M.K. Rajakumar and Poh Soo
Kai
Originally published in FAJAR: ORGAN OF THE UNIVERSITY SOCIALIST
CLUB, Issue No. 7, Monday, 10th May 1954. Transcribed by
Karen Goh
Looming large in Asia once again is the threat of Western
aggression. The West has been the aggressor in modern history and
Asia has suffered bitterly from Western barbarity.
The bitterness of these memories is not easily removed. They
will greatly influence Asian thinking for a long time, until the
West proves itself worthy of trust and friendship. This day is yet
to come and vigilance is needed to prevent any form of Western
imperialism getting a foothold in Asia again. Recent events in Asia
give great cause for alarm.
We see signs all over Asia that that West is still a menace. In
Indo-China the French, backed by American arms, are striving to
suppress the Vietminh Nationalists in their struggle for freedom.
Republican China is being denied her rightful place in the United
Nations, whilst an émigré government is being maintained in Taiwan
under the protection of the U.S. navy.
Republican India is being dragged into the theatre of war by the
purchase of American military bases in Pakistan. Now we are told
that Asia is to be defended, whether she likes it or not. A
military pact is being formed against Asian objections and without
Asian participation. We view this as being, in Mr. A. Bevan’s
words, “for the purpose of imposing European colonial rule.”
Little attempt is made to maintain more than a pretence of
consulting Asian opinion. The time is past, however, when European
nations could make decisions binding on Asia. But this is still not
recognized.
The South East Asian “defence” pact is the latest example of
Western interference. Its immediate object is to stamp out the
freedom movement in Indo- China. Its long term object is to prevent
the development of any movement in Asia that will stand up against
the West. Asian national must take a firm stand now before it is
too late. We must warn the West to “Hands off Asia.”
Clearly Asian friendship cannot be won under such hostile
conditions. Asia needs Western technical knowledge and we welcome
Western friendship. But there can be no compromise with colonialism
in any form. “The dramatic change, the psychological revolution”
that Jennie Lee speaks of is needed. Anti-communism is not a
substitute for this. Yet apparently this negative philosophy is all
that the West can offer.
The prospect of Asia “going communism” has been responsible in a
large measure for every major Western concession ranging from
Indian Independence to land for the Chinese squatter in Malaya. Is
it therefore surprising that the spectre of Communism haunting the
West should leave Asia unperturbed? Is it any wonder that Asia will
have nothing to do with anti-communist fronts? For that is not our
problem. We need peace and freedom.
The solidarity of Asia is the solidarity of the suppressed. This
alone is our fight and we will fight be our fight and we still be
dragged into no other. Our sympathies are with all people like us
who are thirsting for peace and freedom. We are therefore comrades
of the African struggling for the most elementary human rights, of
the Indo-Chinese fighting for his freedom. Our enemies are those
who would deny us these rights.
Malaya, however, cannot choose. It is one more pimple on the
face of Asia where a Colonial Power rules with the help of
quislings. As such our interests will always be sacrificed to
imperial expediency.
Thus we see our country being committed into a military
alliance, the SEATO, without the sanction of its people. Our young
men are being conscripted; our land is being turned into a military
base. Our country is to fight in wars over whose making it will not
have any say. We must collaborate in crushing the Indo-Chinese
people.
We are to be the allies of petite fascists like Syngman Rhee,
Chiang Kai Chek and hibun Songgram who stand for totalitarian
tyranny. We would rather stand with Republican Indian, Republican
China, Republican Burma and their allies in Asia and Africa. The
people of this country do not identity themselves with the actions
of the Colonial government.
http://s-pores.com/2009/02/aggression/
...This got me interested in
the contributions of the English-educated in the anti-colonial
struggle. I had done work on the
Chinese-educated and have come across the standard portrayal of the
feeble attempts of the English-educated in the anti-colonial
movement. This has been a point strongly made by Lee Kuan Yew in
his memoirs and speeches, from the 1960s to the 1990s.
I think we have reached a
point where we need to reconsider the history of the leftwing as
more than the story of the Chinese-educated and include the
English-educated as well as the involvement of the Malays and
Indians in the leftwing movement. This is in light of recent
scholarship by Tim Harper, Huang Jianli and others presented at the
2005 Paths Not Taken conference in
Singapore.
Last year, a group of my friends, mostly young researchers, got
together to start an independent project to document the history of
the University Socialist Club. So far, we have made some
preliminary findings, including on the Fajar case.
For this short essay, I will start off with the chronology of
the Fajar case, followed by what we have learned from the Colonial
Office (CO) papers on this matter and end with some questions that
remain unanswered...
...Why are we interested in the subject? Because it is part of our
legacy as former students of the university, whether it was
University of Malaya, University of Singapore, and now, the
National University of Singapore. We are products of the system and
by remembering significant events such as the Fajar case, we learn
what was achieved before by students then and perhaps this could
inspire our students today...
http://s-pores.com/2007/04/fajar/
Singapore political life and intellectual life have really
regressed and suffered under Lee Kuan Yew's repressive rule.