. 973. - 5-

In November 1961 Tengku Abdul Rahman visited London for exploratory t~lks with the British Government about his suggestion for a closer association between the Federation, Singapore and the three Borneo Territories. The

Tengku's proposals had been welcomed b,y the BritiSh Government which considered that great possibilities would be offered for the well-being of the Territories involved if the Federation came into being. The object of the discussions in London was to reach an understanding on the broad issues and to prepare the wa:y for consultations with the three Borneo Territories, without which no commitment could be entered into. During tlE discussions, full agreement was reached between the United Kingdom and the Federation of Malaya on the proposed closer association.!/

On 23 November 1961 a joint statement was issued by the Governmentsof the united Kingdom and of the Federation of Malaya concerning the creation of a Federation of Malaysia which would embrace the Federation of ~a,

Singapore, North Borneo, Sarawak and Brunei. In the light of a prolonged study of the problem, the two Governments were convinced that this was a desirable aim. Before coming to any final decision, the joint statement envisaged that it was necessary to ascertain the views of the peoples of North Borneo and Sarawak. It had accordingly been decided to set up a commission to carry out this task and to make recommendations. The commission was to be composed of a Chairman and f01.r members 1 two nominated b,y the British Government and two b,y the Malayan Government.

Y Commonwealth Survey, Vol.7, No.251 p. 1187. - 6-

In the light of the commission's report the two Governments would deci de

what further steps should be taken. The joint statement also envisaged

at the same time that the views of the Sultan of Brunei would be sought.

In regard to defence matters, the Commission decided that in the event of

the formation of the proposed Federation of Malaysia, the existing Defence

Agreement between Great Britain and Malaya should be extended to embrace other Territories concerned. It was further agreed that the Government

of the Federation of Malaysia would afford to the Government of the

United Kingdom the right to continue to maintain bases at Singapore for

the purpose of assisting in the defence of Malaysia, and for Commonwealth

defence and for the preservation of peace in South-East Asia.!/

On 28 November 1961, the British Secretary of State emphasized that the base at Singapore was a British and not a SEATO base, and Great

Britain would not be free to transfer control of the base to any other

nation or group of nations. The agreement explained the reasons wby Great

Britain would be permitted to use the base. In reply to questions from the Opposition, the Secretar.y o£ State said in the House o£ Commons t hat the agreement did not exclude the use of the base to discharge Great Britain's obligations to SEATO to preserve peace in South-East Asia.gj

On 1 Deceumer 1961 Tengku Abdul Rahman said that the plan to establish

the new Malaysian Federation would have to be accomplished speedily.

!/ Commonwealth Survey, Vol. 71 No. 251 p.l187. gj Ibid., p.ll88. - 7-

He said that "it was prompted by the ne'\Y' onslaught of domr.runist imperialism in Indochina". The Federation of Malaya was a new nation trying to make a united country of diverse races. There were "Chinese chauvinists and

Chinese communists who would not accept the idea of being ~~ayans and would not be won over. In Singapore the conmruni sts were even more active. 11

This, he said, was the reason behind the development of the concept of

Mal.aysia which would be acceptable in countries still under British administration. The best thing would be to give independence to the peoples of the three Borneo Territories in the form of a federal merger with Malaya.!/

The merger w1 th Singapore was urgent but it could not take place unless the

Borneo Territories were included from the first. For this r eason the members of the five-man commission should be named as soon as possible so that an ear:cy- start could be made with its inquiries in the Borneo Territories.

The new Constitutions of Sarawak and North Borneo would have to be such as to enable these Territories to be integrated into the present structure of Malaya.

The Tengku claimed that independent Malaya had given adequate representation to its indigenous inhabitants and that Borneo's indigenous peoples offered no problem under a Greater Malaysian Federation.gj

The change in Singapore' s status, he continued, would be minimal. The controls now exercised by Great Britain would be vested in Malaysia. "The

Chinese were good citizens of Malaya; his Government intended to keep Chinese loyal to Communist China out of Malaya". Immigratl.on would remain strict:cy­ controlled, but inter-Malaysian migration would be f.ree )/

!/ Commonwealth Survey 1 Vol. 71 No. 251 p .1188. · gj Ibid., pp. 1188-1189. ~~ Ibid. -8-

As for the agreement on defence, the Tengku said ~eat Britain

would consult with l-ialaysia before using the base in the event of

trouble in the area after sovereignty over it had been transferred to

the new Federation. There was provision for consultation under the

existing defence treaty. "The British bases would give Malaysians

security and the new nation could hardly do without the employment

which the bases now provided for some 40,000 people ...11

In the meantime, on 16 November 1961, the Singapore Government published a \ihite Pape~ setting out the merger proposals which

were agreed between the Prime Ministers of Malaya and Singapore at a

series of meetings held in London in 1961. According to this agreement,

Singapore would be a State within the Federation, but on special conditions

and with a larger measure of local autonomy than the other States forming

the Federation. Defence, external affairs and security would be the respon-

sibility of the Federation Government; the Singapore Government would

retain responsib:Ui.ty for education and labour. The special position ot

Singapore in relation to entrepot trade would be safeguarded in the

conduct of external relations and the free port status of Singapore would be maintained. Singapore's Head of State, the Yang di-Pertuan

Negara, would be appointed by the Paramount Ruler of the Federation,

11 Camnonwealth Survey, Vol. 7, No. 25, p. 1189. Y Singapore Government's White Paper, Cmnd. 33, 1961. - 9-

the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, after consultation with the Prime Minister of

Singapore.11 Singapore would be entitled to 15 seats in the Federal

House of Representatives and two in the Senate. Singapore's present

legislative assembly would continue in being as a state assembly, but

would have no power to enact laws relating to defence, external affairs,

security and other federal matters. In view of the larger measure of local

autonany retained by the Singapore Government, the existing Singapore civil

service would be retained as a state civil service, but facilities would

be provided for secondment or voluntary transfer to the Federal civil

service. There would be a special branch of the federal judicial and legal

service in Singapore. The present judicature, the Supreme Court and lower

courts, would be retained. All Singapore citizens would keep their citizen-

ship and autcmatically became nationals of the larger Federation. Citizens

of the present Federation would similarly became nationals of the larger

Federaticn. The special position of l-1alays who are Singapore citizens would be safeguarded.~ en 18 January 1962, the membership of the Commission of Inquiry

mentioned in the joint statement of the British and Malayan l

November 23, 1961, was annmmced simultaneously in London and Kuala Ldllpur.

Lord Cobbold, a fonner Governor of the Bank of England, was naninated as

Chairman of the Camnission. The two members naninated by the British

Government were Sir Anthony Abell, a fonner Governor of Sarawak, and Sir

David Watherston, a former Chief Secretary of Malaya, and the two members

1/ Canmonwealth Survey, Vol. 7, No. 25, p. 1189 • ~ Ibid. - 10-

naninated by the Malayan Government were the Dato Wong Pow Nee, the

Chief inister of Penang State, and Inche Muhammad Ghazalie bin Shafie,

the Permanent Secretary of the :t-lalayan Hinistry of External Affairs. JJ

The setting up of the Malaysia Solidarity Consultative Camnittee

following a Commonwealth Parliamentary Association Regional Conference

in Singapore in July 1961 2,/ resulted in unofficial exchanges of views

between the representatives from l'ialaya, Singapore, North Borneo and

Sarawak, including unofficial members of North Borneo's Legislative

Council and of Sararsak 1 s Council Negri, together with observers fran

Bl'Wlei. A 11hemorandum on Malaysia" was sul::mitted by the camnittee for

consideration by the Commission of Inquiry.ll

The Canmission visited Sarawak and North Borneo from 19 February to

18 April 1962. The Commission received many letters and memoranda from

various bodies and institutions and a large number of persons appeared

before the Camnission to give oral evidence.W

On 18 July 1962 the Sultan of Brl.Ulei in the Brunei Legislative Council announced Brunei's acceptance in principle of the Malaysian plan.

On 1 August 1962 the report of the Cobbold Commission was published.il

JJ Commonwealth Survey, Vol. 8, No. 3, p. 81. y Ibid. J/ Ibid., no. 18, p. 719. lJ/ Ibid. 2/ Report of the Commission of Inquiry, North Borneo and Sarawak, 1962, Cmnd. 1794. -ll-

The report gave a detailed account of the various opinions expressed

to the Commission regarding the proposals for a Federation of Mal~sia. y The evidence was assessed broadly b,y the chairman as follows: About one-third of the population in each Territory strongly favoured

early realisation of Mal~sia without too much concern about terms and

conditions. Another third, many of them favourable to the Malaysia proj ect, asked, with var.ying degrees of emphasis, for conditions and safeguards var.ying

in nature and extent. The remaining third was divided between those who

insisted on independence before Mal~sia was considered and those who would

strongly prefer to see British rule continue for some years to come. If the

conditions and reservations which they had put forward could be substantially

met, the second category referred to above would generally support the proposals.

Moreover, once a firm decision was taken quite a mumber of the third category

would be likely to abandon their opposition and decide to make the best of

a doubtful job. There would remain a hard core, vocal and politically active,

which would oppose Malaysia on any terms unless it was preceded b,y independence

and self-government; this hard core might amount to near 20 percent of the

population of Sarawak and somewhat less in North Borneo. The members of the Commission reached a considerable measure of

agreement on the appropriate basis for entry of tre Borneo Territori es into

the Federation of Mal~sia, but there was a fundamental divergence of

opinion among the members on the question of phasing, as to whether the y Commonwealth Survey, Vol.B, No.lB, pp. 719-721. - 12 -

Federation should be formed in one or two stages. The recODDnendations were therefore divided into four separate categories: first,recammendations on certain general matters, on some of which there was unanimity and on others there was some divergence of opinion which could only be resolved by the

Governments; second, recommendations by the British members; third, recom­ mendations by the Malayan members; and fourth, a summary of these separate recommendations by the chainnan with his own comments. Among the joint recamnendations, it was agreed that the present

Constitution of the Federation of 1-Ialaya should be the basis of the new constitution. Other subjects on which a wide measure of agreement was reached included the use of Malay and English as the official languages, immigration policy, refusal of the right to secede, and qualifications for citizenship. The camnissioo recamnended that the Bomeanisation of the public service should proceed as quickly as possible, but every effort should be made to encourage British officers to remain in the service until their places could be taken by qualified people from the Borneo Territories. The chairman and the British members recommended that there should be complete religious freedom in the Borneo Territories and that the provisions in the existing constitution of the Federatioo of Malaya stipulating Islam as the national religion should not be extended to the Borneo Territories. 'lhe

Malayan members recommended that Islam should be the national religion of the Federation.

In their separate recommendations, the British members emphasized the importance of a transitional period of from three to seven years during which a full ministerial s,ystem of responsible government would be introduced in the two Territories. The Malayan members felt that it was essential that - 13 -

with the transfer of sovereignty, the legislative and executive authorit,y in federal matters should also be simultaneous~ transferred, though they agreed that to avert a breakdown in the machiner.y of administration it was important that there should be a transitional period. Commenting on the separate recommendations, the chairman explained that, owing to the different views taken in the commission about the phasing of the creation of Mal~sia, maqy of the proposals were seen by the British members as objectives which should be progressively worked towards, and where possible introduced, during a transitional period, whereas they were seen by the Malayan members as recommendations which should start to take effect immediately on the creation of Mal~sia. Subject to this qualification, unanimity or near-unanimity was reached on recommendations for representation in the Federal Parliament in which account should be taken of the size and potentialities, as well as the population of the Borneo Territories; for the indigenous races, Which Should be placed in a position analagous to that of the Mal~s in the Constitution of the Federation of Ma~a; for development, in which attention should be given in the fields of rural improvement, education, medical and other social services, and training of candidates for administrative and technical posts; for land, agriculture and forestr.y, and local customs, which should be under the sole control of State governments; and for administrative arrangements in so far as they affected the ordinary lives of the people in which there should be no change, "at least in the ear~ years". Other matters covered by the separate ~ecommendations included the judiciary, the Head of State, andpublic -14-

services, the federal Constitution, finance, tariffs and trade, education,

and regionalisation. The British and Malayan members both concluded that "a Federation of

Malaysia was an attractive and workable project and was in the best interests of the Borneo Territories". On the assumption that Singapore would also join

the Federation, the chairman strongly endorsed this View, adding that the inclusion of the Borneo Territories would also be to the advantage of the other

participants in the Federation. The chairman added that it was a necessar,y

condition that, from the outset, Malaysia should be regarded b,y all concerned as an association of partners. He recommended that, in forthcoming negotiations, Governments should pay close attention to this point, both in its psychological and in its practical aspects. The chairman agreed with the British members that a transitional period

was desirable, but felt that the precise constitutional and other arrangements to govern such a period, and in particular the arrangements relating to internal security, should be matters for discussion between Government s. He

urged most strongq that ail¥ arrangements made f'or the ear~ years af'ter Federation should provide continuity of administration in the Borneo

Territories and should not result in any weakening, either real or apparent, of authority in Kuching and Jessel.ton. He also strongzy endorsed the

recommendations that consultative machiner,y, including joint working parties

should be set up as soon as possible, after a decision had been taken to proceed with the Mal.aysia project, in order to work out the details of inte­

gration of the Borneo Territories into a new Federation. - 15-

On 31 July 1962, i.e., before the publication of the Report of the Cobbold Commission, the British and Malayan Governments agreed in principle that the prc~sed Federation of Malaysia should be brought into being by .31 August 196.3. They signed this agreement in London and issued a statement for publication on 1 August in which they stated that the British and Malayan Governmentshad received and studied the report of the Commission, under the chairmanship of Lord Cobbold, which visited North Borneo and Sarawak early in 1962, to ascertain the views of the inhabitants on the proposal to create a Federation of Malaysia.

The two Governments accepted almost all the recommendations on which the Commission was unanimous. The two Governments noted in particular that the Commission was unanimously agreed that a Federa­ tion of Malaysia was in the best interests of North Borneo and Sarawak and that an early decision in principle should be reached.

To give effect to this decision, the two Governments intended to conclude within the next six months, a formal agreement which, among other things, would provide for: Y the transfer of sovereignty

y Commonwealth SUrvey, Vol. 8, No. 18, pp. 717-718. - 16 -

in North Borneo, Sarawak and Singapore by 31 August 1963; provisions governing the relationship between Singapore and the new Federation, as agreed between the Governments of Malaya and Singapore; defence arrangements as set out in the joint statement by the British and

Malayan Governments dated 22 November 1961; detailed constitutional arrangements, including safeguards for the special interests of ~orth

Borneo am Sarawak, to be drawn up after consultation with the legis­ latures of the two territories.

These safeguards would cover such matters as religious freedom, education, representation in the Federal Parliament, the position of the indigenous races, control of imrr~gration, citizenship and the State constitutions.

In order that the introduction of the new Federal s,ystem might be effected as smoothly as possible and with the least disturbance to existing administrative arrangements, there would be, after the transfer of sovereignty a transition period, during which a number of the Federal - 17 -

constitutional powers would be delegated temporarily to the State

GoverDDI.ent.

The agreement also stipulated that an Inter-governmental Committee would be established as soon as possible on which the British, Malayan,

North Borneo and Sarawak Governments would be represented. Its task will be to work out the future constitutional arrangEI!lents and the form of the necessary safeguards for the two territories. The agree­ ment provides also that the Minister of State for the Colonies, who would be the chairman of this Committee and the Deputy Prime J.f.inister of the Federation of Malaya would proceed shortly to Borneo and Sarawak to conduct discussions.

In order to maintain the efficiency of the administration, the

British and Malayan Governments agreed on the importance of retaining the services of as many of the expatriate officials as possible. The

Minister of State would discuss with the Governments of the Territories and with the staff associations how best this could be done.

The British and Malayan Govel'lllll.ents have informed the Sultan of - 18-

Brunei of the agreement they have reached and have made it c~ear that

they would welcome the inclusion of the State of Brunei in the new

Federation.!/ The London talks on Malaysia were joined b,y the Prime

Minister of Singapore, Mr. Lee Kuan Yew1 and his Finance Minister,

Mr. Goh Keng SWee.Y

In the meantime in July ~962, nineteen members of the Legislative

Assembly of Singapore, as well as members from five political parties,

nwnely, the Barisan Soci~is, the Worker's Party, the Liberal Socialist

Party 1 the Rakyat Party and the United Democratic Party 1 appeared as petitioners before the United Nations Special Committee of Seventeen

and expressed their concern that if the trans:f"er of Singapore to the

Federation would take place otherwise than through the free expression

of the wishes of the people of Singapore it would be contrary to

reso~ution 1514 (XV) of the United Nations General Assembly of 14

December 1960. They appea~ed to the United Nations through the Special Committee to: :send an observer to Singapore to

ascertain the exact facts and to judge whether it was a matter for

!/ Commonwealth Survey, Vo~. 8, No. 181 p. 718. y Ibid., p. 723. - 19 -

intervention by the United Nations. A memorandum attached to the peti- tion set out the details of their case.

The petitioners also stated that the Government had originally indicated its intention of placing the constitutional proposals before the people for acceptance or rejection, but the referendum bill had been amended in such a way that the electorate would be compelled to choose one of the follo~dng alternatives: a) the constitutional arrangements set out in Command Paper 33; Y b) complete and uncondi- tional merger as a State on an equal basis with the other eleven States in accordance with the constitutional documents of the Federation; c) entry into Malaysia on terms no less favourable than those for the Borneo territories.

The petitioners claimed that only the first alternative was cl.ear whil.e 11the l.ast two alternatives were merely a fagade". The referendum bill compelled the voter to vote but refused him the democratic right to register dissent.~

----- y See page 8 above. ~ A/5238, P• 513. - 20-

In order to explain the position of the Singapore Government concerning a referendum to be held in Singapore on the question of its association with the Federation, the Prime Minister of Singapore and his Finance Minister, Goh Keng Swee, appeared in the Committee of seventeen and these two petitioners stated inter alia that Singapore was dependent on the Federation of Malaya for its water supply and its trade. All political parties "had always condemned the British for the separation of Singapore from the rest of Malaya". The petitioners further declared that the Government of the Federation of Malaya had a complete mandate to car~J out the referendun. on lines which had already been approved by the Singapore Legislative Assembly. The constitutional proposals for the transfer of sovereignty over Singapore to the Federation had been published on 15 November 1961 and were as he said accepted by the Legislative Assembly by 33 votes to none on

6 December 1961. The Prime Minister asserted that there was no question of Singapore citizens becoming second-class citizens of the Federation; complete equality of citizenship status between Singapore and Federation citizens would be written into the new Constitution. In conclusion, -21-

the Prime Minister said that his Government was lawfully elected; its

term of office would run until August 1964, and it had complete

authority except in defence, external affairs and internal security;

the merger, he asserted, was an 11inevitablen historical developnent

and followed the sequence of events leading to the liquidation of

colonialism in South-East Asia. Separate irriependenoe for Singapore

was 11a political and economic absurdity" Y ... 11The real issue was not

whether the people wanted merger but what form it should take. 11 Y Mr. Lee Kuan Yew in a second statement before the Committee of

seventeen, added that it was not true to say that the merger would

transfer sovereignty over Singapore from the United Kingdom to the

Federation of Malaya. Sovereignty over Singapore and over Brunei,

Sarawak and North Borneo would be transferred to the new Federation

of Malaysia when its first Parliament met.J/

The Singapore Government, led by Mr. Lee, was formed by the People's

Action Party, a democratic socialist organization, which has been in

power since the general election of 1959. This Government's policy was 11to build up among the local. Chinese a loyalty to the State of

Singapore and to combat communism". The ultimate aim for the Govern- ment was some form of union of Singapore with the Federation of Malaya.

There was a sharp reaction from the extreme left wing of Mr. Lee' s party.

Commonwealth Survey, Vol. 8, No. 18, p. 723. A/5238, P• 521. A resum6 of the petitioners' statements is contained in A/5238, PP• 508-530. - 22-

A revolt against the People's Action Party's leadership was raised~

a group led by 1-'lr. Lim Chin Siong, who criticized M:r. Lee for not being sufficiently anti-colonial and described the proposed merger ''as an imperialist take-over bid." Support for this line emerged fran within the party and several members of the Legislative Assembly left the People's Action Party to for.m a new party, the Barisan Socialis (Socialist Front) which has consistently opposed merger on the terms agreed between the Prime Ministers of Singapore and the Federation of Malaya.11

The People's Action Party which won 43 of the 51 seats in the Legislative Assembly in the 1959 election had now lost its absolute majority, but continued in office with the support of independent and right-wing elements in the opposition. The allocation of seats in the Legislative Assembly at that time was:~ People's Action Party (PAP) 25 Barisan Socialis 13 Singapore People's Alliance 5 United Malays National Organization (tMNO) 3 United People's Party 2 Workers 1 Party 1 Independents 2

On 1 September 1962, a referendum was held in Singapore regarding the proposals for the Island's entry into the Federation of Malaysia

1/ Camnonwealth Survey, Vol. 8, No. 18, p. 723. ~ ~., p. 724. - 23-

in 1963 as a State with a wide degree of auton~. Three types

of merger were put before the voters and the results were as

follows:lf

Alternative A. Merger under the te:nns of the Government 1 s White Paper.Y 397,626 votes

Alternative B. "Unconditional merger" with the

Federation on the ~e te:nns as the eleven existing States of the

Federation of Malaya. 91 422 votes

Alternative C. Merger on te:nns 11no less favourable than the merger conditions for the three Borneo Territories • u 7,911 votes

l/ Camnonwealth Survey, Vol. 8, No. 20, p. 806. y See page 8. -24-

Altogether more than 560,000 votes were cast in the referendum out

of an electorate of 625,000. There were 144,077 blank papers. The

Government announced when the provisions of the Referendum Bill were

published that blank papers would be considered to be an endorsement

of the most popular alternative. A campaign was mounted by the opposi­

tion Ba.risan Socialis Party to induce voters to cast blank papers.!/

Reservations of' the Government of the Philippines

On 12 December 1962, during the seventeenth session of the General

Assembly, the representative of the Philippines expressed the reserva-

tions of the Government of the Philippines with regard to the transmission

of information by the Government of the United Kingdom on the Territory

of North Borneo.

He recalled that sovereignty over the Territory had remained vested

in the Sultan of Sulu until that sovereignty had been ceded by the

Sultanate in favour of the Republic of the Philippines. The occupation

of the Territory, first by H:essrs. Overbeck and Dent, and later by the

British North Borneo Canpany, had been occupation by a lessee or an

administrator - not occupation by an owner or sovereign. The present • possession of the Territory by the United Kingdan Government, which had

succeeded the British North Borneo Company, was also possession by a

lessee or administrator - not possession by an owner or sovereign.~ Jj CamtiUiiWea:rtn survey, Vol. S, No. 20, p. S06. ~ A/C.4/SR.l420, p. 15. - 25-

He showed three documents originating fran the United Kingdom sources

(an instrument signed by the Sultan of Sulu, another' instrument signed

~Messrs. Overbeck and Dent, and a document signed by the head of the

United Kingdom Foreign Office) by which he intended to prove that

M:essrs. Overbeck and Dent, and the British North Borneo Company which had succeeded them, had been exercising governmental powers which had been delegated to them ~ the Sultan of Sulu, sovereignty remaining vested in the Sultan. The United Kingdom Government, which claimed to have acquired sovereign rights from 1he British North Borneo Company in an instrument called 11 Agreement for the Transfer of Borneo Sovereign

Rights", had in reality succeeded only to the leasehold rights of the

British North Borneo Company. The United Kingdom Government was there- fore exercising governmental powers in North Borneo only' as an adminis­ trator of the Sultan of Sulu, in whom sovereignty had remained vested.!/

Consequently, according to the Foreign Office statement of 1882, the British North Borneo Company had had no governmental power not delegated to it by the Sultan of Sulu. l·ioreover, in granting the Company a Royal charter the United Kingdom Government had not vested it with governmental powers. It followed that, when the British North ·Borneo

Company had transferred its rights to the United Kingdom Government on lJ A/C .4/SR.l420, p. 15. A more detailed description of these documents is cmtained in this summary record. - 26-

10 June 1946, the British Crown had acquired only the powers delegated by the Sultan of Sulu, who had retained sovereignty over the Territory)J In the usual manner the representative of the United Kingdom reserved his right in respect of that question;~/

}.j A/C.4/SR.l420, pp. 15-16. y A/C.4/SR.l420, p. 17. - 27 -

The British Government maintains that the British North Borneo

Company transferred and ceded to Britain all their rights, powers and interests in North Borneo, which became a Crown colony in 1946. The

North Borneo Government has continued to make the annual payments to the heirs of the Sultan of Sulu, although the Sultanate itself was abolished in 1936. The Philippines belonged to Spain at the time of the original cession of territory by the Sultan of Sulu. Spain abandoned all claims of sovereignty over the territories of the mainland ot' Borneo in a protocol of 1885. After the conquest of the Philippines by the United

States in 1898, Spain ceded to the United States the sovereignty of the entire Philippine archipelago, comprehending the islands lying within a line which excluded Borneo and adjacent islands. The British position in

North Borneo was recognized by the United States in an Anglo-American

Boundary Convention of 1930. This convention was cited in the proclamation of indepetrlence and the new constitution of the Philippines in 1946.1/

'!he British Government therefore resists any claim to part of North

Borneo, whether advanced by the Philippine Government of by private per- scns in the Philippines, both on the basis or their legal rights and in the interests of the people of the territor,y.a/

Developments in Brunei

On 8 December 1962 an attempt was made to overthrow the Government of Brunei. The action organized by the North Kalimantan National Army

!/ Comonwealth Survey, Vol. 8, No. 18, p. 722. ?} Ibid. - 2S-

Tentera Nasional Kalimantan Utara) under the leadership of Sheikh A.M.

Azahari, leader of the Brunei People's Party (Parti Ra 1ayat) was stated

to have had as its objective the establishment of a unitary state of

Brunei, Sarawak and North Borneo, not connected with the proposed Federa­

tion of Malaysia)/

On S December 1962 the North Kalimantan National Army attacked among

others the Palace near to Brunei Town. The Sultan, Sir Qnar Ali Saifuddin,

escaped to the Secretariat and requested the British Government, under the

1959 agreement for assistance in restoring law and order.Zf On receipt of

this request, British troops were dispatched by sea and air from Singapore.

Meanwhile in Manila, Sheikh Azahari, who had left Brunei several weeks

earlier, issued a manifesto in which he claimed that his Government was

fo:nned by and for the people of Sarawak, Brunei and North Borneo and that

it was not foreign-inspired. He further claimed to have been appointed

by the Sultan of Brunei as Prime Minister of the three Borneo territories.

It was the intention of the revoluntiona.ry government to seek recognition

of the world Powers and to apply for mEmbership in the United Nations. He

stated that closer economic, cultural and military relations would be

sought with the Philippines, and the new Government would wol.k for the

immediate materialisation of the idea of a confederation of Malaysia as

proposed b.Y President Macapagal, that is, a confederation of ¥Blaya, the

Philippines, Singapore, Sarawak, North Borneo and Brunei. Subsequent

!/ CoD1Jl¥)nwealth Survey, Vol. 9, No. 2, p. 97. y ~., p. 98. - 29 -

statements by Sheikh Azahari made it clear that his action was aimed

against the proposed Federation of ·fa.laysia.Y

The Sultan of Brunei disavowed the claims of Sheikh Azahari that he

had appointed him as Prime Minister. He issued a warrant for his arrest,

banned the Parti Ba 1ayat and made it clear the.t he would ask Great

Britain to keep troops in Brunei until peace had been fully restored.

The town of Brunei was then retaken.Y

On 14 December 1962 the Sultan amounced that "the revolt was

substantially over". However, it was apparent that some of the members

of the North Kalimantan National Army had withdrawn to the jungle and

continued resistance.lf

On 20 December 1962 the Sultan suspended the 1959 Constitution, dissolved the Legislative Council and the four District Councils, whose

elected members had all been members of the banned ~ Ra. 1ayat, and appointed a new l!mergency Council consisting of himself as President, four ex-officio members, including the British High Commissioner, and ten members to be appointed by the Sultan.!!/

In London, in the House of Commons the Secretary of State .for the

Colonies on 10 December 1962 stated that so .far as Britain was concerned the attitude o.f Brunei towards the Malaysian Federation was a matter .for the Brunei Goverrunent to decide on its own. So .far, however, the Govern- ment o.f Brmei had not reached any conclusion on the matter, though

1::/ Commonwealth Survey, Vol. 9, No. 2, p. 98. y ~. l/ Ibid., pp. 98-99. !J/ Ibid., P• 99. - 30-

consultations with the Govermnent of Malaya had been in progress for sane

months)J

The Government of the Federation of ~al~a indicated its support for the

British action ~ an immediate offer of police personnel for service in Brunei.~

At the end of January 1963 the newly created Brunei Alliance Party replaced

the banned Parti Ra. 1ayat. It is comprised of small political parties and

organizations in Brunei. The President-elect is Tuan Haji Hasbollah. He

announced that the party would work wholeheartedly towards Brunei's entr,y into

the proposed Federation of i:iialaysia.'j/

In reply to a question in the British House of Commons on 20 December 1962

as to whether there was any definite indication of Indonesian support for the

Brunei rebellion, the Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies said that

"there were indications, although they were not yet confirmed, that the North

Kalimantan National Army received a certain amount of military training outside

the country. We have noted with concern the expressions of sympathy with the

North Ka]jmantan National Army which had been made by Indonesian le~ders. They

seemed to have been based on a mistaken view of the nature and purposes of

Mr. Azahari's attempted coup, which seemed to have been regarded as a sort of anti-colonial uprising, which it certainly was not .'JJ/

On 1 February 1963, the Indonesian army commander, Major General Ahmad Jani

said his troops were only waiting for the order to aid the Borneo rebels •.2/

1/ Camnonwealth Survey, Vol. 9, No. 2, p. 99. ~ Ibid., p. 100. JJ "The Asian Student", 2 February 1963. !JJ Canmonwealth Survey, Vol. 9, No. 2, p. 100. 2/ (A.P.) ''Washington Post", 14 February 1963. - 31 -

On 7 February 1963, it was announced that the British Protectorate of

Brunei would join the projected Federation of Malaysia in 1963. The announce-

ment was made in Kuala Lumpur by the legal adviser to the ruler of Brunei

who was at that time in Kuala Lumpur for talks with the Malayan Government

on the terms of Brunei's entry into the Federation of Malaysia.

It was reported that the announcement of the Sultan would provoke

new outbursts from Indonesia and those who oppose the Malaysian Federation.!/

On 11 February 1963, Mr. Subandrio, the Indonesian Foreign lt1inister1 said at a press conference convened especially for overseas newsmen at his

hane in Jakarta that the establishment of "Greater Malaysia" could lead

to armed conflict. He qualified this forecast by adding: "I do not

mean war but incidents - incidents of physical ~onfiict. 11 This

"physical conflict" would be almost unavoidable unless the Federation of

Malaya changed its "hostile attitude" towards Indonesia. 1'-i:r. Subandrio

told also the news conference that Indonesia's policy towards Malays was

one of full opposition short of war. He said that his country was firmly

opposed to the inclusion of the three Borneo territories into the

proposed Federation. He added: "You can imagine what will happen if we

have a COJIDllon land frontier with a federation that is hostile towards us."

He wondered whether the plan of Prime Minister Tengku Abdul Rahman was

part of the international conspiracy aimed at Indonesia. The Malayan

Prime !iinister's past attitude towards Indonesia raised, he said, the

question of whether it has ex:pansicnist desires. He charged that during

the 1958 Indonesian colonels' revolt, Tengku Abdul Rahman gave the rebels

"every kind of support" and that there was sane indication that it was his

11 !/ "Washington Post 1 8 February 1963. - 32-

intention to incorporate Sumatra into 1-:fala.ya ·• Mr. Subandrio asserted

that Indonesia had no expansionist desires.

In reply to l.fr. Subandrio's statemerxt, a spokesman of the Malayan

Government in Kuala Lumpur, declining to make specific comments on the

statement, said only that it was very serious.

Mr. Lee Kua.n-yew, Prime Minister of Singapore, stated that 11 Dr.

Subandrio made it clear to me that Indonesia's opposition is not against

Malaysia as such but against certain attitudes and circumstances which he

fears might be carried into Malaysia. I told Dr. Subandrio that if

Indonesian opposition was directed against ~~aysia as such, then the difficulties could not be resolved. I also said that Singapore was with the Federation of Malaya on the question of Malaysia and that we would stand solidly wi.. th the people of the }t'ederation of Malaya and of the

Borneo territories because we believe Greater l.fa.laysia to be in the best interests of all our people~!/ On 13 February 1963, :V.talaya ordered a military buildup in view of the growing military strength of Indooesia ''threatening the projected Federa- tion of ll..a.laysia~' Tengku Abdul Raza.k, Deputy Prime Minister and Defence l.fi.ni.ster, annomced the buildup after a Cabinet meeting called to consider a warning from Indonesian Foreign Minister Suba.ndri.o. Tengku Abdul Razak said that the Indonesian line was "a threat to the security of the country11 and that the Government would spare no cost to defend the nation. He also announced that the Government would spend substantial sums in the next few lJ (A.P.) ''Washington Post", 12 February 1963, and "Christian Science Monitor 11 , 13 February 1963. - .3.3 -

years to buy planes, ships and new equipnent for the nation•s tiny anned

forces. Military manpower W>uld also be increased)/

The chief of Britain 1s Imperial General Staff, General Richard Hull,

who was visiting l~laya at the end of' February 196.3 to study a military

buildup, said: ''We have the ability to meet any likely threat to Malaysia and Britain has every intention of honouring its treaty obligations. nY At the beginning of March 196.3, the External Affairs ltlnister of

Australia said that the Federation of Malaysia was primarily the concern of Britain. However, Australia, apart from its interest in the prosperity and well-being of the Federation of Malaya and its friendship for a close

Commonwealth neighbour, had a direct concern in the stability of the area.

He also stated that "Australia believes that the establishment of the

Federation of Malaysia will contribute to the stability of the region and that it deserves support as a major act of orderly decolonization. 11

Concurrent with its decision to support the Federation of' Malaysia, - the Australian Government has announced the dispatch of a strong naval force to South-East Asian waters where this force would participate in joint exercises with ships of allied countries. On this score the Australian

Prime Minister, Mr. Robert G. Menzies, said that the Cabinet had closely examined aspects of Australian security in relation to the developing situation in South-East Asia)/

The opposition Australian Labour Party, however, has declared i tsel.t opposed to any Australian commitment to help defend Malaya or the projected

1/ (A.P.) "Washington Post", JA February 1963. y "Christian Science Monitor", 22 February 196.3, and ''Washington Post" (A.P.) of JA February 196.3. Y "Christian Science Monitor", 7 March 1963. - 34-

1.-'ederation of :V.iB.laysia. The leader of the Australian Labour Party, Mr.

Arthur A. Calwell, said that Australia was not a p9.rty to the British-

Malayan defence treaty and he was satisfied t~t no conmitment could be

made at present to defend the Federation of .t-fal.aya militarily in any

dispute between the Federation of Malaya and Indonesia. He proposed that

a~ disagreement between the Federation of Malaya, Indonesia and the

Philippines should be settled within the United Nations and without

recourse to war)/

Contrary to the views of Great Britain and Australia, Indonesia

opposes the creation of the Federation of l~aysia for two main reasons

cited in Jakarta on 18 February 1963 by the chief of staff of the Indonesian

armed forces, General Abdul Haris Nasution. General Nasution stated that:

(1) Nalaysia would pose a military threat to Indonesia because it could

be used as a base for foreign domination of South-East Asia; (2) it would

constitute a potential economic threat and be a 11 haven for economic

subversion" of Indonesia, involving extensive smuggling and Ulegal bartering across the common border with Indonesia. General Nasution charged that such trade has recently deprived Indonesia of between 20 and 30 percent of its annual export income. He stressed that Indonesia was making no territo rial claim in regard to North Borneo and added: 1'We are anti- colonial with all the consequences of that and therefore we back fully the North Borneo revolution. nY

'!/ "Christian Science Monitor", 13 March 1963. y ~., 22 February 1963. - 35-

The Philippines and Indonesia contend that Greater Malaysia

represents perpetuation of colonialism under cover by Britain "and its

stooges". This suggestion is greatly resented by the Prime Minister of the Federation of Malaya, Tengku Abdul Rahman lito himself is expected to go the the Philippines in ¥arch for talks about the future of the

Association of South-East Asia. Tengku Abdul Rahman has been the main target of anti-J.falaysia criticism. He has thrown some back \>d. th considera- ble accuracy and described himself as decidedly misunderstood at the present time. The task of dispelling this misunderstanding and paving the way for the Tengku 1s visit to Manila is being undertaken by the Deputy

Prime Minister and Minister of Defence of the Federation of Malaya.

Also, Dr. Subandrio, the F'oreign l.finister of Indonesia, is visiting the Philippines in March 1963 and is said to have talks with Dr. Emmanuel

Pelaez, Vice-President and Foreign Minister of the Philippines, in order to prevent the fannation of the Federation of Malaysia.!!

The report of the Inter-Governmental Committee on constitutional arrangements for North Borneo and Sarawak, set up after the Cobbold

Commission had reported last summer, was published towards the enci of

February 1963. Under the chairmanship of Lord Lansdowne, ani including representatives from Halaya, North Borneo, and Sarawak, the committee held meetings in Jesselton, Kuching, and Kuala Lumpur from last August

!/ "Christian Science Monitor", 7 March 1963. .. •

- 36-

until the end of December. Soon after the committee had assembled the

Legislative Councils of North Borneo and Sarawak adopted motions welcoming

in principle the formation of ~~aysia by August 31, 1963.

The Federation of Malaysia will comprise Malaya, Singapore,

(North Borneo), Sarawak and Br'Wlei, if it agrees to join. A fonnal agree-

ment between Britain and the Malayan Government will Elll.body safeguards

for the Borneo territories in a constitution which will be based on the

present Malayan constitution. The report outlines the main amendments

which should be incorporated: they will be discussed by the Legislative

Councils of North Borneo and Sarawak before a draft agreement is drawn up.!/

In the lt,ederat.ion of l•fal.aya the opposition Rakyat Party proposed a

national referendum to decide whether J:~ayans support the proposed

Malaysia Federation. The Rakyat Party said that it opposed the plan of the

Tengku "because apart from being undemocratic in bringing about the Federa-

tion of Malaysia, the alliance Government of the proposed Federa.tion has no mandate from the people of Malaya to launch it. nY

In the middle of March 1963, the members of the opposition parties in the House of Representatives of the Federation of Malaya were joining

forces in an attempt to discourage the Government's plan for the establish-

ment of the Federation of l·1alaysia. The leader of this movement is Inche

Abdul Aziz Ishak, the former Minister of Agricul tu :re who \tBS dismissed from

that office recmtly by the Prime Minister of the Federation of lhlaya.

On ll l.farch 1963, Mr. Aziz was the chairman of a meeting that brought

together representatives of the Socialist Front, the People's Progress

!/ "The Times", 'Z7 February 1963. y "WashirJaton Post", 19 February 1963. •

' - 37 -

Party, the Pan-Malayan Islamic Party and the United Democratic Party.

Also, some independent members of the House of Representatives attended

the meeting. At this meeting, Mr. Aziz issued a four-point statement. which:

1. Reiterated objections to the methods employed by the governing

party of Malaya (the Alliance Party) in implementing the concept of a

greater Malaysia;

2. Declared that no importance should be attached to the recently

p.~blished intergovernmental report concerning inclusion in the project of

the colonies of British North Borneo and Sarawak since the findings had

come from "persons who were not truly and properly representative of the

people";

3. Called on the Governnent of the Federation of Nalaya not to form

a greater Malaysia until either the people of North Borneo, Sarawak and

Brunei had duly elected gover.nments or a referendum on the question of

joining could be held; and

4. Deplored the federal government's recent use of its powers for

the arbitrary arrest of some of the strongest opponents of the greater

Malaysia plan.-!/

'!/ "Christian Science Monitor", 14 March 1963.