MALAYSIA AND SINGAPORE: A DIFFERENT PATH. A view from history.

(excerpt From: Lee Kuan Yew. “One man's view of the world.”)

“Malaysia and Singapore emerged from colonialism at comparable levels of development and with largely similar legacies left behind by the British. But the two countries could not have picked more different paths after 1965. Malaysia chose to be a Malay-speaking country, while Singapore chose English and has forged a multiracial society. The concept of a Malay-speaking Malaysia will, over time, become more firmly established as Malays form an ever larger share of the population.

For nearly two years, when Singapore was part of Malaysia, I did my best to confront the race issue by leading others in a coalition that stood for a Malaysian Malaysia. But the opposition to our efforts was violent, sometimes literally so. It culminated in Singapore having to walk away from the federation on 9 August 1965.

Those from my generation had always believed that Singapore and Malaya were one. The British kept us as a separate colony after the war and we fought for a merger. The leaders of Malaya did not want us initially because the large number of Chinese in Singapore would have upset the overall racial mix. Eventually the British persuaded Tunku Abdul Rahman, Malaysia’s first prime minister, “that with the leftists gaining strength in our Chinese schools, the danger of Singapore going communist was simply too grave. He finally agreed to take us in along with Sabah and Sarawak, which had lower proportions of Chinese, to balance us.

But after we joined, the Tunku told me: “Your party should leave Malays in Malaysia alone.” We had three Malay-dominated constituencies in Singapore - in Geylang Serai, Kampong Kembangan and the Southern Islands - and he did not want us to reach out to constituencies in Malaya, which he considered Malay territory. But we could not abide by that. We had to go by the constitution, which did not say that it was a Malay Malaysia but a Malaysian Malaysia. “We went ahead and formed the Malaysian Solidarity Convention, which advocated a truly multiracial country. We persuaded parties from Sarawak, Penang and Ipoh to join. There were more than a few Malay representatives. As the convention gathered strength, the Tunku got upset and we were told that Singapore had to leave Malaysia or there would be bloodshed. Some within my Cabinet were opposed to leaving Malaysia, most notably Toh Chin Chye, then deputy prime minister. Toh was born in Ipoh and, for him, it went against the grain to get out. He wanted to see the Tunku. I encouraged him to do so. The Tunku refused to see him but wrote a letter indicating that he could no longer control the situation. “There is absolutely no other way out,” the Tunku wrote.’”

“Between 1963 and 1965, as prime minister of Singapore, I had to attend meetings of the Council of Rulers in Malaysia. The rulers who attended would all be Malays, dressed in uniforms and accompanied by their sword bearers. All the chief ministers had their traditional Malay dressed on and I was the sole exception. This was not mere symbolism. It was to drive home a point:” This is a Malay country. Never should you forget that.”