The Tunku on how "May 13" began

From his residence in Penang, 1972:

“It was clear to me as well as the police that in the highly charged political atmosphere after the police were forced to kill a Chinese political party worker on May 4th, 1969, something was bound to happen to threaten law and order because of the resentment towards the Government by the KL Chinese on the eve of the general election. This was confirmed at this man’s funeral on the 9th May when the government faced the most hostile crowd it had ever seen.

Therefore, when the opposition parties applied for a police permit for a procession to celebrate their success in the results of the general election, I was adamant against it because the police were convinced that this would lead to trouble.

I informed Tun Razak about this and he seemed to agree. Now, without my knowledge and actually “behind my back,” there were certain political leaders in high positions who were working to force me to step down as a PM. I don’t want to go into details but if they had come to me and said so I would gladly have retired gracefully.

Unfortunately, they were apparently scheming and trying to decide on the best way to force me to resign. The occasion came when the question of the police permit was to be approved.

Tun Razak and Harun Idris, the MB of the state of Selangor, now felt that permission should be given knowing fully well that there was a likelihood of trouble. I suppose they felt that when this happened they could then demand my resignation.

To this day I find it very hard to believe that Razak, whom I had known for so many years, would agree to work against me in this way. Actually, he was in my house as I was preparing to return to Kedah and I overhead him speaking to Harun over the phone saying that he would be willing to approve the permit when I left. I really could not believe what I was hearing and preferred to think it was about some other permit. In any case, as the Deputy Prime Minister in my absence from KL, he would be the Acting PM and would override my objection. Accordingly, when I was in my home in Kedah, I heard over the radio that the permit had been approved.

It seems as though the expected trouble was anticipated and planned for by Harun and his UMNO Youth. After the humiliating insults hurled by the non-Malays, especially the Chinese, and after the seeming loss of Malay political power to them, they were clearly ready for some retaliatory action. After meeting in large numbers at Harun’s official residence in Jalan Raja Muda near Kampong Bahru and hearing inflammatory speeches by Harun and other leaders, they prepared themselves by tying ribbon strips on their foreheads and set out to kill Chinese. The first hapless victims were two of them in a van opposite Harun’s house who were innocently watching the large gathering. Little did they know that they would be killed on the spot.

The rest is history. I am sorry but I must end this discussion now because it really pains me as the Father of Merdeka to have to relive those terrible moments. I have often wondered why God made me live long enough to have witnessed my beloved Malays and Chinese citizens killing each other.”

The REAL Story of May 13 (Part 1)

This article by Raja Petra was first published in Harakah on 24 September 1999.

UMNO is at it again! They are going round the country saying that keADILan and PAS have allowed the National Mosque to be used by non-Muslims to attack Muslims. UMNO politicians and Pusat Islam officials have likened the non-Muslims to “unclean” people because of their pork-eating and liquor-drinking so they should not have been allowed into the mosque.

Maybe these narrow-minded people have not noticed the daily busloads of foreign tourists visiting the National Mosque as part of their itinerary? Have these foreign (non-Muslim) tourists been screened whether they eat pork or drink liquor before being allowed into the mosque? I bet not!

UMNO adopted this very dangerous strategy once, 30 years ago, back in 1969, which resulted in the infamous May 13 racial riots. Now they are doing it again. It was a very narrow-minded and shortsighted strategy then. It still is now -- maybe even more so now seeing that we have entered the borderless cyber age and are about to enter a new millennium.

Race and religion should no longer be used to separate Malaysians in the divide-and-rule policy of the Barisan Nasional government. The Malays, Chinese and Indians must protest strongly and reject this outdated racial politics that is extremely dangerous and can disrupt the peace and stability of this multi-racial, multi-religious country of ours. UMNO is saying one thing to the Malays, and the opposite to the non-Malays. This is the height of hypocrisy.

Do any of you know the REAL story behind May 13 -- how is started, why it was started, and who started it? If not, then let me take you down memory lane.

Contrary to what the (local) history books try to tell us, May 13 was NOT about Malay and Chinese rivalry. It may have eventually ended that way, but that definitely was not how it started out. May 13 was basically a Malay political struggle with racialism used as a camouflage.

To understand May 13, we need to go back to the pre-Merdeka days to see how independence was achieved and how the first leaders of independent Malaya were groomed to take over running the country.

The British knew that, one day, they would have to grant independence to Malaya. India, Indonesia, the Philippines, and many countries around this region had already gained independence from their colonial masters. In 1946, the independence movement in Malaya had also started, giving birth to the first Malay political party, UMNO. It was a matter of time before the British would have to give in to the demands of the Malays.

The British thought that the best way to grant independence to Malaya, yet still have some control over their old colony, would be to groom the leaders who would take over and educate them the British way so that they would soon become more English than the Englishman.

In the mid 1940s, the British doors were thrown open to the Malays and the first batch of Malays was brought over to England to receive an English education. These were mostly the sons of the elite and royalty -- Tengku Abdul Rahman, Tun Razak, and many more future leaders of Malaya. Tengku Rahman was definitely given special treatment by the British to

the extent he was the only student in Cambridge history ever allowed to own a car on campus (everyone else rode bicycles). He drove a MG sports car and spent his years enjoying the lifestyle of the rich and famous.

Eventually these young graduates of an English education were brought back to Malaya and given government posts as part of their training to one day take over the reins of power. As an example Tengku became a District Officer in Kedah, a post normally reserved for the "white man".

Needless to say, these English educated Malays enjoyed all the trappings of England including cricket, rugby, tea-at-four, brandy-after-dinner, and so on, not to mention a day at the dog races.

Eventually, Merdeka was won and, in 1957, the local Malays took over running the government. But it was merely a changing of the skin colour. The management style remained the same. It was Merdeka without losing the English influence. In fact, as mentioned earlier, the Malays of this era tended to be more English than even the Englishmen.

The REAL Story of May 13 (Part 2)

This article by Raja Petra was first published in Harakah on 24 September 1999.

It was now twelve years after Merdeka and the "young Turks" in UMNO were getting restless and wanted a change of leadership. These young Turks such as Hussein Onn and Dr Mahathir Mohamad had no sentimental attachments to the British, as they were educated in India and Singapore respectively. They were also angry that Tengku Abdul Rahman surrounded himself with Chinese businessman.

Mahathir made this point very clear in his letter to the Tengku which goes as follows:

"You have become so powerful, both by virtue of your office and by popular acclaim, that UMNO has become subservient to you. UMNO is being held together, not because the members share your ideas on politics, but through a system of patronage and disguised coercion based on Government rather than party authority.

A feeling of power normally grips those who wield patronage, a feeling that they can mould and shape people and opinions any way they please. The leaders of UMNO, the senior partners of the Alliance Government, have succumbed to this disease and, believing that they no longer need to heed the opinions of their supporters, they disregard them at every turn.

Laws have been hurriedly passed without prior consultation with the representatives who have had to "sell" these laws to the people. Tax innovations have been made and discarded with complete disregard for the disrupting effect on the public. In the main, Parliamentary sittings are regarded as a pleasant formality which afford members an opportunity to be heard and quoted, but which have absolutely no effect on the course of the Government. The sittings are a concession to a superfluous democratic practice. Off and on, this strength is used to change the constitution. The manner, the frequency, and the trivial reasons for altering the constitution have reduced this supreme law of the nation to a useless scrap of paper.

Your Ministers and the Cabinet are vested with this decision-making authority. It is obvious that only the most capable and experienced should be made Ministers and be in the Cabinet. But independentMalaysia has chosen to treat membership of the Cabinet as a reward for loyalty to party chiefs and acceptability to the Prime Minister. Once appointed, no amount of dereliction of duty could affect the position of a Minister. On the other hand, even if the Minister performs well, failure to remain on good terms with the Prime Minister means removal from the Ministry.

Your Government of mediocre people is bereft of ideas, is unable to understand the limits of their authority, and is generally unable to rule. All the while, however, your Government is busy on devices to perpetuate itself. These devices are so transparent and so lacking in subtlety that they achieve just the opposite effect.

May I remind you, Merdeka has brought power and wealth to the new Malay elite. Politics is found to be the panacea. It provides a shortcut to everything. It makes possible the attainment of positions of immense power. These Malays are in a position to acquire riches.

At first, this might seem grossly unfair. These few Malays - for they are still only a very few - have waxed riches not because of themselves, but because of the policy of a Government supported by a huge majority of poor Malays. It would seem that the efforts of the poor Malays have gone to enrich a select few of their own people. The poor Malays themselves have not gained one iota. With the existence of the few rich Malays, at least the poor Malays can say that their fate is not entirely to serve the rich non-Malays. From their point of view of racial ego, and this ego is still strong, the unseemly existence of Malay tycoons is essential.

The various races in Malaysia are differentiated not merely by ethnic origin, but also by many other characteristics. These characteristics are important. How these characteristics develop is another matter, but when races compete in a given field, these characteristics play an extremely important role. The Jews, for example are not merely hook-nosed, but understand money instinctively.

The possession of these characteristics means little until different races come into contact with each other. Jewish stinginess and financial wizardry gained them the commercial control of Europe and provoked an anti-Semitism, which waxed and waned throughout Europe through the ages.

The first thing that comes to mind is that the vast majority of Malays are feudalistic and wish to remain so. A revolution, which starts off by preaching the destruction of the established monarchical order, will therefore fail. It will not win the support of the majority of orthodox Malays. In any case, the monarch has done no real harm to the Malays or to anyone else. The maintenance of the system is no doubt costly, but being separated from power, the ruler cannot constitute a tyranny. Besides, aMalaysia without rulers would mean the complete eclipse of the Malays. It is the rulers who have in the past furnished and continued to present the Malay character of Malaysia. Remove them, and the last vestige of traditional Malaysia would disappear. It is essential therefore that the monarchy remains.

To take on an adversary when it seems to be beyond one's capacity is courageous. To calculate and assess one's chances first is to exhibit cowardice. Time and again this inability or unwillingness to measure the odds against them has led to defeat and disaster for the Malays. The courageous or brave Malay is usually foolhardy, and because he is likely to do things without thinking of the consequences, the average Malay treats him with fear and respect. The ordinary man knows that it is not worthwhile to incur his displeasure and that it

is safer to let him have his own way. The ordinary man therefore represents the other extreme when principle is easily set aside for the sake of safety.

Even feudalism can be beneficial if it facilitates changes. The political Rajas of today can, therefore, institute change if they themselves are willing to change. Such a change would spread rapidly. If the indications are that there should be a change in the value system and ethical code, then the leaders can lead the way with the certainty that they will be followed by the masses. In a feudal society, if the leaders fail, then there is little hope for the masses."

The REAL Story of May 13 (Part 3)

This article by Raja Petra was first published in Harakah on 24 September 1999.

The move to push Tunku Abdul Rahman aside had started. They needed something to trigger off some form of resentment against the government. They needed the Malays to rise, and what better platform to exploit than a racial platform?

Prior to that, 11 Chinese prisoners were sentenced to death for killing a Malay prison warden in Pudu Jail. This was subsequently turned into a Malay-Chinese issue.

The Malays wanted the 11 Chinese punished. The Chinese wanted their death sentence commuted. And demonstrations were held in the Chinese dominated areas around Kuala Lumpur to pressure the government to pardon the 11. In one large demonstration outside Pudu Jail, the riot police had to be called in the break up the demonstration with teargas. That was my first experience with teargas, and I was only 19 then.

The government had no choice but to back down, thereby angering the Malays.

In another incident, some Chinese demonstrated in front of the United States Information Service (USIS) office and one demonstrator was shot dead by a panicking Malay policeman -- interpreted as another Malay-Chinese thing.

The Chinese wanted a funeral procession but the police would not grant them permission as they knew it would attract a huge crowd and the funeral would be turned into a demonstration instead. Tun Razak, however, told the police to grant them permission and ordered the police off the streets. The resulting "giant" parade built up tensions further.

The May 1969 General Elections were held soon after and the Alliance Party won only 40% of the votes resulting in it losing its two-thirds majority in Parliament. It also lost a couple of states to the opposition plus its two-thirds majority in others.

The opposition parties held "victory parades" which turned into a mud-slinging and name-calling session. The Malays were now really angry and decided to hold a victory parade of their own. Dato Harun, the then Chief Minister of Selangor, was given the task of managing this "event".

On May 13, the entire cabinet withdrew to Frazers Hill while the Malays prepared for trouble. People in the top echelon of the government and commerce were tipped off to get out of town or go home early and, by 3.00pm, the city was quite deserted of the elite except for the unknowing rakyat.

That same evening, racial riots exploded. Parliament was dissolved, thereby saving the Alliancegovernment that no longer had a majority in Parliament, and power was transferred to Deputy Prime Minister Tun Abdul Razak under the National Operations Council (NOC).

The Tunku was now powerless.

Mahathir then increased his attacks on the Tunku using race as his platform. He also called for MCA's expulsion from the Alliance to "punish" the Chinese. Instead, Dr Mahathir was expelled from Umno as the Utusan Malaysia newspaper report of 6 June 1969 reveals:

KUALA LUMPUR 5 June - Some leading members of UMNO's Supreme Council have voiced their support for the decision by MCA leadership to exclude themselves from the Cabinet. Among them are Tan Sri Syed Jaafar Albar, Dr. Mahathir bin Mohamad and Syed Nasir bin Ismail.

In a meeting with Utusan Malaysia, Tan Sri Syed Jaafar emphasised his disapproval of efforts made to ask MCA to re-enter the Cabinet.

"I do not agree with the way some Chinese chambers of commerce have stated their confidence and support of Tun Tan Siew Sin and their asking him to reconsider MCA's decision to withdraw from the Cabinet," he said.

According to him, the problem now was not the question of confidence towards Tun Tan Siew Sin as the MCA leader, but whether the Chinese supported the present policies of the Alliance.

"This is the matter that should be considered by these people who are making a big fuss about giving their support to Tun Tan Siew Sin today," he added.

Tan Sri Jaafar Albar also stated that the support given to Tun Tan Siew Sin by the Chinese Chambers of Commerce was not sufficient because support had to come from the majority of the Chinese population.

He stated that discussions about MCA's inclusion in the Cabinet should not be confined to the newspapers or to MCA alone because UMNO, as the backbone of the Alliance party, had not decided yet if MCA and MIC should be included in the Cabinet or if the Alliance should remain as it was then.

He said: "It is not only the duty of MCA to discuss this matter as if it is its own peculiar problem, but it should be the responsibility of all the Alliance leaders from the UMNO, MCA, and MIC."

However, he did not want to give his final views before the party met to discuss the matter.

Mahathir, who supported Tan Sri Syed Jaafar's statement, stressed that MCA leaders had to adhere to their earlier decision of not wanting to be included in the Cabinet.

He said that he agreed with the view of MCA leaders that they could not actually represent the people they claimed to represent.

According to Mahathir, the support given to Tun Tan Siew Sin by the Chinese chambers of commerce and other Chinese organisations could not be taken as support from the Chinese community as a whole to MCA because those organisations did not represent the desires of the Chinese community as a whole.

"If MCA wants to know whether they have the support of the Chinese, they have to wait for the next general election. Since this will take quite some time, it is no longer necessary for MCA to remain in the Cabinet," he emphasised.

Mahathir also said that MIC's position in the Cabinet should also be reconsidered.

Syed Nasir stressed that on the whole, the relationship between UMNO, MCA and MIC had to be reviewed to take in the changes which had taken place after the general elections.

"The people have expressed their needs and desires, and there is little point in pretending that the policies of the Alliance party are the best acceptable to them," he said.

The REAL Story of May 13 (Part 4)

This article by Raja Petra was first published in Harakah on 24 September 1999.

In a Press Statement released by UMNO's Secretary General, Senu Abdul Rahman, reported by the Utusan Melayu newspaper on 6 June 1969, it said:

"Mahathir Mohamad ceases to be a member of the UMNO Supreme Council with effect from today, 12 July 1969.

This decision was taken following the wide distribution to the public of Mahathir's letter to Tunku Abdul Rahman, President of UMNO Malaysia.

Letters containing important matters should first be discussed by UMNO's Supreme Council, especially in view of the present situation in the country.

The action taken by Mahathir is seen to be in breach of the party's etiquette and is capable of damaging party solidarity and the government which the party supports."

Mahathir replied to this in his letter to the Tengku dated 17th June 1969.

"Your opinions were based on stories you heard from people who surround you, and who tell you only what they think you like to hear or should hear. Permit me to tell you what the position, the thoughts and the opinions of the people are really, so that you can understand my motive for making that press statement.

You yourself told me that you have prevented a riot by commuting the death sentence of the 11 subversive Chinese. In truth this very action sparked the riots of 13 May, which resulted in the deaths of many, many more.

Your 'give and take' policy gives the Chinese everything they ask for. The climax was the commuting of the death sentence, which made the majority of the Malays angry. The Chinese on the other hand regarded you and the Alliance government as cowards and weaklings who could be pushed around.

That was why the Chinese and the Indians behaved outrageously toward the Malays on 12th May. If you had been spit in the face, called dirty names and shown obscene gestures and private parts, then you could understand how the Malays felt. The Malays whom you thought would never rebel went berserk, and they hate you for giving too much face. The responsibility of the deaths of these people, Muslim or Infidels, rests on the shoulders of the leader who holds views based on wrong assumptions.

I regret writing this letter, but I have to convey to you the feelings of the Malays. In truth the Malays whether they are UMNO or PMIP supporters really hate you, especially those who had lost homes, children and relatives, because of your 'give and take' policy.

They said you wanted to be known only as 'The Happy Prime Minister' even though others are suffering. They said that although the country was in a state of emergency you were engrossed playing poker with your Chinese friends. Even the policemen said that you were using official cars and police escorts to contact your poker gang.

Lately, another disturbing factor came to light. The Malays in the Civil Service, from Permanent Secretary downwards, Army Officers and the Malays in the Police Force have lost faith and respect for you. I know that the majority of them voted for the PMIP through mail ballots....

I wish to convey what the people really think, that is that it is high time you resign as our Prime Minister and UMNO leader.

I am fully aware of the powers you still hold and I remember too well the fate of AZIZ ISHAK. But I would be irresponsible if I do not explain what I have said earlier. Even if I am jailed, I have to say what I have already said.

Once more I wish to repeat that the statement I made [on the continued exclusion of the MCA from the Cabinet] is to prevent the Malays from hating the Government more and to stop the Chinese from abusing the dignity of the Malays. A bigger riot will occur if this is allowed. The military itself will be beyond control.

I pray to God it will open your heart to accept the truth bitter though it may be."

Soon after, the Tengku stepped aside and Tun Razak took over as Prime Minister. The opposition parties were invited to join the government and the Alliance gave way to the Barisan Nasional giving the government back their two-thirds majority in Parliament. Later on, of course, PAS left the BN to stay on as an opposition party.

This was a conspiracy at the highest level and nothing short of a power struggle with the "Young Turks" then forming the pressure group. To achieve their ends, they very cleverly used race to make the Malays rise and push Tengku aside.

Today they are doing it again, but this time to try to push keADILan and PAS aside. This is dangerous politics. It may backfire and, instead, it may make the Malays rise against the non-Malays, like what happened in 1969 -- a fire raging out of control and no fire extinguisher in sight.

We must never allow our country to be turned into a racial battlefield again. Let politics be issues concerning policies, civil rights, good governance and justice. Let us not allow anyone to bring race and religion into our politics lest we suffer the fate of many countries around us where mass murders of entire families are made in the name of “bangsa” and “agama”.

May 13, 1969 Race Riots: Personal Accounts and Reflections of What Happened in 1969 

 Tuesday, May 15, 2007 Read below related article:

"TIME MAGAZINE's Report on Malaysia in 1969 : May 23, 1969 and July, 18, 1969"

FAR EASTERN ECONOMIC REVIEW 's Reports on Malaysia's Race Riot in 1969  

By "young witness", Read here in Malaysiakini."Truth of May 13 long overdue"

Finally, there are official documents to back up what I’ve always believed. I was then a nine-

year-old son of an FRU policeman. We lived at the Police Depot at Jalan Gurney, Kuala Lumpur.

Even at my age then, it was clear to me that larger forces were at work in this terrible

incident.

From our house in the Depot, we saw fires burning on the first two nights in the Batu Road (Jalan

Tuanku Abdul Rahman) area – proof for me that the Chinese were attacked first. It was only on the

third night when the fires appeared in a different part of the sky – over the Datuk Keramat and

Kampung Baru areas.

Anyway, as we grew up, this subject came up many times and it was always clear to most people I

met that the Chinese were attacked first.

I was also witness to another phenomenon that backs up an observation in the documents.

Around May 13, the older sons of many of my Malay neighbours were not be seen and they only

returned days later. It was all hush-hush but their younger brothers told me that they were asked

to assemble at residence of Harun Idris. From the way they behaved when they returned, I was led

to believe that they had participated in the riots.

My father spoke harshly of the soldiers too. When the FRU men were sent out, many of the areas

they went to had earlier been visited by the soldiers and the residents (or what were left of

them) tearfully told stories of how the soldiers joined the Malays in attacking them.

Friends I met years later in Malacca also told me that soldiers had fired into shophouses in

Jalan Bunga Raya for no reason. I have heard lots of other anecdotes too. Many Malaysians would

have been personally affected by this tragedy. Maybe this would a good time for them to come

forward and share their recollections.

The publication of these truths is long overdue. I hope it will lead to the different races of

this country becoming more aware of how they are being manipulated to keep a select group of

people in power.

So many innocent people died during those tragic days just so that power remained in the hands of

the perpetrators. Datuk Harun (and I always believed this was due to divine retribution) never

led a happy life after that incident. That fact is well-documented. I’m sure God would have

punished the others too, whoever they are.

By "Teropong Negara", Read here in Malaysiakini - "Sacrifice of the innocents"

Firstly, I would like to congratulate Dr Kua Kia Soong for his efforts to dig out the truth

surrounding this watershed of modern Malaysian history. My hope is that his work would be

followed up by scholars like Prof Khoo Kay Kim.

I was then an undergraduate and had the opportunity to demonstrate together with others in the

University of Malaya campus in clamouring for the Tunku to step down.

Allegations that the May 13, 1969 incident was planned by Umno are not new. The first time the

Malaysian public heard about this was when Marina Yusof as a staunch member of the then Semangat

46 made the allegation openly, attracting wide media coverage. Of course, it was categorically

denied by Umno leadership then.

Others remembered seeing 'smoking guns' such as the Tanjong Karang Silat Sri Gayong Association

suddenly undertaking intensive special exercises a few weeks before the incident.

One particular Umno member went back to his home town in Kedah from Kuala Lumpur to search of his

‘serempang merah’ and subsequently was heard reciting the ‘ayat empat kerat’, the mantra of

warriors after every prayer. The Kampong Baru mosque in Kuala Lumpur suddenly attracted bigger

crowds then ever before even during mid-day prayers.

On another perspective, the Tunku was busy courting his second wife-to-be who was presented to

members of the public as his personal assistant. This against background rumours that he had

suddenly become obsessed with mahjong.

The Tunku was already clearly overstaying his welcome. His love for drinking and too frequent

‘ronggeng’ sessions and love for horses were eroding away Umno's credibility among conservative

Malays. On being interviewed by the Far Eastern Economic Review of what he thought of the

proposal that adulterers be stoned to death, he replied that: ‘I fear that there would not be

enough stones left to construct our roads’.

Some speculated that in order to contain the endemic rot within Umno, it was decided by the

party’s inner circle that it was imperative to create a major incident as an excuse to clean,

consolidate and restore Umno and thence the Malays to their rightful places. Hence, the sacrifice

of the innocents on the streets of Kuala Lumpur at the first instance of provocation on the

fateful day of May 13, 1969.

The fire of the incident was lit when a procession of lorries loaded with the members of the

opposition parties celebrating their election victory passed by Kampong Baru boisterously

demonstrating how they would ‘sweep’ Umno out of power with brooms. It all started somewhere near

the official residence of the then mentri besar of Selangor which was then in Kampong Baru.

The rebellious position taken by Harun Idris from then onwards towards the main party leadership

was also very telling as to who were the main sponsors of the drama. He was not sufficiently

rewarded and was protesting emotionally for his unrewarded role in the incident. They had yet to

find other ways to tame him and being a very charismatic leader of the time, it was no easy task.

By "anon" - Reader in Malaysia-Today. Read here

Dear Rustam Ali,

Dr Kua's conclusion is not quite right. Partly right perhaps. The Opposition took over Penang and

Selangor was 50-50 .... to give just two examples.

Now how could any extremist ( note the word extremist ) Malay accept that result? No way Jose.

You mentioned Dato Harun, now there lies the root cause of the incident.

No, I don't believe it was planned but as far as I know and heard, it was this person who managed

to spark off the incident. Perhaps I should say, planned this .... after Penang was wrested from

the ruling party and Selangor was divided, 50% Opposition.

You were a member of the Socialist Party in MU so you must have heard or perhaps even a good

friend of my brother .... the person who founded Speaker's Corner. He graduated in 1968 and went

abroad to further his education. He was championing the cause of a "Malaysian" Malaysia.

You will also know about Lim Mah Hui, Syed Husin Ali, a very close friend and colleague of my

brother ( I have the highest regard for him ) and a few other lecturers mostly from the Dept. of

Anthropology and Sociology who spoke out against the gov't in Great Hall ( DTC ) and were

arrested. Well, Mah Hui managed to to to Thailand after hiding in a good friend's house. These

were all academicians of high calibre.

The students who were active members of the Socialist Club were all caught except for H. Rais who

also managed to go to Thailand, then to Australia then to Afghanistan and on to ( Belgium? ) and

England.

Only one 'active socialist' student was not caught ( excluding Rais ), a bloke whose brother was

a cop in the Special Branch at that time. I leave the rest to you to speculate and arrive at a

conclusion. I believe you know and I also believe the rest of the Malays found out much later as

to why and how he 'escaped'.

A very sad day for the country.

Dato Harun's ( you know his name ) son was a very close friend of my brother and family. A good

person. I remember how with just one call late at night, he rushed over to my place to take my

father to the clinic to treat his gash in his leg.

Btw Rustam, whatever happened to Wazir? Last I heard she migrated to Sweden. 

by "LCHUAH", Reader of Malaysia-Today. Read Here  

All oldtimers know it was a coup by the ultras. They don't need Marina Yusoff to tell them that

(when she was still in Keadilan). The Far Eastern Economic Review   did report on the assembly in

front of Dato Harun's residence, I think. Race was used as an instrument: religion was not

involved.

I was teaching in the Klang valley at the time, and was returning home after a badminton game

when I saw the Tunku wept on TV. My heart went out to him. I noticed the tearful eyes of my

roommate, a teacher from Kedah.

Some local gangsters came to our house to advise us to be ready with any weapon we could find,

such as iron pipes. We were to signal any attack by beating pots and pans. That night I heard the

security forces shouting at someone at the end of our block, asking him to "keluar."

The next day I heard gunshots somewhere near a theater: someone with a gun was holed up in his

room. He later shot himself, I think.

The Malays were also frightened: parents arrived at the urban school wanting to take their

children back because of a rumor that the Chinese were going to attack their children. The HM was

absent and I refused their request. So did my Chinese and Indian colleagues until the lessons

were over and then, as promised, we escorted the children passed the mainly Chinese shops to the

city bus station. For the first time I was scared my own people would do something stupid.

A few days later a Chinese bus driver was stabbed to death somewhere near Shah Alam. Some houses

near Meru, some miles from Klang, were burned and looted.

Later, I heard my elder brother was in the KL theater that was sprayed by the army's machine

guns. I heard about a New Zealand nurse raped by some kampung hot heads - wondered if they were

Harun's people. Things quietened down when the troops were replaced by the Sarawak Rangers.

In the aftermath I told my largely kampung students that while the communities were attacking one

another, their leaders were having durian parties. But stupid people, especially the town

Chinese, were talking about boycotting the Malay durian sellers. I told the few Chinese students

to realize that this was a struggle between politicians and they should not be used as pawns.

The entire government since Merdeka was formed by the elite among the various races: these people

had little to do with the person in the street, or in the kampung - hence their willingness to

see the country in flames while they sat in their aircon rooms. The working class of all races

should've never allowed themselves to be used by their unscrupulous "leaders."

by "SKiasu". Reader in Malaysia-Today; Read here

I witnessed the event with my own eyes.I was 11 years then.

For 3 days in a row the Chinese provoked the Malays. They came to our kampung ( keramat )blaring

horn on their lorries.There was big "penyapu" on the lorries , they shouted they chanted and

behaved like hooligans.

My late father said they have won the Kuala Lumpur and wishes to "halau" the Melayu from KL.

Malays just stood by the road looking.

And on the 12th Mei the Malays have had enough. And on the morning of 13th Mei , my father

sharpend the parang as well as all the neioghbour.But still the Chinese wanted to celebrate on

the maghrib but was blocked by police.

On the evening of 13th Mei Malays gathered at Balai Datuk Harun ( somewhere near present TH

Selborn) I was 11 yrs and was still on the street witnessing the event.

Then someone shouted that Malays was attacked at Setapak , and the rest is history.

If anyone were to check on 13th Mei , please do check on the 10, 11 and 12 mei, and why the

lorries with DAP Rockets were free to raom into Malay kampung doing a Kurang ajar.

They pushed Malays to the walls and expected flowers.

Whn the Malays retaliated they cannot accepted it.

Malays did not go to chinese villages to provoked ( any one there to challenge me on this) It was

the chinese who showed no respect.

If there is any death , I might just say it as "deserving death"

By "anon". Reader in Malaysia-Today: Read here

I was in class ( Form Six ) at a school in PJ, BBBS in Section 14. Totally oblivious of what was

happening. This was then called FEC or Further Education School. Not one of us knew what was just

about happening.

After class, I walked with my sisters, as usual, to the bust depot, about a 10-minute walk. That

was when things didn’t seem right. There were no buses there. But we, along with others, waited,

not long though. Nightfall was approaching.

It was the weirdest feeling I had ever felt …. All very quiet. No buses, then I realized there

were no cars on the roads too!

Then the first bus came …. And as far as I can remember, the only noise was the sound of the bus.

We saw the passengers in the bus …. All with blood, some on their faces. To this day I can still

picture a Chinese woman, in her 40s I believe, in the bus, holding some kind of a cloth on her

face. Her face was covered with blood and all of them were rushing out of the bus.

We still did not know what the heck was happening. Then the passengers told us … still not

knowing it was a racial clash between the Malays and the Chinese.

All innocent people in vehicles coming from Bangsar to PJ ….. no chance for them …. As they were

stopped by the Kampung Kerenchi mob. Some who knew just zoomed past. Others were all slaughtered.

One pregnant woman was massacred. No one was spared by these angry mob.

Kampung Kerenchi was like 10 minutes away from the bus depot. I don’t know how that bus went past

but windows were smashed and people in it were hurt . I guess the driver rammed through the mob,

only way to get past.

You could not escape going through the Federal Highway without passing and facing the wrath of

the inhabitants of Kampung Kerenchi.

It took us all quite a while to realize what exactly was happening. It was a horrible sight. My

sisters were there and we had no transport …. The mob may arrive …. All kinds of thoughts raced

across my mind. I told my sisters to wait in a hidden place while I ran …. non-stop ( about 4-5

miles ) back home to tell and ask my father to pick them up.

I will never forget that run. As I ran, I started looking everywhere, behind, sideways, in front,

to see if there was a mob of any kind.

We didn’t have the luxury of owning a cell phone then.

I managed to reach home and my father drove immediately to the place with me, to pick up my

sisters. I thank God all of us were safe.

I think it was a couple of days later when a Curfew was imposed. Shops closed. Then after a few

days, the curfew was lifted for an hour for all to get provisions.

I was living in Jalan Gasing at that time. Imagine, curfew and some of us got together and

sneaked to another friend’s place, across the road …. Just to play gin rummy! We went there

commando style. Heard and saw an army truck ( with orders to shoot to kill ), ducked amongst the

lalang and crept to the house and we did the same thing returning home!

What I wrote is a summary. What is more important is, I too, as everyone else do not know who

started it all.

Some would say, the idiots in politics.

by "terang bulan2007": Reader in Malaysia-Today: Read here 

Long before the launch of Dr Kua's book, it had already been an open, though unconfirmed secret,

that UMNO was behind the May 13 riots.

Shortly after the riots, British observer wrote a book on the May 13 riots called "Death of a

democracy".   He gave graphic descriptions of Malay soldiers attacking the Chinese, arson, etc,

etc. which is likely to be confirmed by Dr Kua's book based on reports and memos filed by British

diplomats, correspondents, etc, which have now been de-classified following the 30 year embargo

by the British Public Records Office.

Subky Latif, now retired former PAS commissioner for KL, wrote an academic piece for the

publication SEAsian Affairs published by the Institute of SEASIAn studies, Singapore in the late

70s. Subky was a journalist then and was very close to Razak and Harun, former MB of Selangor and

one of the key figures of the May 13 riots.

Subky wrote that the riots were definitely a coup to topple Tunku Abdul Rahman who was seen by

the Malay ultras (Mahathir was one of them) to have sold Malay rights to the Chinese.

Subky said the riots were planned quickly and purposefully though the identity of the real

culprits could not be accurately ascertained.

But the riots achieved their main purpose of toppling the Tunku because after that he lost his

power and Razak took over, first as NOC director then PM.

And with Razak at the helm, Mahathir who was sacked by Tunku rejoined UMNO, where his Malay

Dilemma thesis soon became the key fundamentals of the NEP.

By the way, the name of the British observer was John Slimming. He was a retired British police

officer from Hong Kong, was then in KL and he was right in the middle of the riots when it

happened. He thus gave a critical bird's eye view of the riots, giving graphic details as he saw

then.

Slimming also said he checked and cross checked to have his observations verified. When his book

was banned, he had read the NOC's white paper on the riots published in the Straits Times a few

months after the riots. The govt's white paper put the entire blame of the riots on the

opposition parties, particularly DAP and Gerakan, and absolved UMNO.

Slimming said after reading the NOC's account of the riots, he concluded that it was nothing but

a pack of lies and that he would stand by his book aptly called "Death of a democracy".

TIME MAGAZINE's Report on Malaysia in 1969 : May 23, 1969 andJuly, 18, 1969  Sunday, May 13, 2007 Read here earlier posting: " MAY 13 : Dr. Kua's Latest Book Based on Declassified Documents - Deconstructing the Myths

and the Official Version   "

FOR THE RECORDS:This was how  Time Magazine  reported on the May 13, 1969 Race Riots in Malaysia in its May

23, 1969 Issue and the aftermath in the July 18, 1969 Issue

MAY 23, 1969

-The cover of Time Magazine, May 23, 1969 Issue

The World (Malaysia) : RACE WAR IN MALAYSIA: Click HERE to original article

MALAYSIA'S proud experiment in constructing a multiracial society exploded in the streets of Kuala Lumpur last

week. Malay mobs, wearing white headbands signifying an alliance with death, and brandishing swords and

daggers, surged into Chinese areas in the capital, burning, looting and killing. In retaliation, Chinese, sometimes

aided by Indians, armed themselves with pistols and shotguns and struck at Malay kampongs (villages). Huge

pillars of smoke rose skyward as houses, shops and autos burned.

Firemen drew sniper fire as they attempted to douse the flames, and outnumbered police watched helplessly at

times as the street gangs rampaged. One man, trying to escape from his burning car, was thrown back into it by a

howling mob, and died. By the time the four days of race war and civil strife had run their course, the General

Hospital's morgue was so crowded that bodies were put into plastic bags and hung on ceiling hooks. Government

officials, attempting to play down the extent of the disaster, insisted that the death toll was only 104. Western

diplomatic sources put the toll closer to 600, with most of the victims Chinese.

No Longer Satisfied. From its inception, Malaysia has been haunted by racial divisions. By tacit agreement, the

Federation's 4,300,000 Malays under Prime Minister Tunku Abdul Rahman wielded political power. Economic power

was largely in the hands of Malaysia's 3,400,000 Chinese. There are also the 1,000,000 Indians and Pakistanis who

make up the third major ethnic group. What made it all work was the Tunku's Alliance coalition, in which Malay,

Chinese and Indian parties participated. But for some time the Chinese and Indians had feared that eventually they

would be pushed out as laws favoring Malays for schools and jobs bore fruit.

The trouble began two weeks ago, when newly formed Chinese opposition parties cut heavily into the Alliance's

majority in parliamentary elections. It became suddenly apparent that many Chinese were no longer satisfied with

just economic hegemony, but wanted a protective share of the political power as well. Nothing was more surely

calculated to frighten the Malays, in particular the Malay "ultras" (right-wingers), who have long preached the

doctrine of Malaysia for the Malays. Alarmed, the ultras began to discuss ways of retaining control. At a Malay post-

election meeting in Kuala Lumpur, Chinese onlookers began to taunt those in attendance. Infuriated, the Malays

attacked. At least eight Chinese were killed and within 45 minutes fast-spreading riots forced the Tunku to clamp a

24-hour curfew on the capital.

Returning to Singapore. Struggling to restore order as the fighting mushroomed, the Tunku and Deputy Prime

Minister Tun Abdul Razak took power into their own hands. Parliament was suspended, as were constitutional

guarantees. Total administrative power was taken by the newly formed, all-powerful National Operations Council

headed by Razak, which proceeded to suspend publication of all Malaysian newspapers for several days. Arrests

began. Ninety-three alleged terrorists were bagged in a swoop on a Chinese apartment building in Kuala Lumpur,

and Razak reported that all Communists and known sympathizers were being rounded up. Razak and the Tunku

blamed all the troubles on Communist China, which, they charged, had funneled large sums of money to

Communist agitators in Malaysia. Later, however, the Tunku backed off slightly, and praised "loyal Chinese

elements," adding that he had been mistaken when he blamed Chinese Communists for all the troubles.

As tensions eased late in the week, curfews were lifted long enough to allow householders to go out and buy food.

The fires burned on, however, and there were still occasional racial clashes. For some time to come, Malaysia would

be a bitterly divided society. Already many Chinese have given up hope: one senior government official spoke of

abandoning everything in Kuala Lumpur and returning to his native Singapore. There was no doubt that if many

others followed his example, severe damage to Malaysia's once-prospering economy would result. Beyond that was

the question of whether the wounds opened last week would ever sufficiently heal to permit Malaysia's diverse

peoples to resume their quest for a working multiracial nation.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

JULY 18, 1969

-Cover of Time Magazine, July 18, 1969 Issue

The World (Malaysia) : PREPARING FOR A POGROM : Click HERE   to original article

Residents of Kuala Lumpur, both rich and poor, used to congregate by the thou sands each night around long rows

of food stalls throughout the city. Many were there for their evening meal of satay (meat roasted on a short skewer

of cane and dipped in curry sauce). Others stopped off on their way home for a bowl of soup. In the polyglot capital

of Malaysia, this nightly relaxation attracted not only Malays but also citizens of the large Chinese minority and the

smaller Indian and Pakistani groups.

For the past two months, however, Kuala Lumpur's food stalls have closed early and the street crowds that usually

mingled pleasantly now scatter for cover at any unusual sound. In the wake of bloody race riots that may have

claimed 2,000 lives, Malaysia's peoples have bro ken little bread together; they have probably broken any hope for

multiracial harmony for many years to come.

Last week, though no further rioting occurred, Kuala Lumpur was a city of mounting tensions and widening

divisions. In the weeks since the first riots—which terrified primarily the Chinese, since they were the main victims

—new incidents have centered on Indian communities as well. With both minorities now targets for mob attack, the

struggle has become more clearly than ever the Malay extremists' fight for total hegemony. Whether or not the

Malay-controlled police force and emergency government have actually stirred up some of the house-burning,

spear-carrying mobs, they seem unwilling to clamp down on them. Strict government censorship has created a

news void that forces panicked citizens to keep their transistor radios tuned to the police band and gives credence

to constant ru mors of terror. Chinese secret societies, the backbone of self-defense whenever officials are

distrusted, are flourishing and, justifiably or not, Malaysia's minorities are preparing for a pogrom.

Benefits at the Top. Malaysia's working arrangement for the past 20 years has always kept political power in the

hands of Malays but allowed the more commercially aggressive Chinese and Indians to accumulate much of the

economic power. Outwardly, this combi nation brought twin blessings. Malaysia developed a thriving modern

economy that produced one of the highest per cap ita incomes in Asia, and at the same time enjoyed the personal

freedoms of a liberal democracy. Presiding over the hopeful experiment was the avuncular figure of 66-year-old

Prime Minister Tunku Abdul Rahman. His Alliance coalition, dominated by Malays but including both Chinese and

Indian parties, won control of Parliament during the election of 1955, two years before in dependence, and has kept

it ever since.

For all its practical success, Malaysia never really managed to overcome racial enmities. The Chinese and Indians

resented Malay-backed plans favoring the majority, including one to make Malay the official school and government

language. The poorer, more rural Malays became jealous of Chinese and Indian prosperity. Perhaps the Alliance's

greatest failing was that it served to benefit primarily those at the top. It was not unheard of for a government

official to discover a new car in his garage, its donor a mystery until a Chinese towkay (rich merchant) mentioned it

offhandedly—and then perhaps asked for a favor. For a Chinese or Indian who was not well-off, or for a Malay who

was not well-connected, there was little largesse in the system. Even for those who were favored, hard feelings

persisted. One towkay recently told a Malay official: "If it weren't for the Chinese, you Malays would be sitting on

the floor without tables and chairs." Replied the official: "If I knew I could get every damned Chinaman out of the

country, I would willingly go back to sitting on the floor."

Lip Service. Malaysia's democracy has been suspended as a result of the riots. Three days after they began, both

the Tunku and the constitutional monarch handed over all their powers to the ambitious Deputy Prime Minister, Tun

Abdul Razak. He now presides over a state-of-emergency ruling group called the National Operations Council.

Heavily dependent on the military and Malay extremists for support, the N.O.C. government today is run by men

who believe that Malaysia's only hope is to find a solution to the minority "problem"—and are willing to accept a

lower standard of living, or even shed the federation's non-Malay Borneo states to find it. This month Razak, who as

a former Minister of National and Rural Development became committed to programs for Malay supremacy,

announced a new economic program. Though he has not yet given militants free reign and still manages to pay lip

service to the notion that "prosperity must be spread throughout the nation," his proposals for new government-run

industry, rural development and industrial training courses all seem designed solely to benefit the Malay

community.

Malays could not take over the economy within the foreseeable future. They simply do not have the capital or the

know-how to manage it, especially in the field of rubber production, in which Malaysia is the world leader. However,

they do have the power to wreck the economy—and seemingly the hatred that could make them use it. The

majority of Chinese and Indians have come to believe, as a result of the riots, that they cannot expect government

protection from Malay mobs.

In retaliation, Chinese merchants have already raised prices on many goods to Malay buyers and cut off paja

(credit), by which many a Malay farmer buys seed for his next crop. More ominous still, the conflict, at first only an

urban affair, is spreading to the countryside. Chinese-owned pickup trucks have ceased collecting the fishing catch

from the Strait of Malacca. The eagerly awaited season for durian, a large and delectable strong-scented fruit grown

only in Asia, is now at its peak. In any other year, Malay farmers would make small fortunes on this rare fruit. Last

week durians were rotting by the roadside because Chinese trucks were not sent for them—as they are not being

sent anywhere in Malaysia's rice bowl. Economies will not long endure that kind of standoff, and the result is likely

to be fresh explosions of racial strife.

FAR EASTERN ECONOMIC REVIEW 'sReports on Malaysia's Race Riot in 1969 

 Tuesday, May 15, 2007 

FAR EASTERN ECONOMIC REVIEW

Vol. 64, No. 21, 18/24 May 1969, 437

MALAYSIA: Requiem for Democracy? 

BY

BOB REECE

Kuala Lumpur: "Democracy is dead in this country. It died at the hands of the opposition parties who triggered off

the events leading to this violence."

Such was the epitaph delivered last week by Tun Dr Ismail, Malaysia's new Minister for Home Affairs, after the worst

racial rioting the country has ever experienced. Hatreds flared up in Kuala Lumpur on the evening of May 13, and

by early this week, the official number of dead stood at 137, with more than 300 injured, hundreds of houses gutted

and scores of vehicles burnt.

In the early hours of Sunday last week, it had become obvious that the ruling Alliance Party had received a major

setback in the general election although it had managed to retain a simple parliamentary majority. Penang had

been lost to the Gerakan Party; Kelantan had been held by the PMIP (Pan-Malaysian Islamic Party), and the Alliance

was struggling to retain control of Perak and Selangor.

The Alliance had almost certainly lost its old two-thirds majority which had enabled it to amend the Constitution;

three of its ministers and two parliamentary secretaries had lost their seats; its share of the valid votes had

dropped by 9% since 1964 to 49%; and it faced the prospect of a vociferous and effective (largely Chinese-based)

Opposition in the Federal Parliament for the first time since Independence.

Foreign correspondents in Kuala Lumpur who had observed the elections filed despatches praising the Malaysian

democratic process and predicting five years of peace, prosperity and more efficient government. The Tunku's

initial reaction was naturally one of disappointment, but he conceded that the people had wanted a strong

opposition, which they had now got.

Exultant supporters of the Democratic Action Party and the Gerakan filled the capital's streets on Sunday and

Monday night with their flag-waving cavalcades of vehicles. Their delight in breaking the Alliance's myth of

invincibility inevitably irritated Malay supporters of the Government. Malays were also alarmed by boasts that the

Chinese had now achieved some measure of political power.

By 2pm on Tuesday, the MCA (Malaysian Chinese Association), which had suffered badly at the polls, announced

that it would withdraw from the Cabinet while remaining within the Alliance.

Tun Razak pronounced sentence on the Chinese voters who had been warned before the elections that unless they

voted MCA, they would forfeit all Chinese representation in the Government. At UMNO (United Malay National

Organisation) headquarters in Batu Road, the feeling was that democracy had gone too far -- in other words, that

the political hegemony of the Malays, papered over in the Alliance by the multi-racial front of MCA and MIC

(Malaysian Indian Congress), was in real danger. A non-Malay Mentri Besar in both Selangor and Perak seemed

dangerously likely.

Late on Tuesday afternoon, young Malays from the whole of Selangor began to assemble outside the residence of

the Selangor Mentri Besar, Dato Harun. A retaliatory march had been planned by the UMNO youth to end in a rally

at Suleiman Court near Batu Road, but police permission was withheld. While people were still assembling for this

parade, trouble broke out in the nearby Malay section of Kampong Bahru, where two Chinese lorries were burnt. By

6.30 pm, a crowd was raging down Jalan Raja Muda towards Batu Road. Another group came out of Kampong Bahru

into Jalan Hale, another exit from the Malay section into the Chinese areas.

By 7.15pm I could see the mobs swarming like bees at the junction of Jalan Raja Muda and Batu Road. More

vehicles were smashed, and Chinese shop-houses set on fire. The Chinese and Indian shopkeepers of Batu Road

formed themselves into a "district defence force" armed with whatever they could find -- parangs, poles, iron bars

and bottles.

I watched one old man pathetically grasp a shovel. Men, standing in the back of a truck travelling up and down the

road, urged the people to unite. A 16-year-old boy tore strips from a piece of cloth to be used for identification.

When the Malay invading force withdrew as quickly as it had arrived, the residents took their revenge. Shop-fronts

and cars suspected of being Malay-owned were smashed or burnt. Several attempts were made to set fire to the

nearby UMNO headquarters where three propaganda jeeps had already been set on fire. A bus, whose Malay driver

had allegedly knocked over two Chinese on a bicycle, was also attacked.

The police arrived at about 9pm but did not remain in the area. Later, truck-loads of Federal Reserve Units (riot

squads) and the Royal Malay Regiment drove past. The Chinese in the street ran into their shop-houses as soon as

the convoy came into sight, but were quickly out on the greets again when they had passed. By midnight, I found

the street almost deserted but sounds of gunfire and the glows of fires showed that trouble had flared up

elsewhere.

From my own observations, the curfew was not imposed on Tuesday night with equal rigidity in all areas. In the side

streets off Jalan Hale, I could see bands of Malay youths armed with parangs and sharpened bamboo spears

assembled in full view of troops posted at road junctions.

Meanwhile, at Batu Road, a number of foreign correspondents saw members of the Royal Malay Regiment firing into

Chinese shop-houses for no apparent reason. The road itself was completely deserted, and no sniping or other

violence by the residents had been observed by the journalists.

On Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, troops and police were in effective control, although incidents were still taking

place. At one point, Malay youths came out of nearby kampongs to drop bricks on passing cars from a footbridge on

the Federal Highway which leads to the airport. Another nasty scene saw groups of armed Chinese youths

attempting to make their way to Malay kampong areas.

By Friday, curfews had been imposed in Malacca, Negri Sembilan, parts of Perak, southern Kedah, and Penang as

well as Selangor. Six battalions of the Royal Malay Regiment together with Federal Reserve Units and police were

spread very thinly over this large area, and all army and police reserves were mobilised.

The formation of a Civil Defence Corps was announced, and "loyal" youths were asked to volunteer. Hundreds of

houses, deserted during the panic, were set on fire, but by Thursday the Fire Brigade appeared to be on the job.

The presence of the police and the army had restored a measure of confidence by Saturday morning, although the

Government ignored earlier offers by opposition party leaders to co-operate in damping down the violence.

In a speech on Wednesday last week, Tunku Abdul Rahman said the riots were due to an attempt by disloyal

elements to overthrow the Government by force of arms: "The terrorists, under the cover of political parties, are

trying for a comeback."

This interpretation of events was repeated by the new Minister for Information, Enche Hamzah, and by Tun Abdul

Razak at press conferences on Friday. According to Deputy Prime Minister Razak, the Labour Party boycott of the

elections had only been a feint.

The real strategy of the communists had been to "intimidate" people into voting for the opposition parties. "The

unseen hand of communism," elaborated Tun Ismail, "had manoeuvred events using the opposition parties as its

tools."

In a second speech, the Tunku said that a great deal of money had been poured into the country by communist

agents: "They branded the MCA as pro-Malay... it was astounding to see the response they got through intimidation

and threats." By contrast, the Tunku added that the communists had earlier tried to prevent the elections and took

the opportunity of parading in their armed thousands for the funeral procession of a youth reported to have been

killed in self-defence by police when he was discovered pasting up anti-election posters.

While it was true that some Mao-slogans and flags were seen during this parade, the discipline of the 14,000-strong

crowd in their eight-mile march may have been due to genuine restraint rather than to communist organisation.

The violence, which the Tunku described as triggered off by the behaviour of opposition supporters after the

announcement of the election results, had provided, he said, a situation which the communists "had always tried to

create". As if to demonstrate this, it was announced on Friday night that "93 hardcore terrorists" had been arrested

in a building in Batu Road with home-made arms and were alleged to have confessed to the intention of attacking

innocent people. Another 60 "armed communists" were taken into custody over the weekend.

A day earlier the Yang di-Pertuan Agong had proclaimed a State of Emergency under Section 150 of the

Constitution. This gave the Government powers similar to those which it assumed in 1964 during the Indonesian

confrontation. On Thursday afternoon, the local press was suspended until censorship regulations could be drawn

up but no attempt was made to supervise reports sent out by foreign correspondents. (However, on Saturday, some

overseas journalists had their curfew passes removed by armed troops.)

Straits Times editor-in-chief, Tan Sri Hoffman, made an impressive plea against these official moves both editorially

and at a press conference. (This was particularly significant both because of the standing of his newspaper and

because of his own reputation -- especially for courage during the Japanese occupation.) He remarked to

Information Minister Hamzah that only Malaysians were to be prevented from finding out what was going on. In

reply, Hamzah's explanation was that the ban was due to the inflammatory nature of articles printed by the local

press, before and during the elections. Hoffman protested: "Is a civil servant going to tell me what is inflammatory

and what is not inflammatory?"

Tun Razak revealed that the National Operations Council, of which he is the head, would consist of the Ministers for

Information and Home Affairs as well as representatives of the police and the armed forces. A mini-cabinet was also

to be formed, including MCA ministers Tan Siew Sin and Kaw Kai Bo, but it was not clear what its relationship would

be with the Council. Tun Razak is still responsible to the Tunku, but all the powers under Emergency Regulations

are vested in him. The Council has responsibility for restoring law and order and will be built on a hierarchy of

councils at state and district levels.

It is too early to write an obituary for Malaysian democracy -- all the facts are not yet known. However, since they

may never come to light, speculation is inevitable. It seems that the Alliance was unable to accept the criticisms

which the electorate -- Malay, Chinese and Indian -- registered at the polls.

The sole rays of hope are the peace which prevailed in the former Labour Party stronghold in Penang where Dr Lim

Cheong Eu has been sworn in as Chief Minister, and in cholera-stricken Kelantan, where PMIP's Dato Asri announced

immediately after the election results that people of all races in his state were to be considered to

be"Kelantanese".