Chronology of Malaysia Independence

1400s Founding of Malacca by Parameswara.

1409 Chinese Admiral Cheng Ho arrives in Malacca.

1511 Malacca falls to the Portuguese.

1641 The Dutch take Malacca from the Portuguese

1786 The British occupy Penang.

1819 British occupy Singapore.

1824 Anglo-Dutch Treaty carves up Malay world into colonial spheres: Dutch cede Malacca to
British and keeps Riau.
1826 Singapore, Malacca Penang and Province Wellesley become Straits Settlements under
British control.
1840s The importance of tin increases, bringing an influx of Chinese tin miners to the western coast.
1841 James Brooke established as Rajah of Sarawak.

1914-18 World War I.

1941-45 Japanese conquest and occupation.
1945 British reoccupy Malaya.
1946 Malayan Union scheme introduced but is opposed, formation of United Malay National
Organisation (Umno); Sarawak and British North Borneo become Crown colonies.
1948 Malayan Union scheme abandoned; Federation of Malaya inaugurated.
1948-60 Communist uprising - The Emergency.
1952 Municipal elections in Kuala Lumpur; Umno and Malayan Chinese Association (MCA) parties
cooperate.
1953 Alliance coalition comprising Umno, MCA and Malayan Indian Congress (MIC) formed.

1955 First general elections in the peninsula; landslide win for the Alliance.
1956 Tunku Abdul Rahman leads Merdeka Mission to London to negotiate for independence.
1957 Malaya becomes independent, and the Union Jack is lowered for the last time. The Tunku,
named the Father of Independence, becomes the first prime minister of the Federation of
Malaya.
1960 The state of emergency ends.
1961 The Tunku proposes a political association called Malaysia that would include Malaya,
Singapore, North Borneo, Sarawak and Brunei.
1963 Creation of Malaysia without Brunei.

1965 Singapore leaves Malaysia and becomes an independent nation.

1970 Tun Abdul Razak takes office as the second Prime Minister of Malaysia, succeeding Abdul
Rahman.
1976 Tun Hussein Onn appointed as the third Prime Minister of Malaysia on Jan 15, a day after the
passing of Abdul Razak.
1981 Tun Hussein Onn stepped down and appointed Dato’ Seri Dr Mahathir Mohamad to take over
as Fourth Prime Minister

2003 Malaysia's longest-serving Prime Minister Dr Mahathir retires. He is succeeded by his deputy
Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi.

Related Links:
- Merdeka 50 Years Golden Anniversary
- Current Malaysian Prime Minister's Website
- Jalur Gemilang - National Flag of Malaysia

OPINION: Merdeka and Malaysia Day

Sunday, 08 April 2007 09:07AM
©The Sunday Star (Used
by permission)
Point of View by Tun Hanif Omar
We are celebrating our 50th Merdeka Day
a mere 21 weeks away, but there are still doubts about when Malaysia actually
gained independence from the British.
OUR 50th Merdeka Day is just 21 weeks
away. On this blessed day in 1957, the Federation of Malaya became independent
of Britain. Malayan soil was, for the first time since 1511, completely
independent!
On this great day of Aug 31 in 1963, against the imploration
of our first Prime Minister, Tunku Abdul Rahman for patience, Sabah and Sarawak
respectively and unilaterally declared their independence of Britain but in
“adherence to Malaysia” (Ghazali Shafie’s Memoir on the Formation of
Malaysia, p438).
The late President Wee Kim Wee of Singapore, then a young
Straits Times reporter, covered Sabah’s Merdeka Day and filed a report that,
from all the obvious evidence, it was a declaration of independence within
Malaysia.
Tunku Abdul Rahman and the parliament of independent Malaya
had agreed with Britain and the representative leaders of the British colonies
of Sabah, Sarawak and Singapore to establish the new federation of Malaysia in
1963 on Malaya’s Merdeka anniversary.
Both Sabah and Sarawak had held their elections with
“Malaysia” as a major issue and the pro-Malaysia parties had clearly won.
Singapore had had a referendum which overwhelmingly endorsed the plan for merger
with Malaya but, in the face of Philippine opposition and Indonesian hostility,
the protracted tripartite Maphilindo Summit, bringing together the Prime
Minister of Malaysia and the Presidents of the Philippines and Indonesia, was
held in Manila from July 31, 1963.
I was the youngest of five police officers attached to Tunku
on this occasion and felt privileged to listen to President D. Macapagal’s
Maphilindo speech and to observe President Soekarno at close hand on three
occasions, including once in Tunku’s suite which was under my charge.
At this summit, Malaya was forced to agree to subject the
date of establishing Malaysia to the finding of an ascertainment process by the
Secretary-General of the United Nations as to the true wishes of the peoples of
Sabah and Sarawak.
This agreement greatly dismayed the pro-Malaysia leaders of
the three colonial territories of Singapore, Sabah and Sarawak and, in the
event, Sabah and Sarawak unilaterally declared their independence in adherence
to Malaysia on Aug 31 and Singapore declared on the same day that “External
Affairs and Defence should be in the hands of Singapore” (ibid).
Thus, there is no question at all that Aug 31 is the correct
Merdeka anniversary for Malaysia and all its territories, including Sabah and
Sarawak. This is not to confuse it with Malaysia Day, which remains Sept 16.
This date was set when the UN Secretary-General indicated on
Aug 26 that he could possibly come out with his fact-finding report on Sept 14.
It could not be made ready earlier as Indonesia’s delaying tactics had forced
the UN team to postpone the start of its mission from Aug 22 to Aug 26.
Thus it was decided by Tunku and endorsed by his Cabinet that
Malaysia would be formed on Sept 16.
Apart from the Indonesian and Philippines opposition to
Malaysia, three other events could have had a fateful effect on Malaysia.
One was the Kelantan government’s opposition to the concept.
They took their case to the Federal Court for a ruling that, if my memory is
correct, the decision to establish Malaysia was ultra-vires as the state was not
consulted. In the event, the Federal Court dismissed the application on Sept
14.
Another event, so graphically described by Tun Ghazali at
p440 - 444 of his “memoir” was a livid Tunku’s decision on Aug 24 to exclude
Sarawak from Malaysia because the British colonial officials had prevailed upon
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Iban leaders to demand the post of Sarawak Governor whilst also keeping the post
of Chief Minister, thus reneging on an earlier understanding that for the first
two years, the post of either the Chief Minister’s or Governor’s should go to a
Malay if the other was given to an Iban.
Apparently, all the Malayan ministers except for Tun Razak
backed the Tunku, who was determined that if the Iban leaders could not keep
their side of a bargain so early in the day, then they were not worth the
trouble.
A participant in the event, Tun Ghazali Shafie, observed
that, in all of this, “... Razak made a firm stand. He said he could not imagine
a situation without Sarawak in Malaysia ... (He thought that the problem could
still be resolved.) Razak looked glum ... I could not help thinking that here
was a man who was truly committed to Malaysia and I could see that he would have
walked out of the meeting if there was pressure on him.”
Razak’s stand emboldened Ghazali, perhaps the only
non-minister present, to ask for permission to try and resolve the problem
within three hours. How he did this makes for riveting reading and is a case for
intimate bonding in diplomacy. In the event, the Iban leaders fell in line and
the crisis was averted.
A third event was related over television in the latter part
of 1980s by the late Chief Minister of Sabah Tun Datu Mustapha Datu Harun, who
was also the state’s first governor.
His interview was given to deny the claim by certain Sabah
quarters then that a reluctant Sabah was courted by a persistent Malayan suitor
to join Malaysia. He claimed that, on the eve of Malaya’s independence, he and
Donald Stephens (later known as Tun Fuad Stephens, Sabah’s first chief minister)
decided to ask Tunku to take Sabah into the new Federation.
Tunku declined on the ground that he already had enough on
his plate for the moment but that he could possibly reconsider later.
Almost four years later, Tunku floated the “Malaysia” idea in
a speech at the Foreign Correspondents Club in Singapore. It was greatly
welcomed by Mustapha and Fuad Stephens.
Thus, when Sabah declared its independence in Malaysia on Aug
31 instead of accepting Tunku’s advice to wait for the UN report and to make the
declaration on Sept 16, an angry Tunku rebuked Mustapha and told him that Sabah
need not join Malaysia on Sept16.
Tun Mustapha said he rushed to see Tunku and begged him to
understand the situation: the people of Sabah were determined to be in Malaysia;
they were not prepared to leave their fate to the outcome of the UN findings;
that all preparations including banners and bunting had been made to celebrate
their joining Malaysia on Aug 31as previously agreed, and Sabah was so large
with many parts so inaccessible that it was impossible for Sabah leaders to call
off the planned celebrations in time.
Obviously, his pleas and arguments melted Tunku’s heart.
Tun Ghazali and Tun Mustapha’s accounts have further helped
us to understand our great past leaders much better. Ghazali Shafie’s Memoir
on the Formation of Malaysia should be compulsory reading for students in
Malaysian history.
It helps us to understand the interplay of national and
regional forces which is still relevant today.
It also helps us to realise how much we owe this towering
former civil servant and Malaysia’s first diplomat for our existence as a nation
we know today.
It would be a well-deserved tribute to our great leaders of
old in Malaya, Sabah and Sarawak if we can get our act together towards more
progressive nation-building. Let’s have a forward movement all the time. Let’s
avoid all the unnecessary regressions. Let’s look at each other as full-fledged
fellow Malaysians.
Let’s heed His Highness Raja Dr Nazrin Shah’s widely
acclaimed seven recommendations of the things we must do to enhance
nation-building.
But there is also the need for us to be able to communicate
with each other, otherwise we will be in a Babel-like endeavour.
As someone has said following a study and poll of Malaysia’s
young, in a country like Malaysia, it is imperative that we satisfy the need to
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communicate well at the international, national as well as ethnic levels.
Our education system should meet this requirement. Here is
where the new education programme, the Pelan Induk Pembangunan Pelajaran,
particularly its cluster schools programme, comes in. It is a timely renewal
programme for our education system.
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3. To understand the bilateral linkage between the United Kingdom and Malaysia, it
may be best to put in some historical perspective.

4. The United Kingdom, since the end of the Second World War has given up its
imperial role and many of its territories and dependencies have emerged as
 sovereign and independent nations.Malaysia is one of them. Today, the United
Kingdom is an integral part of the European Union, yet retaining its distinctive
identity. Malaysia since gaining independence on 31 August 1957 has developed
into a robust nation-state with a vibrant economy and a society characterised by
diversity in terms of ethnicity, language and religion. Since
independence, Malaysia has moved away from being a dual based plantation
and extractive economy, based on rubber and tin, to one that is varied and
vibrant with hydrocarbons, manufactured and agricultural items constituting its
export base.

5. A number of distinctive geopolitical and geo-economics factors distinguish

the United Kingdomfrom Malaysia. For one, the United Kingdom is a nuclear-
weapons state. This is reflected by the deterrent capability of the “Trident”.
Secondly, the United Kingdom is a member of the Permanent Five of the U.N.
Security Council having a veto power. Thirdly, the United Kingdom is an integral
element of the European Union, one of the largest economic and trading blocs.
And finally, as a corollary to the last statement is the fact that the United
Kingdom is the fifth largest in the global economy.

6. By contrast, Malaysia since its independence in 1957 has been actively involved
in the entire gamut of activities involved in nation-building. This has not always
been an easy or a happy experience. Nonetheless, I believe we have succeeded
in forging a viable nation-state out of a multitude of languages, races and
religious beliefs. Although Malaysia is a relatively small nation it was ranked as
the 19th among the top trading nations of the world by the World Trade
Organisation in 2006.

7. For almost a decade after independence, the most important bilateral relationship
that Malaysiahad was with the United Kingdom. And this bilateral linkage
provided the ‘cordon sanitaire’ of the British Royal Navy during the period of
Konfrontasi launched by President Sukarno of Indonesia. The Anglo-Malaysian
Defence Agreement guaranteed the viability of the emergent Malaysian
Federation when it was formed on 16 September 1963. Defence ties and
cooperation between the United Kingdom and Malaysia have been the “core”
element in the bilateral linkage between the two nations. Sandhurst and
Darthmouth were the points of excellence where we sent out military and naval
cadets to be shaped as officers and gentlemen. Today, the defence linkage is
symbolised by the Five Power Defence Arrangement, which include
also Singapore, Australiaand New Zealand.

8. Aside from the defence linkage, the system of government and law
that Malaysia inherited from the United Kingdom has served it well.
Parliamentary democracy based on the Westminstermodel and the common law
system has grown in the Malaysian social and political environment, with
appropriate modifications and change. Malaysia has had a system of governance
based on a coalition pattern known initially as the Alliance, which was
 transformed into the Barisan Nasional or the National Front, made up of fourteen
component political parties. Over a period of half a century, Malaysia has had fair
and free elections every four or five years in accordance with the federal
constitution.

……………

Independence and the Birth of Modern Malaysia

The Communist insurrection had the positive effect of spurring the movement for Malayan
independence, and in 1957 the federation became an independent state within the Commonwealth of
Nations and was admitted to the United Nations. The first prime minister was Tunku (Prince) Abdul
Rahman, the leader of the Alliance Party, a loose coalition of Malay, Chinese, and Indian parties. The
constitution guaranteed special privileges for Malays. In 1963 Singapore, Sabah, and Sarawak were
added to the federation, creating the Federation of Malaysia. Since Singapore has a large Chinese
population, the latter two states were included to maintain a non-Chinese majority. Brunei was also
included in the plan but declined to join. Malaysia retained Malaya's place in the United Nations and
the Commonwealth, and in 1967 it became one of the founding members of the Association of
Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

The new state was immediately confronted with the hostility of Indonesia, which described the
federation as a British imperialist subterfuge and waged an undeclared war against it. In the struggle
Malaysia received military aid from Great Britain and other Commonwealth nations. Hostilities
continued until President Sukarno's fall from power in Indonesia (1965). Nonviolent opposition came
from the Philippines, which claimed ownership of Sabah until early in 1978.

Malaysian Borneo (or East Malaysia) occupies the northern part of the island of Borneo, bordering Indonesia and
surrounding the Sultanate of Brunei. It consists of the states of Sabah and Sarawak and the federal territory
of Labuan.
The name "Malaysia" was adopted in 1963 when eleven states of the Federation of Malaya (Malay: ''Persekutuan
Tanah Melayu''), Singapore, Sabah and Sarawak formed a larger federation.[4] Singapore was expelled from the
federation in 1965 and subsequently became an independent country.[5]
Although politically dominated by the Malays, modern Malaysian society is heterogeneous, with
substantial Chineseand Indian minorities.[6] Malaysian politics have been noted for their allegedly communal nature;
[7]
the three major component parties of the Barisan Nasional each restrict membership to those of one ethnic group.
However, the only major intercommunal violence the country has seen since independence was the May 13 racial
riots of 1969 that occurred in the wake of an election campaign that was dominated by racial issues.[8]

………………..

British arrival

Britain established its first colony in the Malay peninsula in 1786, with the lease of the island of Penang to
the British East India Company by the Sultan of Kedah. In 1824, the British took control of Malacca following
the Anglo-Dutch Treaty of 1824 which divided the Malay archipelago between Britain and the Netherlands, with
Malaya in the British zone. In 1826, Britain established the crown colony of the Straits Settlements, uniting its three
possessions in Malaya: Penang, Malacca and Singapore. The Straits Settlements were administered under the East
India Company in Calcuttauntil 1867, when they were transferred to the Colonial Office in London.
During the late 19th century, many Malay states decided to obtain British help in settling their internal conflicts. The
commercial importance of tin mining in the Malay states to merchants in the Straits Settlements led to British
government intervention in the tin-producing states in the Malay Peninsula. British gunboat diplomacy was
employed to bring about a peaceful resolution to civil disturbances caused by Chinese gangsters, and the Pangkor
Treaty of 1874paved the way for the expansion of British influence in Malaya. By the turn of the 20th century, the
states of Pahang,Selangor, Perak, and Negeri Sembilan, known together as the Federated Malay States (not to
be confused with theFederation of Malaya), were under the ''de facto'' control of British Residents appointed to
advise the Malay rulers. The British were "advisers" in name, but in reality they exercised substantial influence over
the Malay rulers.

Malaysia Day celebration in 1963. (''Majulah Malaysia'' means Forward Malaysia in Malay.)

The remaining five states in the peninsula, known as the Unfederated Malay States, while not directly under rule
from London, also accepted British advisors around the turn of the 20th century. Of these, the four northern states of
Perlis, Kedah, Kelantan and Terengganu had previously been under Siamese control.
On the island of Borneo, Sabah was governed as the crown colony of British North Borneo, while Sarawak was
acquired from Brunei as the personal kingdom of the Brooke family, who ruled as White Rajahs.
Following the Japanese occupation of Malaya during World War II, popular support for independence grew.[11] Post-
war British plans to unite the administration of Malaya under a single crown colony called the Malayan
Union foundered on strong opposition from the Malays, who opposed the emasculation of the Malay rulers and the
granting of citizenship to the ethnic Chinese.[12] The Malayan Union, established in 1946 and consisting of all the
British possessions in Malaya with the exception of Singapore, was dissolved in 1948 and replaced by
the Federation of Malaya, which restored the autonomy of the rulers of the Malay states under British protection.
During this time, rebels under the leadership of the Communist Party of Malaya launched guerrilla operations
designed to force the British out of Malaya. The Malayan Emergency, as it was known, lasted from 1948 to 1960,
and involved a long anti-insurgency campaign by Commonwealth troops in Malaya.[13] Against this
backdrop, independencefor the Federation within the Commonwealth was granted on 31 August 1957.[14]