MALAYSIA-SINGAPORE | What Really Happened?
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 17 พ.ค. 2024
- Singapore is often presented as the only modern example of a country that gained independence after it was expelled by another state. This followed Malaysia's decision to throw it out of the Federation, in August 1965. But just how accurate is that depiction of their separation?
Hello and welcome! My name is James Ker-Lindsay. Here I take an informed look at International Relations with a focus on territorial conflicts, secession, independence movements and new countries. If you like what you see, please do subscribe. If you want more, including exclusive content and benefits, consider becoming a channel member. Many thanks!
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It is generally accepted that most countries will do everything possible to retain control of territory, even in the face of considerable resistance from the area in question. Few states willingly give up land. However, the general view in international relations is that there is one notable exception in modern international politics: Singapore's apparent expulsion from Malaysia, in 1965. Coming just two years after Singapore had joined neighbouring Sabah and Sarawak as the new entrants to the Federation of Malaysia, it was widely seen as an important step towards regional security and political stability. However, tensions soon emerged between the two entities. Led by the two prime ministers, Tunku Abdul Rahman and Lee Kuan Yew, this eventually led to the decision that Singapore would have to leave the Federation. But rather than a unilateral move to expel Singapore, as many often believe, the story is in fact a little more complex. More to the point, at the time many saw Singapore's separation from Malaysia and independence as a temporary move. Both sides held open the door for eventual reunification.
CHAPTERS
0:00 Introduction and Titles
0:42 Singapore and State Expulsion
1:26 Singapore: Location and Demographics
2:07 Origins and Growth of Singapore and Malaysia
5:09 Singapore’s Union with Malaysia
6:46 Singapore’s Independence from Malaysia
9:56 Singapore-Malaysia Reunification?
11:15 Was Singapore Expelled by Malaysia?
RELATED PLAYLISTS
Secession and Independence in Asia and Oceania • ASIA AND OCEANIA
Secession and Independence in History • CONFLICT AND STATEHOOD...
The Origins of Countries • THE ORIGINS OF COUNTRIES
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FURTHER READING & USEFUL SOURCES
Singapore HistorySG eresources.nlb.gov.sg/history
1963 Agreement Relating to Malaysia treaties.un.org/doc/publicati...
Independence of Singapore Agreement sso.agc.gov.sg/Act/ISA1965
Population Trends in Singapore, 1819-1967 www.jstor.org/stable/20067730
Singapore: A Modern History amzn.to/3oJUfJ7
Singapore: Unlikely Power amzn.to/3BgbeaL
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Singapore’s independence from Malaysia in 1965 is one of the most interesting cases of state creation in modern international relations. But it wasn’t quite as it seems. In retrospect, was the separation inevitable? And was reunification ever a realistic prospect - as suggested at the time?
Thanks for the great video. The ultimate reason why Malaysia was reluctant but no choice but to expel Singapore was an ideological and practical one. In the Malaysian Federation then, there was about equal % of Chinese vs Malays. Lee Kuan Yew's party - PAP was a proponent of "Malaysia for Malaysian" and all races would be equal. As a Malay royalty, Tunku Abdul Rahman's Party- UMNO was a proponent for the idea whereby Malays deserve preferential privileges (which is the current situation of Malaysia today). In 1964, all signs points to the fact that PAP and their allied parties would be the winner of the coming General Elections and this is why Singapore had to be expelled from the federation and this the biggest reason why LKY cried when announcing the expulsion/independence. Malaysia then thought that Singapore would not survive and would come back begging to re-join, which has yet to happen till now.
Reunification is not realistic now, because of Singapore dollar power over Malaysian ringgit currency. Perhaps we can consider Singapore reunification with Johor state, not reunification with Malaysia. In the beginning, Johor's sultan refuse to join Malaysia Federation because he will lose a lot of power to federal government. Before Singapore was British colony, it was part of Johor Empire that was under jurisdiction of ministry of interior called Temenggong. Now the Temenggong's descendent become Sultan of Johor. The sultan still hold many land lots, some kind of exclave inside Singapore.
@@kennyeo110874 no.
I am afraid you get it all wrong.
To understand ,you need to go appreciate the situation prior to Malaya accorded independence.
Oersekutuan Tanah Melayu or internationally known as Federation of Malaya achieved indeoenced in 1957.
It was. Formerly a combination of 2 British colonies and 9 Malay protectorates.
Prior to independence, only the Mslays and natives are subject of Malay Rulers.
Non Malays were mere immigrants ant that time.
Independennce enables the Chinese and Indians to be given massive citizenships by 9 Malay sultans.
It was a gesture of beauty, generosity unrivalled on this planet.
Surely you can appreciate the fact that something must be given back to Malays in return to Malay Sultans granting massive citizenships to non Malays.
Would you want to grant citizenships en bloc to non. malaus on scale that change the land from being exclusively Malays to that being multiracial.
The constitution takes a middle path. While it recognises the rights of all races ( embracing immigrants as citizens) it too appreciate the reality that the land now called Malaysia was once exclusively Malays kingdoms.
LKY CHALLENGED THAY CONCEPT.
He ignored the the fact that the special rights that he challenged were actually enshrined in Constitution SIMPLY because Malays agreed to massive citizenships to non Malays.
Bear in mind that at end of 1940s right to 1990s Malaysia was threatened by Communists.
And almost entire Communicates were Chinesee while almost entire armed Forces of the land has been always Malays.
Thousands of Malays on remote areas were killed by Communists. Thousand of young Malay soldiers were killed. by Communists too.
At time when balcks were legally separated from White in Deep South America and times where West tolerated apartheid, aChinese was appointed as first Governor of Melaka upon independence in 1957.
Surely people can appreciate how magniminous the Malays are.
LKY incited the non Mslays to go against the Govt of Malaysia. prior to independence, he promised not to meddle in Mslaysian politics.
He promised just to confine his politics in Singapore. But soon Tunku realised his ambition to actually go for the post of PM of Malaysia.
And this is something the Malays can't stomach.
Though he was rejected almost entirely by Malay community, he managed to get the non Malays excited.
The British actually offered to lock LKY into ISA should Tunku cancel his decision to expel Singapore.
But Tunku had enough of LKY' s antics
In 1996, Dr Goh Keng Swee revealed the classified 'Albatross Files' to Melanie Chew in an interview chronicled in her book Leaders of Singapore (World Scientific) that independence was never foisted on Singapore. He admitted that he was behind discussions for a swift and voluntary withdrawal from the merger in which the Malaysians were agreeable. As the British always wanted Singapore to be part of Malaysia, the ejection had to be presented as a fait accompli. If you refer to my article in Asian Studies Review 45(3) 2021, I quoted Chew's interview with Goh at length.
Political reunification is practically impossible given outright vehement Malay opposition towards it but an economic union might be possible.In this respect,the two nations would have an integrated common Asean market.
Prof, I'm a Sarawakian. The split between Malaya and Singapore also had huge impacts to Sabah and Sarawak leaving us stranded in this political mess. The narrative and perspective of the two Bornean states in the formation of the Malaysia confederation have often been neglected in the mainstream history. Would you please consider do an episode about this? Thank you in advance.
It was Lee Kuan Yew who Masterminded Malaysia for his own benefit to defeat the communist in Singapore . TUNKU IS NOT THE FATHER OF MALAYSIA. LEE IS THE FATHER OF MALAYSIA ,BUT HE ABANDONED IT . He wrote secretly to Tunku in May 1961 presenting to tunku that it is a Malay Malaysia where Tunku can control with Lee's recommendation and his meticulous calculation of political power . His intentions is clear ,he wanted to use the borneo states to achieve his merger with malaya for fighting against the communist . Lee worked with the Bristh to come to influence and threatened the people with communist threats and he managed to use Tunku and the British to seduce and armtwist Sabah and Sarawak into the federation . But he later turned around and challenged Tunku with his Malaysian Malaysia Convention with eloquent words told infront of all the delegates from Sabah and Sarawak , despite the fact that secret negotiations have started by Singapore about mutually consented separation, and all this was done without the consent and knowledge of the people of Sabah and Sarawak whom Lee came to persuade them . He is a con man who knows how to use others and betray and shed crocodile tears to win global sympathy . Sabah and Sarawak will forever remember his betrayal . 13:53
Simple solution. Do what Brunei does. Have independence, but enter into currency parity arrangement to stablise the new Sarawak / Sabah dollar.
1967:
Singapore Dollar : Malaysian Ringgit was 1:1
Singapore Dollar : Brunei Dollar was 1:1
2023:
Singapore Dollar : Malaysian Ringgit is 3.5: 1
Singapore Dollar : Brunei Dollar is 1:1
I really hope Sabah and Sarawak develop to become better because now it can be a lot better and it's fuck just how undeveloped some part on our fellow Malaysian there
sincerely from random Kelantanese inside random forest
@@keffinsg you want phillipines to encroach to Sabah teriitory?
@@STORYSEEKER1 I heard most of the oil are in east Malaysia.
Sometimes it's better to be good neighbours than bad flatmates. Perhaps the best way is for Singapore and Malaysia (as well as Indonesia and Brunai) to collaborate economically and culturally, without entering into unstable political unions.
it's crazy to even consider that Lee Kuan Yew begged Tunku to make it like China-Hong Kong. But, Tunku still preferred to expel the important crossroads in trade.
Not everybody make good decision, but we learn and improve on our mistakes
@@Probanot The Tengku was under incessant pressure by the Umno Ultras to expel Singapore from the Federation. That probably explains why his deputy Razak Senior held secretive talks with his Singapore counterpart Goh Keng Swee.Both were not in favour of a settlement with Lee Kuan Yew and the PAP.
Incidentally,Razak Senior visited Kuan Yew only to gauge his feelings.
Yes! It is okay but see what has 'this old man' done? Now, the Chinese Singaporeans would not sing 'Majulah Singapura' in schools with strong exclamation, "Chinese Speak Mandarin". Real SUSAH(difficuty) NOW! You want to buy anythings, you must go and learn Mandarin first, then they will sell you. Real HI-FI, indeed!
@@simonsimon2888 your head lah, now new gens no longer speak chinese. their Chinese macam shit since everyone from all races speak english.
As someone with roots in Southeast Asia, I've always found the history behind Singapore's independence particularly fascinating. Great video as always Professor Ker-Lindsay!
Hi Robert, so glad you liked it! :-) I do like to do the videos on SE Asia. This was actually a topic I had wanted to cover for a very long time as I have a bit of a personal link to the subject. It is such a fascinating story, and there was a little more to it than is often suggested.
I hope all is well with you.
@@JamesKerLindsay a secret not know to most is that Lee Kwan Yew engineered the joining and seperation of Singapore as he wanted Singapore to break free from British colonialism but already knew in advance that Singapore and Malaya would not stay joined for long due yo differences. His biggest regret was leaving Sabah and Sarawak behind with Malaysia.
@@calvyncraven1141 lee kuan yew is legendary
@@calvyncraven1141 like you know it.😊😊😊
@@zulkanainbaharuddin2185 i remember watching a video by one of the ministers in LKYs cabinet saying so
Singaporean here. 🇸🇬 Malaysian leaders wanted a Malaysia for Malays whereas the People's Action Party wanted a Malaysia for all races. As a Singaporean I'm only glad that the separation was peaceful and relations with Malaysia remain cordial to this date.
Penangite here. I wish Singapore took Penang state together when leaving.
Imagine the potential might of sg if she had merged with sabah and sarawak and had access to their vast natural resources .
Correction! Malay leaders and not Malaysian leaders.
Lim Kit Siang of DAP is a Malaysian Chinese and has been fighting for equality since 1969. DAP is part of the former PAP.
If Dr M was prime minister at that time, he won't give the Chinese even an inch of land.
The Tanah Melayu for Malays was a sentiment that was part of the independence movement and came to prominence in their campaign against the creation of Malayan Union.
Skip some parts and the British had handpicked whom they wanted to pass the administration baton. The UMNO-MCA-MIC coalition.
The Brits were broke and an economic mess after WW2 and wanted a clean exit.
They didnt want to deal with the millions of Chinese and Indians the Brits had brought into Malaya as labourer. Their solution was independence with the condition that the Indian and Chinese migrants be offered citizenship.
The foreign labour force being offered citizenship was a condition many in the Malay nationalistic movement were not happy with.
Many of the leaders from these alternate Malay political movements were even arrested just after Malaya got its independence.
But that ethno nationalistic movement hadnt died off entirely and continued to show up from there on in.
Dalio
No
PAP wanted a Chinese Malaysian sugar coated under Malaysian Malaysia tagline.
Why on earth you feel that Malaysian leader wanted Malaysia for Malays when they granted massive citizenships to non Malays in the first place?
Will the Brirish ever willing to accept. AChiense as it's PM ?
Generous you could have been but surely you would not want to surrender the top post to other races
I’m a Malaysian and although I’ve learnt about this at school, I did it for exam so nothing really got into my head. Listening to this as an adult feels so much more interesting-especially it is informative and neutral. It feels like listening to a proper lecture and make me wanna learn more about my country and how it stands, politically and economically, around the region. Thank you for this video ❤️ Take care and stay safe
Thank you so much! This is so lovely to hear. :-) I think we often learn things at school that we don’t really take on board until later on. Take care too. Very best wishes from London.
Very good details go
7:10 It wasn't a one-sided affair and UMNO kind of fired the first shot here. UMNO competed in the 1963 state elections in Singapore and failed to win any seats, even in Malay-dominant constituencies. PAP then contested in the 1964 federal elections and won one seat. The separation then happened in 1965.
Exactly what I thought and read long time ago.
It was racial politics back then and till now.
@@frontier7320 still is right now in Malaysia
Jayalah Singapura 🇸🇬 salam from indonesia 🇲🇨
@@Jinkypigs no doubt bout it. It's still happening.
Kudos to all the leaders on both sides who made this happen peacefully. If they were stupid people they would have tried to force what they want through military bloodshed.
They really deserve a Noble prize for this & what they did should be taught in schools from kindergarten to university level in all countries
I was trying to think of a comment for this really awesome comment... but unfortunately... I can't think of one ... XD
Yes, only with a slight problem of one side proceed to murder 600 or so ethnic Han four years later and literally wrote discrimination into law. But I guess if we are handing noble peace prize to the guy who order drone strike like he orders breakfast, it’s not too crazy to recognize any of Malaysian prime minister as an symbol of “peace”
@@mastersonogashira1796 please tell us too about provocative Chinese procession right into Malay settlement
And in that procession, the protesters ( flag of DAPwas there) showed giant brush to the Malays
@@shamshulanuar7718 those “Chinese” are Malaysian, they were celebrating an election victory. By your standard, the “Chinese” then have right to loot and riot every election after the 69 election
@@shamshulanuar7718 ah melayu melayu, melayu. MELAYU. Janji org kite kan?
Malaysia's decision to expel singapore is due almost entirely to the then ruling party's propensity to create a country utterly dominated by one race, and the late lky's propensity to multi racial inclusions.
Were not perfect but at least we kicked umno out in 2018 (for a while). Can you say the same about your one ruling party since independence?
@@elkapitan75
1: you're assuming too much.
2: well done about the kicking.
3: too bad about them back in power.
4: ppl would rather have a corrupt incompetent local and loyal government than a foreign sponsored puppet government.
@@elkapitan75 can your country do the same to attract drove of Singaporean to Malaysia for work just as what Singapore did now?
@@elkapitan75 Why would they remove their competent government who are doing their job well?
LKY dont understand Malaya, that's why he was kicked out barely 2 years what does that tell you? I wouldn't even call that unity or anything concrete. Do note ASEAN today is different from ASEAN 50 years ago. Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand and Vietnam are independent, self-sufficient, growing well and quite advanced, wealthy in many key aspects.
As a Singaporean, I found this video informative and accurate, yet concise and succinctly interesting for me. It helped me with my history homework today. Subscribed and liked your video! :D
Thank you so much! That is really wonderful to hear. :-) Sending my very best regards from London.
And it had to come from foreigners.🏳🏳
After Singapore breakaways, Malaysia suffered a great loss and it's very shitty doing. wanna know why? It's Singapore itself that want to leave us after what Tunku have done to help them. Hey, that's just my opinion 🤓 I bet Lee Kuan yew is happy as shit leaving all of those problems to us.
@@alphabeta3528in our books LKY had nothing to do with but our other minister goh Chok tong
I was aware of this story, but I didn't really know the details. Thank you for another great video. The series on the origin of countries is very interesting, you should do more videos of this genre!
Thanks so much Marco. I'm so glad you liked it. I really love doing these videos from time to time. The only problem is that they don't tend to perform as well as the more contemporary current affairs videos. But I like to think that these historical videos do help us to understand things that are happening now.
What a lovely and clear introduction. Thanks so much. I’ve been through Singapore in transit about 30 times, but know shamefully little about it.
Also, the split of Czechoslovakia isn’t too dissimilar from this, in that the Czechs were indeed the dominant force in that Federation, and that the split itself wasn’t even wished for by a majority of the population, and, yet, it was still a peaceful affair.
Yes, James should do a video on that break-up.
@@markmh835 I’d like to second that!
It's even more ironic considering they're sorta together again thanks to EU membership.
Great video as always Prof. As a 🇲🇾 who grew up in Singapore/has family there, thought this was a very fascinating take on this.
Thank you so much! It really was such an interesting story. I had wanted to cover it for ages.
Your speech is very clear and very understandable even for non native English speaker like me. This really helps me in understanding my country political situations back then and comparing it to present.
Thanks for this valuable in depth research, Prof James
Very interesting. Great content as always.
Thanks so much! Have a great weekend.
I would like to express my gratitude to find your channel, Prof. You helped me alot to understand Solomon Island policy and help me to get good grade on my exam for FP change. Thankyou very much, Prof.
Thank you so much for the kind comment! I’m delighted you found the channel and that it is so useful. If you know anyone else who might like it, do let them know! :-)
it’s really good video for me to understand more about my country’s history mostly because your video gave me more information from what i already learnt
Thanks so much. Always really great to hear! I hope I was able to put the events in a slightly wider context. It is such an interesting story in so many ways.
Outstanding Video, thank you very much for all the details, really appreciated
Thank you very much indeed. I had wanted to cover this topic for ages. It was such an interesting story.
Thank you this amazing content !keep it up
Thank you so much. I do love doing these more historical videos from time to time. They aren't quite as popular as the current affairs focused videos, but they can often help to shed light on what's happening now.
It’s understandable that you didn’t cover the Sharia law issues and “special rights for the Malays” that also led to the break up.
Yes, it's a mistake to not acknowledge the groundbreaking nature of what happened in this instance. Namely a nation where Muslims had a rule ceding territory to kufar. Something that's proscribed by Islam.
Muslims consider land once conquered to be Islamic henceforth, so the decision to relinquish territory-especially in a non-war circumstance, such as was the case in The Sudan-is remarkable.
@@GerardPerry The early Malay leaders of Malaysia were kinda secular. The first Malaysian PM, Tunku Abdul Rahman was known to enjoy beer. Malaysian Malays only got seriously religious starting in the 80s.
It is was never meant to ne an Islamic state but a Secular state. That is why Sarawak and Sabah. Both these states are predominant Christians state. Project IC was launched by Mahathir to by recognised Muslim that migrated from Philippines and Indonesia and thus upset the local indegenious Kadazan tribe that are predominantly Christian. From indegenious people become Miniority and lost the country to foreigners.
Actually the Malays hijacked the country...
@@xzdrtxyzxvn Like the way Chinese hijacked Singapore?
It will be a political and economic suicide for Singapore to integrate with Malaysia.
Singapore's leaders had a forward vision and still have a forward vision. This tiny red dot is going places with a strong economy and strong currency. The respect for the Singapore passport is priceless.
I'm a Singaporean who values my forefathers' efforts in making this fishing village a global powerhouse.
Nobody is suggesting that Singapore will one day seek reintegration. As a Malaysian,I have yet to hear any of my countryman voicing this out.The same goes to any Singaporean.
Common sense would suggest that come what may,both countries must thrive to maintain Asean solidarity.
@@utubegeronimo7628 peace ✌🏽
Naaah, I am a Singaporean too and when Singapore forefather exist in power, Singapore is already a successful entre port (established by the British), not fishing village It's all in Singapore secondary school textbook. please don't go around changing history.
@xarifa777 Thanks for concurring that PAP did not transform Singapore from a fishing village. Singapore and Singaporeans did not exist then. There were no such thing as foreign talent. Because of the British port, immigrants from regions started coming here. Other successful reknown infracture is the public housing, which was also created by the British There are tons of things that were successful in Singapore which China would never ever have adopted, till today. As much as you would like to deny the contributions of the British, Singapore adopted the British system and eridated the Chinese communism, which makes Singapore successful.
@xarifa777 Donkey, PAP "Didn't" transform Singapore from a fishing village. PAP was formed in 1954, which is already not a fishing village. Sri Lanka, Malaysia and India didn't do well because the country undergo different route of transformation and they have different demographic. You gladly omitted Hong Kong that so much similarities and became a global financial center. Of course now starting to become crap after returning to China. Where did you think LKY studies law in? Where do you think Singapore juridical system, Parliamentary system leverage from?
Thank you for this helpful and informative video!
We were never kicked off. So Happy and proud and ever grateful that we dissolved that most terrible mistake we made. Thank you, Mr. Lee Kuan Yew. You were remarkable.. So proud of you Sir. Majulah Singapura ♥️
Sebagai rakyat Malaysia apa yang telah berlaku iaitu pemisahan Singapura dari Persekutuan Malaysia lebih banyak kebaikannya dari keburukan. Walaupun telah berpisah kedua negara masih lagi rakan dagang dan ekonomi yg baik , pertalian saudara antara rakyat kedua negara juga sangat erat , semoga hubungan kedua negara tetap akrab 🇲🇾🤝🇸🇬
Amat setuju.... SG dah pecut 100x lagi maju dari kita..
Thank you! Your video regarding Israel-Palestine conflict helped me score a perfect grade for my international public law essay☺️
Very interesting. I’m from Dublin, but living in south east Asia, and always trying to absorb as much of the historical details as I can for the region, for which the channel is useful.
Thank You For Another Great Content.
Thanks so much. Glad you liked it!
Detailed, and accurate. New "discoveries" about the events preceding Separation suggests, as you note at the end, that the separation was mutually and consensually negotiated. With some caveats. Firstly, Lee Kuan Yew was, I believe, convinced of the conventional wisdom that Singapore was not viable (or survivable) alone, that Singapore's future was only assured if Singapore was part of Malaysia. To this end, he made a series of Radio "Chats" in 1961, arguing for why Singapore needed to Merge with Malaya. So when Singapore was "expelled" from the Federation, LKY felt it to his core. And he cried when he appeared on TV to explain to Singaporeans the "anguish" of Separation. And yes, of course he kept open the possibility of re-admission to the Federation.
As did Tungku Abdul Rahman, the then-Prime Minister of the Federation.
As you noted, most countries are loathe to lose territories. So for the Federation to expel or agree to separation (or secession) by a state is unique and unprecedented (AFAIK). To perhaps understand this, one needs to understand the Malay preference for non-confrontational problem solving. (I see this in their parenting style.)
Lee Kuan Yew was a problem to the Malaysian leaders. He was too vocal, and too rational, and cannot be beat in a debate. Moreover, debating him would just publicise the arguments against their policies.
As you noted, first Tungku Abdul Rahman proposed confederation - "hiving off" Singapore from the Federation to be a confederated state. Lee authorised Goh Keng Swee to negotiate with Tun Razak (DPM) on the status of Singapore. Goh had been sceptical of the advantage of Merger, and he counter-proposed complete Separation of Singapore. Tun Razak liked this. I believe it synch-ed with the Malay's preference for non-confrontation. The conventional wisdom (then) is that Singapore was too small to survive as an independent nation. It lacked natural resources, it depended on Malaysia for water, and it did not even have enough land to grow enough food to feet her people. How could Singapore survive?
So, the solution (to the Malaysian Leaders) is to cast off Singapore (and Lee Kuan Yew) and let Singapore (and Lee) struggle to survive. After a few years of hardship and poverty, lean times and hunger, Singapore would probably come crawling back to the Federation and ask to be re-admitted. On the Federation terms. By then, the People of Singapore would have been so disenchanted by Lee and would have probably voted him out of office for leading them into those years of privation. But if by some miracle he was still PM of Singapore, the terms of re-admission would be that he step down from office and abstain from politics. Lesson taught and lesson learnt.
I believe that was the plan.
Except that Singapore did not know that was the plan. And Lee and his cabinet made other plans.
And never looked back.
Thank you so much. I really appreciate it. It is interesting how the account of events has changed with evidence. It was always presented as a case of expulsion, but we now know it was a little more complex than this. But the cultural factors behind it were a really fascinating insight. And you are absolutely right. At the time it was felt that Singapore could not exist as such a small entity. It was all very well talking about The European microstates, such as Monaco and Andorra, but they existed in a very specific context. To have a new city-state country seemed almost impossible to imagine. And yet here we are. Singapore has certainly never looked back!
I thi j you briefly covered it, but race was a significant factor in the political conflicts too. Malaysia wants a Malay first system, while Singapore wanted racial equality. This was one of the main points used by UMNO campaigning in Singapore, and PAP in Malaysia. Much conflict arose over whether race should determine status.
I've also heard that the new Singaporean law enforcement had to get Ghurkas just to get the law enforcement racially neutral. Crazy that they had to do this just to keep the peace.
Hello, once again, this was a great video! The 108th anniversary of the declaration of independence of Northern Epirus is closing in so I wanted to ask you to add this to your list of possible videos if it's not already in there.
This was really interesting to learn about! Thanks Professor
Thank so much. Glad you liked it!
Thanks for doing the video professor, very interesting topic!
Telling the background story was definitely a perfect way to start. I actually researched a lot of that same background for a video on the Wayback history channel about Penang, and based on that that it’s honestly surprising to me there aren’t more small independent states in the region given how fractured it’s administration was, and how different the ethnic makeup was of the numerous disparate British colonies and protectorates. In terms of having a population dramatically different from the interior regions, Singapore is even more extreme than Penang, Singapore would always be difficult to incorporate regardless of the political bickering.
I think it’s a somewhat unlikely outcome that’s occurred with Penang and Malacca becoming part of Malaya. I don’t know as much about the Borneo territories so I won’t hit on that, except to point to Brunei as another example of one that actually became its own entity, and the Labuan Islands as another example of one that did not. You hit on all of this including the Borneo stuff, which is awesome I learned from that and want to read about more. I also love that you noted something I think I overlook but need to keep in mind, which is a natural affinity they have for each other
However Malaysia’s corruption is also something I researched, in the context of the missing airplane, and I’m not really sure Singapore would want to deal with the bureaucratic web that is Malaysia, which even within it still has so many disparate and self interested parties including various sultans, etc. Meanwhile Singapore chuggs along to its own drum, with plenty of its own problems sure, but very much secure in a place of international prominence.
So I definitely agree that the unification is wholly unlikely. Awesome video!
Thanks as ever LocalLt. The Borneo element is indeed fascinating. In fact, I have a link to the island. My father grew up in Brunei (and the family story is that we still even have some property there). Unfortunately, I have never been, although I have been to Singapore and Malaysia. I really want to return to the subject of Sabah and Sarawak. There have been a number of comments raising just how disillusioned people feel there.
More generally, I must say that I really enjoy doing these types of historical videos from time to time. Sadly, they don't tend to do particularly well. And certainly not nearly as well as my work on current affairs. However, they always seem to attract a much more reasonable discussion. Its sometimes nice to have a quieter week. But do keep an eye for next week's video. All being well, and if nothing drastic happens, I hope to be looking at a rather interesting historical situation that is ramping up again.
Hej. I think a video on the history on Åland would go in the same patterns, I am of the understanding that some people on Åland was disappointed when sweden refused to make a claim on the territory in the early 20th century.
Watched a few videos now. Solid factual content. Subscribed. 👌
Thanks very much. And a very warm welcome to the channel!
On point again prof. Amazing video
Thank you so much! Have a great weekend.
The split was a fundamental one with Lee Kuan Yew advocating a "Malaysian Malaysia" whilst the Umno has a racial biased system with Malays at the top. There was never going to be an amicable agreement. Tungku believed that Singapore would fail and renegotiate to rejoin.
exactly, the "door" was intentionally left open because everyone thought Singapore will fail and LKY will renegotiate to rejoin the federation on much less favorable terms. Well guess we all knew how they turned out
The then Malaysian politicians were waiting for us to scramble back. Thank God, on the separation night LKY declared “Singapore will survive!” and gave his whole life time doing it. And now the SGD is 3 times RM.
@@leewn2319 Kudos to LKY's foresight, leadership and our pioneer's generation hard work!
@CK Lim You must be thinking of Brunei, Singapore was not wealthy and we had autonomy over our own economy within Malaysia anyway, so that wasn't the problem. Most of our economy came from servicing Malaysian trade goods via our ports. Once we left, Johore started developing Pasir Gudang as a replacement port for Singapore.
If it were Dr Mahathir, he would not give one inch of land to the Chinese. They are trying to dilute Penang's Chinese population so the same thing won't happen to Penang.
Thanks, amazing video as usual. Love Singapore, and thus, already was aware of the story of its separation, but not of the details you've brought up.
Thanks so much Ephraim. I’m a huge fan of Singapore as well. (And Malaysia.) It really is incredible what they have managed to achieve, even under a seemingly inauspicious start. It was fascinating to delve into the story in a bit more detail.
Hi Ephraim from your name Im assuming you're not a Singaporean national (Im assuming). Could you pls share why you say you love Singapore? Just am interested to understand an outsider's perspective.
As an Australian academic considering moving to Malaysia, I appreciate your informed presentation. We are currently travelling through Malaysia and the region, and this video has provided an thoughtful backdrop to the cultural milieu we are experiencing.
Subscribed, and looking forward to engaging further with your content, James!
Thanks so much. That’s really great to hear. A warm welcome to the channel. :-) what a wonderful trip. I hope you are having a really nice time. I managed to go to Malaysia and Singapore about ten years ago and loved it. It’s a fascinating part of the world.
Interesting and educative piece of information about the separation history of Malaysia and Singapore. Thank you!
It's funny how Sarawak and Sabah (a.k.a North Borneo) also wants independence from Malaysia now
It's not funny at all.we struggled to do that.
@@northborneotourism9185I was talking about leaving Malaysian federation.
I think u misunderstood
Sabah is a part of Philippines not Malaysia
Finally you get into this topic. I am waiting for it years. The Malaysia Act Chapter 35 - upgraded the Crown Colony to "New State". The notion of Confederation are there all along in Malaysia Agreement 1963. The Singapore Separation act by the Malaysia Parliament was objected by the British, as the bill of Independence can only be approve by the British Parliament.
Thanks. I had wanted to do this video for ages. It is such an interesting subject. Thanks for the extra background.
@@JamesKerLindsay I can work this topic with you. The Formation of Malaysia and the Trusteeship system.
Any crown/colony that under British empire must through Westminster parliament to get independence .. by mean they're still British subject ..
@@president2887 interesting...
Does this meaning Ex- Crown Colony of Penang could also gain independent from Malaysia if the British consented?
I am glad we are out and led by a wise leader and his team.
This is a very interesting story!
Very good job. Others have focused on the racial elements. Others have looked at the political angle - PAP trying to takeover Malaysia? Others, a few, have looked at the economic side. You have deftly covered all three.
Thank you very much indeed. It is such an interesting subject, not just for the two countries but also from a wider international politics angle. I had wanted to take a look at it for a while.
Great video! Your question at the end made me think of the apartheid government in South Africa. I believe the South African government attempted to forcibly create independent “states” along ethnic lines but they were not considered legitimate independent states by anyone on the world stage.
Thanks so much. Great point! I’ve actually wanted to do a video on the Bantustans for ages. It is a fascinating topic.
Thanks for this history lesson. Many history lessons learned have to be unlearned.
Nice video , Prof.
Just one suggestion, is it possible to add some infographics/animation etc to break up the video instead of a single monologue.
Other than that, as a Singaporean, this is fascinating info for me as well..
James, please do a video on Sabah and Sarawak, there have been secessionist movements from these 2 states to separate from Malaysia recently as a result of historical grievances of these states.
Hi Marissa, thanks so much. That's a fantastic suggestion! I have marked it down. I would really like to come back to this. I often try to make a background history video like this as it is useful for more contemporary videos.
Oh I could save you some time. MA63 weren't drafted in the federal constitution. And everything had been under federation of Malaya laws. So the consequences can be seen today in SS.
Singapore absence created a vacuum in 2/3 majority required for amendment of law.
And to make matter worse, malays actually see SS as inferior to their majority which is the wrong way to continue the operation of the federation.
Singapore blunt approach is actually what SS is doing now. It is not beyond them to kick SS as we repeated what Singapore did. But it is a bad time to do so regardless. Sarawak still fared well compared to Sabah. I feared Sabah had become an anarchy state.
5:38 ironic how Singapore, despite its controversial referendum was kicked out, whereas Sabah & Sarawak were denied referendum, yet to this day denied their independence.
@@JamesKerLindsay Hope that yo do your research well before doing the new video. Coz there are many seccesionist elements trying to breakup the federation by playing the racist narrative of the malay majority whereas the actual policy defines natives SS as natives, not only the malay.
Not secession but separation .
Amazing to think that at one point the island of Singapore had a population larger than the Malay Peninsula. I'm guessing that's why Singapore wasn't initially amalgamated into the Federation like Malacca and Penang when the Strait Settlements were dissolved.
The island was and still the economic and trading hub of South East Asia, which explains the exponential growth of population compared to other less developed regions.
Not. Singapore population is much smaller but make up of at least 80
% Chinese at that time.
Singapore had a smaller popular but over 70% of the population was Ethnic Chinese. When Singapore joined Malaysia the overall Chinese population of Malaysia became larger. The Malays were still a majority but their overall share of the population shrank. Another issue was that Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew said that any Malaysian irregardless of race could be Prime Minister of Malaysia. UMNO leaders said only a Malay could be a Prime Minister.
Abhitron
No. The population of Singapore has never been larger than that of Malaysia
@@DevSidhu-jp1mu err actually UMNO did not say that.
No need for UMNO to say that.
Anyone can be the PM of Malaysia . Just like no law prohibiting a Muslim to be the PM of Britain or a Malay as PM of Singapore.
Just that you need to win the election. Just because LKY was not able to be the PM of Malaysia( that was his ambition) does not mean Malaysia is racist.
It just meant that he did not have support from Malay community.
It is as simple as that
Thank you for making a video about my country.
Thank you so much. I had a chance to visit Singapore and Malaysia a number of years ago. I absolutely love the region. My father grew up in Brunei and went to school in Singapore and so I gave some links to the countries. He was also absolutely fluent in Malay. Anyway, I’d be really keen to hear what you think of it. And how do people there feel about the separation six decades later?
@@JamesKerLindsay After six decades, relations between Singaporeans and Malaysians is warm and cordial. There has been bumps here and there like the odd airspace/seaspace issues or water supply issues but overall relationship is still very good. Singaporeans and Malaysians still get along well on a personal level. Culturally, we are close.
fascinating. thanks Prof.
Thank a lot! Have a great weekend.
Lee Kuan Yew has done well for Singapore... Without the independence, my family & I wouldn't have attained a world-class education that is recognized in UK & US.... Many Malaysians long for education, jobs and residency in Singapore.
Yes and many of them are here. I'm OK with them being here as it promotes competition and bring up the standard.
residency?.. hahah
*Hi, James, I wonder if Czech-Slovakia partition (maybe not the right word) is similar to Singapore-Malaysia one? And a massive THANKYOU for your impressive video.*
Thanks so much. Great question! I would regard the two cases as slightly different. The Czechoslovak split is fascinating - and I have been meaning to do something on this for a while as well. However, I think it was a more obviously consensual separation - although it too was never put to the population. In the Singapore Malaysia case, there were clearly serious tensions driving the split. But I can certainly see the links, especially if we accept that Singapore essentially accepted the move.
@@JamesKerLindsay *I see, thanks again! ❤️*
Quite intriguing
The good thing about the separation is that Singapore is now considered a Developed nation.
Very surprised to see you cover my "little red dot" country, Prof.! Just want to let you know that you have at least a Singaporean follower on your channel for months too!
For your knowledge, you actually cover this period of our history better than our school textbooks lol. (For example, they didn't mention how the PAP contesting in Malaysian areas were seen by UMNO as intruding on their territory and enraging them, thus being one of key factors in slowly igniting the inevitable dynamite that would lead to the eventual separation of Singapore & Malaysia)
Also I read that at that time, LKY was somehow seduced by the thought and vibe from Tunku Rahman that after Rahman, he (LKY) would be the next PM of Malaysia. Which was why LKY happily tried to convince Sabah (North Borneo), Sarawak & Brunei to join this new Federation of Malaysia. So he would had been the next leader of this new powerful Federation. The dreams of such power and greed definitely motivated him.
Still however, all of today isn't all calm. Just last year the idiot Malaysian politicians held military drills on our Singaporean Independence Day, for no good reason. Many of us normal Singaporeans & Malaysians today have no quarrels with each other. We regularly visit each other, some can have families in both nations, some even work in each other's countries and many of us mutually stimulate each other's economies often, especially pre-COVID. Heck, I as a Singaporean am even proud and happy of the fact that my paternal grandma and maternal grandpa were born in Malaysia too! But yet you still can have people like the immortal vampire Mahathir continuing to blame Singapore for all of Malaysia's problems lol.
And also from what I read from some East Malaysians (Sabah & Sarawak) online, they too aren't happy how the West Malaysians happily profit off their Borneo oil resources, while not really giving the poorer East Malaysians back in terms of equal economic development that the West Malaysians experience. Here's an article I found awhile ago on this, maybe someday you might cover this lesser known tension the same way you taught us about the West Papuan tensions:
www.google.com.sg/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=&ved=2ahUKEwi3r4Khx_r1AhW1xDgGHegdDJ4QFnoECAUQAQ&url=https%3A%2F%2Fthediplomat.com%2F2020%2F12%2Fborneoexit-independence-for-east-malaysia%2F&usg=AOvVaw2a72Iw0475uLG528jV91Jf
theconversation.com/is-malaysia-heading-for-borneoexit-why-some-in-east-malaysia-are-advocating-for-secession-146208
Thought this extra info might interest you Prof. Have a good day and I look forward to seeing you cover more ASEAN nations' histories and politics too!
I may be under informed, however I doubt LKY would have harboured thoughts of being the next PM. At least not immediately after Rahman since PAP always understood the delicate racial balance. Hindsight is always perfect, that episode probably forced Singapore to "grow up" rapidly. We can only thank God we had LKY as our leader during those turbulent times.
I learn about PAP contesting in Malaya in secondary school textbook. I took history in upper sec n its very detail on what happen. UMNO too contest in Singapore. Remnants of both parties still exist in each other countries till today.
Where LKY hit the ide that Tunku " seduced" him by implying LKYbwousk be given the post of PM of Malaysia once Tunku retired.
It was LKY who relentlessly persuaded Tunkunto accept Singapore in.
But Tunku was not convinced initially.
He did not trust LKY.
Prior entry of PAP into Malaya election, the Malayan ruling coalition ('Alliance' /Perikatan) was represented by alliance of major ethnic parties lead by a dominant ethnic Malay party ('UMNO') which collectively gained support from most Malayans. The entry of PAP was seen as desire by PAP to erode the support of non-Malays from the Alliance, which could potentially lead to formation of 2 block of political groups (Malay led Alliance, non-Malay led PAP) competing against each other, creating racial tensions.
Ya exactly... Rahman don't trust LKY. Just like the new Railway Project. Singapore government will not accept anything that is against Morale and corruption. The railway project between both countries failed cos Malaysia rejected the initial proposal of an independent audit company overseeing.
Likewise , back in the 60s , Malaysia knows LKY will be a hindrance to their state, opposing all corruptions.
Today u can see the big differences on the 2 countries of governing. So it's so lucky Singapore was expelled back then..
Thank you very much, James, for this video! You really nailed it because it was just so accurate.
As a Malaysian myself, this story isn't really new for me since we learn it at school. But looking from an IR perspective, this story is really mind-boggling indeed and I think many Malaysians aren't aware of how unique this story is given how we learn it as a regular thing narrative in school.
I also noticed you put some soft music in the video too hahaha. Singapore and Malaysia are always close geographically, economically and culturally. Almost like the US and Canada. But reunification would be undesirable by now given how politically different both states are now.
Amazing stuff as always! I do hope you can continue making more videos on Southeast Asia in the future!
Thank you so much! That is high praise indeed. I'm always a little nervous about how topics will go down with those who really know the subject. :-) But this was a subject that I had wanted to cover for ages and, as you know, I have a personal interest in it.
I certainly plan to return to SE Asia. I certainly have more than a few other topics I would like to cover!
BTW, the music has actually been there for a while. I just kept it really low. This time I very slightly increased the volume. I don't want it to be distracting, and I hope it wasn't, but I think it does help to add a little extra dimension to the videos.
@@JamesKerLindsay I see. I just noticed the background music with my Bluetooth earphones hahaha.
But I need to commend your research here. Your presentation was very accurate. You got the party names correctly and you understood the difference between "Malays" and "Malaysians" which is very nice. Quite a number of Westerners (from my experience at least) usually confuse between the two.
Overall, the video is incredibly accurate and detailed for me. I would highly suggest you to present about the formation of Malaysia (since many confuse it with the independence of the Federation of Malaya) as well as the opposition from Indonesia (during the Konfrontasi), the Philippines and Brunei during the early days of the formation of Malaysia. These are some topics I would recommend you to present some time in the future.
In the mean time, as always, keep up with the amazing work! My friends in university and I found your work to be very helpful and informative. 😁
temasik.... the british open the door for chinese from china.... change to singapore bam.... suddenly the malays are immigrants.... nice.... 👍🏼👍🏼
It would be important to be more specific on the differences that triggered the separation. Your style on explaining is very interesting
Sir, Late Singapurian Prime Minister Hon'ble Lee kuan yew, a Great leader, true Icon and land mark example in recent world history, who showed the world, how power of hope & optimism of one honest person, can transform the fate of an entire land & population into excellent tomorrow. Late Mr Lee kuan yew literally turned his every drop of tear rolling out of grief & pain suffered at the moment of seperation from Malaysia, into strong construction block of his healthy & prosperous city nation i,e Singapur. Your video presentation is really nice sir, thank you,
Gotta admit that Singapore was pushed away from Malaysia for certain reasons. Anyway, Singapore has proved herself to be better than Malaysia in terms of economics etc i understand that quite a large number of Malaysian are working in Singapore to earn a better life & better remuneration
Spore was kicked out from the Malaysia cos the PM, then, seeing LKY being smart, intelligent, capable and eloquent might overpower him by winning the hearts of the people. Thanks God, God Almighty did not abandon Singaporean and see them through, provided a righteous government that empahsize on Justice and Equality among different races and religion. Any country that rule by God's way and God's truth based on righteous, justice and equality will be blessed and prosperous! Now look at the Malaysia, am sad for the ppl sufferring under a corrupted government.
Corruption is everywhere. The difference is Singapore, by certain extent, provide the means to laundering ill monies. That's why there were Banks in Singapore if I'm not mistaken penalize and shut down due to 1MDB issue. However, in Malaysia I truly believe there's a reason why such corruption is allowed in Malaysia. One of it, it's not truly gained independence unlike Indonesia in which they fought for it.
@@izzattaz6290 yours facts are incorrect. Sg has the gumption to hunt down and prosecute wrong doing!
@@jeny7177 if 1mdb case didn't blow up it will stay quiet. So it's a fact.
@@andrekingsley8241 Yes, it's now being corrected. But it'll be like crawling to the mountain. This also a fact. Be mindful most of SEA rich people (either corrupted or not) used Sg to transfer their monies to offshore Bank.
Agree with you. I'm a Malaysian and have no hope for this country.
I'm from Sarawak, we want Sarawak having a similar situation like Singapore too,
Great knowledge
Thank you.
5:38 ironic how Singapore, despite its controversial referendum was kicked out, whereas Sabah & Sarawak were denied referendum, yet to this day denied their independence
Very sad sabah north borneo and sarawak😭😭
singapore dosnt have much oil, gas and rubber.. does it?
@@manchagojohnsonmanchago6367 yes ..but they got clever leader that hard to be cheat by malaya
In my opinion, it is wonderful that Malaysia and Singapore separated. Each country has continued to develop at its own pace while having strong diplomatic ties. As a peninsula Malaysian, I would imagine a similar separation between Malaysia and Sabah/Sarawak could be engineered to better manage resources and reduce any conflicts/tensions. Sabah and Sarawak should decide whether they want to be part of Peninsular Malaysia.or not.
I'm Malaysian and have migrated to another country. Malaysia government and Royal never changed. They have huge ego and unable to run a country. They didn't realise that they have gotten rid of most valuable land in the world. "Well done"
There is more to it. Tengku, the Malaysian Prime Minister did not want Lee Kuan Yew to stand for the Prime Ministership of Malaysia which he was entitled to do if Singapore had remained part of Malaysia. My father, Registrar of Societies of Malaysia then, had to ban Lee Kuan Yew's People's Action Party from partaking in Malaysian politics.
A take on the separation that people seem to ignore is that both countries went on the development track while not succumbing to civil strife as with what happened in neighboring countries (namely the coups in Thailand, genocide in Indonesia as well as unrest in the Philippines). It's not a zero sum game, although people seem to think that GDP per capita is a measure of it. To me, avoiding bloodshed and prolonged political turmoil seems better.
1st step towards peace is to stop/stall fighting
Sabah wanted to be like brunei and singapore
Genosida di indonesia? Kalo boleh tau kapan itu terjadi? Orde lama/orde baru? Jangan konyol bung!
I must say Tunku was a benign leader.
He could simply had locked LKY. Being the PM, the numero Uno, that would be the option of many leaders on this planet.
@@josun4873 go look up discrimination against chinese indonesians.
Thanks so much for covering this story. As a Malaysian who were born in 1980s, I've heard so many version of this. But after watching your video only I realised how unique it was compared to other situation.
Yes right now, there are no movement or and pressure group to reunify both countries, and over the years we had developed our own identity, patriotism, and rivalry in sports, economics and other stuff.
I think the main stumbling block would be the difference in politics as in Malaysia we are mostly conservative while Singaporean seem to be more progressive. But if it happen one day, for me its going to feel like it finally came back to where it is belong.
Again, thank you very much Professor ☺️
Thanks you so much! It is really wonderful to hear that you found it interesting and that it haloed to add a slightly different dimension to the story. It was such a fascinating situation, on so many levels.
And thanks so much for the thoughts on reunification. I get the feeling that you've summed it up perfectly. They are now far apart, and content to live as good neighbours, but somewhere deep down there is a sense that maybe they belong together - but it will always be up to the future generations to make it happen. Its actually a rather nice way of looking at things. The world as a whole would be far better off if every country could take that view!
Wow, that became a little more utopian than I expected! :-)
@@JamesKerLindsay As a Singaporean, I can tell you that majority of the people here won't want reunification. As you said, the "door" may have intentionally been left open during the separation but that is because MY thought SG would not have been able to survive as a small little island with no resources and means to defend itself.
They thought that the separation will damper LKY's arrogance and forced him to accept terms unfavorable when he request to rejoin the federation.
56 years later, All of us knew how that turn out 😉
It’s not what the Singaporean thinks but it’s the hope of the Malaysian living next door within walking distance to see this land do return eventually. It’s just a matter of time. The separation is only temporary. Our youths are not the same as our old fashioned senior politicians. They are full of energy and vision and they will succeed eventually.
@@chubascomohd2688 It's not what the Malaysian wish. Singapore have been a sovereign country for 56 years and counting. If it happened, it would have been much much earlier in Singapore's infancy stage where it needs all the help it can. Now that Singapore is rich and successful, you''ll think they wish to "reunify"?
Let me simplify it further, you may describe their relationship akin to a man/women that was dumped by their partner. Now that the man/woman had become successful in their life, the partner came crawling wishing to get back together. Would you?
LKY himself has the ambition to become Malaysia PM. With the chinese population in singapore, he would have a high chance. So kicking singapore out would deny him the chance. Wouldnt be surprise he would cry at losing the opportunity
Tuesday
23 APRIL 2024
I feel, unable to write.
Getting Eng to Day care this morning is a challenge. But Mary helps to conjoul her to get up.
If the terms offered for Singapore to remain in the federation is so bad to the extent that it is unacceptable to LKY, It would seem there is no choice but to "accept" the decision.
Would this still be considered a mutual & consensual ?
Great video - as always! I'm surprised in a way that this is so rare. Considering the amount of ethnic tension that exists within states around the world, I would have expected expulsion to be a more common tactic. It's very interesting to learn that even this - the one well known example of an expulsion - is in fact more a velvet divorce a la Czechoslovakia!
Luckily for singapore had a fine geographic location.
I must say Tunku was very magniminous.
He did not even informed the King. Only after the parliamentary session on 9 Aug,1965 that Tunkunhad audience with the King and informed the majesty on decision to expel Singapore.
The king was shocked and asked Tunku why such matter was not tabled to Council of Rulers.
The King broke down.
The Malays too broke down.
You missed an important point. People at those days have tight kinship at both sides. Parent in one side and sons daughters at the other. No one wanted to break away. It is purely kicking singapore out. Do not change the history.
Prof, are you sure Singapore was inhabited? You failed to mention Singapore was part of Johor Sultanate until British interfered in replacing the Sultan in order to control the island
We never learn a true history at school in malaysia, it has been twisted, until i watch your video..
Thanks. That’s often the way. Most countries will teach a very specific version of history.
Britain's ardent attempt at ridding itself of Saint Christopher-Nevis-Anguilla may be another example. Anguillans were against British attempts to mash their colony with two others in a federation, leading to the "Anguillan Revolution" which sought independence from St. Kitts but ultimately a return to their previous status as a British colony. Britain finally relented in 1980 and Anguilla remains British today.
Why did Anguilla do that? It’s not really similar to Singapore as it wasn’t forced out of Saint Kitts.
A better example would be Malta when the British gave it independence and refused to let it become a part of the UK even after the people and government of Malta chose to join the UK.
Liam Thomas It’s similar in that they were expelled from a previous union with Britain against their wishes. You’re right that Malta too was expelled despite asking for full integration. Another example could be Gabon’s request for full integration with France in 1958 which was rejected.
Thanks so much. This is actually one of my favourite stories in international relations! The colony that didn't want to be independent. I've been meaning to make a video on this for ages. :-)
@@liamthomas8029 Thanks. And Malta is indeed another great example, though rather more serious than Anguilla (which was rather amusing). I really do want to cover both of these at some point. Unfortunately, the big demand seems to be on current affairs. But I do love to do the more historical videos from time to time.
@@JamesKerLindsay Yeah this is a curious little story. I've been interested in stories like this since I come from a colony which was "decolonized" in a manner in which residents did not consent.
can you do a video on brunei and compare
Thanks. Great suggestion. I would love to do a video on Brunei. My father actually grew up there. I found it fascinating that it stayed out of Malaysia and went on to become independent many years later.
👏🙂
Very interesting
Thanks a lot! This was a video I had long wanted to make. It’s a fascinating story. But I actually have personal links to it. My father grew up in Brunei (the part that should have joined Malaysia, but didn’t) and went to school in Singapore.
Singapore and Malaysia, nations that mentally separated but physically always together. Means we always depend on each other always even though we were separated by politics, administratives, governances and borders. Thanks to former Malaysia's Prime Ministers Abdullah Badawi and Najib Razak, and Johor Royal Family and also Singapore's Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong for building a great diplomacy between two nations after decades of bitter relationship.
Salam from Malaysia to Singapore. 🇲🇾🇸🇬
Salam! Yes, we've had a cordial relationship under Najib Razak's time but sadly this relationship had soured last few years due to Dr M's 2nd tenure as PM.
Hopefully all will be well again.
Thank god Mahathir is dying and both countries can go back to living
@@KeoNz sorry mate. We got some power hungry oldman to keep in check.
@@laurence82 hurry
@@KeoNz Won't be surprised if the only thing fueling Dr M is his hatred for SG.
It was a very wise move by Lee Kuan Yew,otherwise Singapore would have ended another failed Malay dominated states
Great and informative video! As Malaysian that are coming from Malay family and have long history with UMNO, there are few unpopular opinions about the seperation of Malaysia with Singapore:
- MCA requested to keep the Chinese Vernacular school, while PAP in Singapore want to abolish race based and keep only one schooling system.
- UMNO and PAP unable to come into a agreement about the bumiputera status quo in Singapore.
- Unbalanced supporters in the parliament that might cause an issue when it comes to vote any policy amendments or new policy introduction.
Some Malaysian and Singaporean might only see it as a good move, and indeed I agree since it might cause more harm if we stick together. But at the same time, I am sad to see one of my Austronesian heritage territory no longer have their local values/cultures and more into becoming like English speaking country. I hope that bahasa Melayu will always be the national language and Majulah Singapura will always be sang in Malay language forever. (P.s, don't educate me about the official languages of Singapore, because I already know about this.)
I does not neglect the important of English, it just as someone who value culture so much, I believed the local dialect and culture should be preserve and practiced by the people itself. Like how Japan still preserved their language and culture despite one of the great and developed country in the world.
I wish that all Southeast Asia countries to always strive for the better good. Dirgahayu Malaysia dan Majulah Singapura! Love from Malaysia ❤️
Thanks so much. I was really fascinated by this story. I appreciate the extra information!
Was there any great game of US/UK to have a control of the sea route?
Well, any presences of US/UK forces anywhere outside of their borders is really for the purpose of control
Reunification today is impossible. Singapore runs itself as a rules based country whereas Malaysian politics is race based with very flexible hanky panky in how the country is run.
Malay Peninsular is home to 30 million people. By 2050, it will increase to 45 million due to open border policy practice by Malaysian government. Singapore was excluded from this policy for 60 years which is very hard to integrate.
Perhaps a show on the "bantustans" of pre-1994 South Africa ?
@@gracchus7782 , different case. Bantustans were created for the politically and economically inferior natives by politically and economically superior minority.
I am in Malaysia now and I have been to Singapore. They are both amazing and proof that small countries can be more agile and intentional than larger ones... ultimately the people win when there are more countries to choose from
It's a fascinating story
Thanks for this fascinating report. Well done.
It might be noted that West Virginia left the Confederate States to join the Union in 1863. That's a case of an area leaving a country and joining another, even if one turned out to be failed country.
Also worthy of note is that the Republic of Vermont, and the Republic of Texas, were countries in their own right before joining the Union. Texas eventually had second thoughts, but that's another story...
Thanks so much! It's really interesting to consider whether there were other cases in history. In the modern era, I think this is pretty much unique. I can't think of another country that became independent since 1945 in such a way - although, as others have pointed out, there was at least one colony that really didn't want to become independent.
Prof, It was a great video! Unfortunately you'd miss one BIGGEST point. You missed the part on why the British brought the Chinese into Malaya and how we (the Malays & Chinese) get treated racially different that triggered dissatisfaction among the racial groups. It's a rule and divide policy. British left after Japanese came. However, the occupation further ignite racial resentment of the people in Malaya and that even persist until today. Can't blame Tunku entirely for that. We were the subject of the great powers, the victims of history as well.
Thanks. I realise there were lots of points that I had to skip over. It wasn’t to cover anything up. I just need to focus on what helps explain the situation. In this case, I don’t think it was about the fundamental incompatibility of Chinese and Malaysians. It was about the more specific political dimensions of the era.
British colonial era was coming to its end.
And it felt Singapore can only survive with joining the already independent Malaya
@@JamesKerLindsay Have you ever wonder to this day why Malays (citizen) are the privilege group in Malaysia and other ethnic groups are treated as second class citizen? One of Lee Kuan Yew's key point in joining Malaysia is to have a Malaysian Malaysia rather than a Malay as the predominant group to govern Malaysia. The racial conflict is real (I had experienced it first hand way back in 1964, my uncle almost got kill) and to this day Malaysia is still govern by the Malays. Singaporeans by and large has a lot to thank the Tunku's decision to kick Singapore out of the federation.
Your account of how and why Singapore was expel from the federation is nothing new to Singaporean and Malaysian alike and you do not have the insider story as to back up your so called real reason behind the expulsion. To us its simple, Singapore wanted a Malaysian Malaysia, however the Tunku and his cabinet insisted on a Malay Malaysia. Since the difference of opinion cannot be reconcile and indeed tension was rising between the Malay and Chinese community (ever wonder who created the tension?). To mitigate the eventual blood shed, like the Tunku''s announcement, it is best we parted ways.
The British left in 1971 after the intoduction of National Service in 1967. i was supposed to be the 1st Batch of OCS in 1966 which was sent to my home signed by Dr Goh Keng Swee(our 1st Defence Minister). Hence, today we have SAF, RSAF & RSN...MAJULAH SINGAPURA!
Let us come to our senses. The working language for Malaysia is Bahasa, Singapore is English(multi-racial), China is Mandarin and etc, etc, etc....in fact for Hong Kong it is Cantonese before 1997.
Thanks to Malaysia, Singapore gained her independence from the British. Forever gratitude to Malaysia
What about Malta? i'm not sure if it really fits though
Thanks Rosa. Another great example of a reluctant state! But it's slightly different inasmuch as it was a colony that didn't really want independence. I really want to take a look at that case too.
Today it looks more like Malaysia is expelled from Singapore
Luck Brunei didn't join Malaysia.. 🤣
Until it runs out of oil and gas, that is. Or until people move out of oil and gas in transportation.
Brunei is far worst.
Even though Singapore being expelled, Singapore & Malaysia relation still strong. Singapore 3rd largest import coming from Malaysia (behind China & USA) & Some Malaysian seek job opportunity in Singapore.
As a Singaporean, this video is very accurate.
Interesting enough as we fast forward to 60 years later seeing how Singapore and Brunei growth without being part of the federation. It would be much interesting if the other 2 states from Borneo namely Sabah and Sarawak decided not to joint the federation.
if they dont join federation, they will be forcefully absorbed by indonesia. KONFRONTASI
@@muhammadaiman6713 or Sulu Sultanate for eastern sabah
Ef pistore so true...now Sabah north borneo and sarawak is so sad
@@muhammadaiman6713 enough with your malaya trick when indonesia attack sabah north borneo australia was there helping us.
@@Titan-fk2fi 🥱🥱 malayan trick
The most interesting video I have come across on the departure of Singapore from Malaysia. I was also under the mistaken impression that the exit of Singapore was a dramatic expulsion than a series of secret negotiations before the expulsion. With that said, about this being a consensual secession - how legitimate is the consent if the people are not asked the question when the decision has such significant repercussions (I am presuming that Lee Kuan Yew was not elected on a promise to negotiate separation from Malaysia). I could see parallels of the Suriname - Netherlands separation, which was also decided amongst politicians to no longer have it as constituent country of Netherlands leading to a population exodus - impacts which are felt till date.
One minor question though - what were the popluation statistics and how was Singapore more populous than the Federation ? Considering today, the Malay Peninsula has roughly 5 times the population of Singapore today.
On a side note, I consider it very 'rich' from Lee Kuan Yew to talk of 'future generations' who preferred to keep power for himself till his death.
Keep up the good work!
Are you a fellow Singaporean ?
@@VanaeCavae French. In fact, never been to Singapore - I wish to someday.
Let's please try to keep this civil. I don't think Anirudh was saying anything that was offensive. He was expressing an outside viewpoint. If you felt that it was wrong, you could have just gently corrected some of his impressions. (On that note, please do consider editing your comment. I really don't like to play moderator, but Anirudh consistently provides some of the interesting, engaging and informed comments on the channel.)
Thanks so much, Anirudh. Yes, I think the general view was that it was done with threats and coercion. In truth, it seems that there was a genuine sadness about the whole thing. And the point about separation without a referendum is also really interesting. I wonder if the leaders decided against it - and to do the talks in secret - because they felt that such a vote might have just encouraged ethnic tensions. The atmosphere was clearly very tense by that point. It would be interesting to know if anything has been written about this.
The point about the demographics is indeed fascinating. Like you, I hadn't realised that Singapore was more populous than the rest of Malaysia at the time; and it seems incredibly to think that this was once the case given Malaysia's current population. (But I am often reminded that the same applies to Greece and Turkey. They once had similar populations, as amazing as they seems today.) For the video, I used an academic article I found on the topic that had a lot of demographic data. I put a link to it in the description.
@Antarctica
Ah dey from one Singaporean to another, you need to chill out abang. He wasn't "talking shit" about our country lah. This channel isn't some subreddit where you can anyhow post such randomly aggressive comments leh you know. So either chill out, or don't follow this channel or engage in the comments at all. This isn't some subreddit where you talk like we're in some kopitiam liddat sia wahlao.
Great Episode . Many forget that Singapore was Regionally ahead of its time even before 1819 …Maybe Try Start the Story BEFORE 1819 … and you cannot miss the strategic Role of the British
Great video! I think you will also find it interesting that a Nigerian soldier from the Middle Belt region launched a coup this month in 1990 and announced the expulsion of the Northern States of Nigeria, citing reasons such as nepotism, corruption, and a conspiracy to Islamise all of Nigeria.
He was eventually arrested by General Babangida's men and tried and executed with some 41 others.
He's still considered a martyr by some Southern Nigerians. His name is Major Gideon Orkar.
Thank you. What a fascinating story. I must look into it in more detail.