PAP-UMNO relations

The sometimes tumultous relationship between the People's Action Party and United Malays National Organisation, which were, and still are, the ruling parties respectively of Singapore and Malaysia, has impacted the recent history of both States.

Origins

Both parties have common roots, being formed during the sentiment of anti-colonialism and widespread resent which grew after the Japanese Occupation. Initially allowing insurgent faction members advocating communism into both their parties as an ally against colonialism, both later developed hostile ties with the Malayan Communist Party (MCP) and Indonesia, expelling the leftists from the party. For this reason they had co-operated for a term to work towards eliminating the MCP insurgency and achieving independence from colonialism.

Such co-operation culminated in 1963 with the merger of Singapore into the Federation of Malaysia.

Merger and Separation

There are many factors that led UMNO and the PAP to agree to merger. Negotiations for merger began in 1960, and initially, Malaysia refused. However, the danger of the MCP Insurgency taking over Singapore and using it as a base against Malaysia gave reason for Malaysia to allow Singapore into the Federation, and the promise of independence from colonial rule and economic growth with a guarantee Common Market for Singapore were the main primary reasons. Singapore joined Malaysia after a national referendum was held, under the conditions that all Singapore citizens would automatically become citizens of Malaysia. Singapore would also retain a degree of autonomy and state power, such as over labour and education. Singapore would also get to keep its language policies, such as to retain using all four major languages, English, Mandarin, Malay and Tamil. The Federation of Malaysia was formed fifteen days later on September 16 1962 under those conditions.

Initially all was well, and However, both developed different ideological lines on racial issues, especially concerning the Chinese race and the Malay race, marked by the UMNO's belief in the bumiputra policy of positive racial discrimination; UMNO saw this as much needed affirmative action for Malays which had supposedly been put at a disadvantage due to the heavy presence of immigrants that had entered the Malay Archipelago during colonial rule. The PAP staunchly opposed this as unjustified and racist. The PAP, along with several other Malaysian minority parties, epitomised this view with the cry of a "Malaysian Malaysia!"; a policy to serve the Malaysian nationality, which Singapore at that time was included in, as opposed to just the Malay race. This was driven by the fact Singaporean Chinese were being discriminated against, among other things, in elections and taxes as well as economically. One of the initial approaches was to have the PAP join UMNO and later on participate in the Federal Government, but the Malayan Chinese Association (MCA) feared that the PAP would replace them, and opposed the PAP and saw it as a radical socialist branch, and urged UMNO to prevent the PAP from being too influential in the Federal Government. From this point on the relationship between the UMNO and the PAP became increasingly cold, falling short of hostile.

During this period, racial tensions grew between the Chinese and the Malays, allegedly partially incited earlier by the MCP, such as during the Hock Lee bus riots, but growing blame put on UMNO by the PAP. This was not an unfounded allegation, as many Malay newspapers, such as the partisan newspaper Utusan Melayu, continued to allege that the PAP had been mistreating the Malay race, such as the relocation of the Malays from the kampungs for redevelopment. An increasingly heated debate on both sides sprung up, inciting racial tensions to such an extent, racial riots occurred, culminating with the riot on Prophet Muhammad's birthday.

Rather than temporarily cooling down to solve the problem, both parties continued to verbally use scathing attacks on each other, alleging each other being the cause of the riots. In violation of their previous agreements, UMNO backed and formed the Singapore Alliance Party which ran for the 1963 state elections in Singapore on 21 September, 1963, but not winning any seats, even in the Malay constituencies. Despite this failure, it was seen as an attack on the PAP's power base, and this angered the PAP to such an extent, in a tit-for-tat situation, in coalition with other parties under the Malaysian Solidarity Convention ran for the Federal elections in Malaysia which took place during the April of 1964, winning only one seat and 7% of the vote. However, this was no doubt perceived as spite and the entire series of events greatly worsened relations. Dr. Tan Siew Sin, the Finance Minister at this time, demeaningly commented, "How can these kachang puteh parties pose a threat?" The sharp highlight of the degenerating situation was the stated vow by UMNO to oust the PAP from the Singapore Government when the next set of State Elections occurred, perhaps before the PAP could do likewise at the next Federal Election.

Thorny issues concerning Singapore's right as an autonomous state in addition to racial ties further put a dent in relations, such as the failure of a common market to be set up between the Federation and Singapore, and the heavy tax system placed on Singapore, which was seen as unfair. Such issues catalysed the impending secession: On August 7, 1965, Tunku Abdul Rahman announced to the Malaysian Parliament in Kuala Lumpur that the Parliament should vote yes on the resolution to have Singapore to leave the Federation, choosing to "sever all ties with a State Government that showed no measure of loyalty to its Central Government" as opposed to the undesirable method of repressing the PAP for its actions. Singapore's secession and independence became official on August 9, 1965.

It should be noted that although de jure, Singapore withdrew of its own accord, de facto, the PAP had no true authority to influence whether Singapore should leave or not, despite pressuring Tunku Abdul Rahman not to take such a course of action. The separation agreement was signed to maintain friendly relations, trade and mutual defence relations, and to leave them intact although Federal ties to Singapore as a state were now cut off.

Post-Separation

The complex relationship continued with the issue of trade and other agreements between the now separate entities of Malaysia and Singapore. At times both parties heavily criticised each other for their policies, to the extent of issuing threats. At the present moment, both parties have had their countries ban some of each other's media, for example, the New Straits Times, a Malaysian newspaper publication, is banned in Singapore, and the Straits Times, the respective newspaper publication for Singapore, is banned in Malaysia. This heavy exchange of words is epitomised with the past leaders of both countries, Lee Kuan Yew of the PAP, and Dr. Mahathir of the UMNO, both which are no longer the prime ministers of their countries.

Relations can be volatile, and can be seen as fickle. At the present moment, relations are rather cordial.

External links

• Overview