The Malayan Union and Its Impact

The Malayan Union and Its Impact

The Malayan Union, which the British Labour Government inaugurated in post-war Malaya on April 1, 1945, lasted slightly more than two years. Although it was a short-lived constitutional experiment, it led to dramatic political developments.

In present-day Malaysian history textbooks, the Malayan Union is regarded as having awakened political activity, and heightened ethnic consciousness and nationalism among the peninsula's different ethnic groups.

For the Malays, their opposition to the Malayan Union led to the birth of the United Malays National Organisation or Umno - which was inaugurated on May 11, 1946 in Johor Baru - and the emergence of Datuk Onn Jaafar as its first president.

Umno obtained support from all strata of Malay society in opposing the Malayan Union - the aristocrats, the radical Parti Kebangsaan Melayu Malaya (Malay Nationalist Party or MNP), Islamic groups, civil servants, rural leaders like the penghulus (village heads), and even the police and ex-service personnel.

Umno opposed the Malayan Union because it restricted the Malay rulers' powers and Malay special privileges, and granted citizenship and equal rights to non-Malays who qualified on birth, residential and other terms.

Umno demanded a return to the pre-war political structures, set up in the Malay states according to treaties signed with the Malay rulers under which the British "protected" the Malay states and advised the rulers in all matters except Islam and Malay customs.

The protests and demonstrations against the Malayan Union saw Malay women breaking tradition by joining marches and carrying placards. Many Malays wrapped white cloth around their songkok (cap) as a symbol of mourning.

Umno urged Malay civil servants to boycott the Malayan Union government by refusing to carry out any work. Also at Umno's urging, the Malay rulers boycotted Sir Edward Gent's inauguration as Malayan Union governor.

Non-Malays were also prompted to fight for their rights, and organised political parties such as the Malayan Indian Congress (MIC) and the Malayan Democratic Union, which came under an umbrella organisation - the All-Malaya Council of Joint Action (AMCJA) - headed by prominent Chinese leader Tan Cheng Lock. Several trade unions and women's groups aligned with the then semi-legal Communist Party of Malaya also joined the AMCJA.

For the first time, politics during the Malayan Union led to the formation of a multi-racial alliance between the non-Malay AMCJA and the Malay-based Pusat Tenaga Raayat (Putera), a coalition under the MNP's leadership that comprised its youth and women wings, and Malay cultural bodies. Dr Burhanuddin Al-Helmy became Putera-AMCJA president, with Tan as deputy president.

This followed the MNP's departure from Umno over differences regarding Umno's flag. The MNP decided to team up with the AMCJA to fight for an independent United Malaya with equal citizenship for all, and an elected Parliament in which the Malay rulers would become constitutional monarchs. The coalition's parties also agreed that Malay would be the national language, and all citizens would be known as "Melayu" nationals.

The proposed "Melayu" nationality was controversial, but it was quite different from bangsa Melayu and was not a racial but a national identity. The Malays opposed the term "Malayan" because it was associated with the Malayan Union, so Putera's non-Malay partners agreed not to use it. At the same time, the term "Malaysian" did not yet exist. The AMCJA-Putera "People's Constitution" which incorporated these points was a blueprint for Malaya's future.

Many observers were surprised that Chinese and pro-communist groups were willing to make such major concessions to accommodate the MNP's Malay nationalism, and equally surprised that the MNP was willing to accept non-Malays as equal citizens if they demonstrated their loyalty to Malaya.

However, the British government rejected the AMCJA-Putera proposals, and decided to concede instead to the demands of Umno and the Malay rulers. The British were not yet ready to grant self-government and independence and attempted to negotiate a deal that would not endanger its political, economic and military interests.

Umno and the Malay rulers had taken up their grievances with the Colonial Office in London by writing petitions to British members of Parliament and waging a public relations campaign. They received support from prominent former British government officers like Sir Richard Winstedt and Sir Frank Swettenham.

The British finally agreed to the Malay demands for the return of sovereignty to the Malay rulers, and a tightening of citizenship laws for Chinese, Indians and others. In return, Umno and the Malay rulers agreed to the British proposal to set up the Federation of Malaya as a mutually acceptable frame of government to replace the Malayan Union.

Source: Dr Cheah Boon Kheng, The Sun, Friday 13, July 2007

CHINESE NEW YEAR CELEBRATION IN SMJK UNION

CHINESE NEW YEAR CELEBRATION IN SMJK UNION

今天，我们只需要上两节的课哦~超开心的!haha~我们今天9.45就休息节了，到底有没有真真的两节课也不知道……不过无所谓啦！新年嘛~校方应该给我们开心开心！
10.05分的时候，我们陆陆续续的上礼堂，不过不懂为何，已经这样乖了还要被骂，真是的！迟到一点没关系嘛~那些所谓的V.I.P还不是一样……lol

不过有点可惜因为忘了带相机去，因为难得有一天可以与朋友们拍照，haiz...
今 天新春联欢会的节目就像往常一般，有相声啦！华乐啦！舞蹈啦！（可是今年的舞蹈是超辣的，把全场气氛搞得好high哦！）也有一个很特别的节目就是……将 将！“财神到！”这位劳苦功高的财神爷呢就是我们以前下午班，人称最不严，最可爱，又有点baby fat的这位Mr.Joseph/Doraemon.他扮演的财神爷真的是超像的！不过当他进来的时候，刚好是合唱团的表演，但是每个人的注意力就好像都 放在他身上了，可怜的合唱团呀~财神爷还有派送红包和糖果，但是都没有我们的份，大多数都给了form 4的……偏心哦！

然后，还有一个 很特别的节目就是，分柑！哈哈！消防什么时候变得这么慷慨了呢？谢咯~而且它的干湿超级无敌甜的哦~！不像我家的那一箱柑，酸死了！>< 我们家今天，也就如往常一般，煮团圆饭，不过就没有像以前这样丰盛，因为这只是象征式的吃一顿!还有还有，在这里我想宣布这一个消息就是我在新年期间不会在家因为，我要去拜访亲戚们哦~~拜拜~wahahahaha! 又忙又快乐的一天！^^

12月26日晚的梦（下集）

我走进去之后。。。学校完全改变了。。。这天刚好有水上运动，不知道为什么。。。老师也来了。。。我想偷偷地推老师下水，因为水下有许多的‘食人鱼’。我那时候好像整个人便了似的，我在梦里变成了坏学生。那时的老师苦苦地哀求我不要把她推下水，因为那时她的手紧紧地握住了我的手。我不加理会。。。终于，很冷酷无情地。。。我把她推下水了。。。那时的我很累，我说了一句：“我很累了，下去吧。”。我们那时候在高高的悬崖上，悬崖下的同学们吃惊地盯住我说：“啊！！！钡钡几时变成了坏学生？？？”没有人告诉其他老师，也没人再提起那个老师。。。那个老师就这样音讯消失了。。。也许你们觉得这样只是很普通罢了，不过我却觉得这对我来说是非常严重了。。。

12月26日晚的梦（上集）

我梦见的是在12月31日，那天我到了学校去。。。怎料。。。学校竟然在海边，不在以前的那个Jalan York 了。。。我万感奇怪，到底怎么回事了。。。我不加理会。。。至到我走了进去。。。啊！！！！！！！！。。。