Lee Kuan Yew: The Man and His Ideas

by Han Fook Kwang

  How far these governments can counter the appeal and force of communism will depend on how far they are bold enough to carry out social reforms in the teeth of their own vested interests. That is another feature in the political development of our neighbours: the active support of native capitalists in the national aspirations of their fellow countrymen.

  But it is abundantly clear to Malayan vested interests, and that would include Chinese and Indian commercial interests, the Malay royal families, and the professional classes, that with the disappearance of the British Raj must also disappear the great inequality in wealth of the peoples of Malaya. For any independent Malayan government to exist, it must win popular support, and to gain any popular support it must promise and do social justice. Indeed, and this is a fact important enough to warrant repetition, the continued existence of the new Asiatic states depends upon whether they are able to carry out long overdue reforms; whether they can, without the communist religion, do all that a communist state can do for the masses.

  The lesser evil

  We, the returned students, would be the type of leaders that the British would find relatively the more acceptable. For if the choice lies, as in fact it does, between a communist republic of Malaya, and a Malaya within the British Commonwealth, led by the people who despite their opposition to imperialism still share certain ideals in common with the Commonwealth, there is little doubt which alternative the British will find the lesser evil.

  Despite the general political apathy that exists in Malaya there are many who are awakening to the critical position Malaya is in, both internally and in relation to the rest of Southeast Asia. If we, who can become the most privileged part of the local population under British rule, openly declare that British imperialism must go, the effect would be immediate.

  But if we do not give leadership, it will come from the other ranks of society, and if these leaders attain power, as they will with the support of the masses, we shall find that we, as a class, have merely changed masters. The difference between the British, Japs and the new masters who will arise if we remain unorganised will be a difference only of degree and not of kind.

  We, the returned students, would be the type of leaders that the British would find relatively the more acceptable.

  What we must do

  The first problem we face is that of racial harmony between Chinese and Malays. The second is the development of a united political front that will be strong enough without resorting to armed force, to demand a transfer of power. To both these problems, we the Malayan students in England, whatever our race and creed, can make a substantial contribution. If we who are thought of as the intelligentsia of Malaya cannot make a sincere start right now towards a solution of these problems, the future is grim. No class in Malaya is better equipped to lead a Malayan nationalist movement. The common man in Malaya rightly or wrongly associates intelligence and ability with an education in England, perhaps for the reason that such an education makes possible a greater and more rapid acquisition of wealth in a British Malaya.

  We must break the soporific Malayan atmosphere and bring home the urgency of the problems facing us. We must break down the belief that we are inferior and will always remain inferior to the Europeans.

  We have already seen the birth of Malay nationalism, we are seeing the first movements of a Malayan Chinese nationalism. There is no doubt that the other racial groups will also organise themselves. This may be a prelude to a pan-Malayan movement, or it may be the beginning of serious dissensions and communalism that may end in another Palestine. The prerequisite of Malayan independence is the existence of a Malayan society, not Malay, not Malayan Chinese, not Malayan Indian, not Malayan Eurasian, but Malayan – one that embraces the various races already in the country. Were it possible to eliminate the non-Malay population by deporting them to their country of origin, there would be no danger of another Palestine. But even the most extreme Malay nationalist will concede that the Chinese, Indian and Eurasian population already in the country cannot be excluded by this simple process. Irresponsible communal leadership will bring disaster. Since, therefore, the non-Malay communities must be accepted as part of the present and future Malaya, it follows that unity must be attained.

  We can study with profit the solution Switzerland has found for her racial problems. Here is a national state with three large racial groups – French, German and Italian – and a fourth small group, the Romansch, able to maintain its unity and independence through all the strain and stress of two world wars, when French, Germans and Italians were fighting on different sides. Whether we have the Palestinian or Swiss pattern emerging in Malaya is still in the balance.

  A challenge

  The present political situation is rapidly changing. Colonialism with its fantastic discrepancies in wealth and power will end whether or not we do anything. It is not a question of our fighting for independence in the way the Indian Congress Party fought for theirs. It is whether we are to play any part at all in the political life of the country. There is still time for us to organise ourselves into a force in the country. But the final question is what each individual returned student will do when he goes back to Malaya, for in the last eventuality, any party, any society, any body politic, consists of individuals.

  There can be no leaders without a body to lead. There can be no body to lead if there is no cohesion. As single individuals, any Malayan nationalist who attempts to propagate ideas that would lead to the end of British Malaya would be considered undesirable by the British authorities. Their main interest is to prolong British control of our country. For them Malaya means dollars. Losing Malaya would mean a big widening of the dollar gap with consequent loss of essential imports to Britain and resulting unemployment. We must be prepared to see that whatever the political label of the British government in Britain, be it Conservative, Labour, or even Communist, British colonial policy in Malaya may remain unchanged in its fundamentals. A British Labour government may sincerely believe in socialist, egalitarian principles, but no British government can of its own free will give independence to Malaya and face the British electorate unabashed when the British cost of living index has gone up by some twenty points.

  Our opportunity

  But our trump-card is that responsible British leaders realise that independence must and will come to Malaya and that, therefore, it will be better to hand Malaya to leaders sympathetic to the British mode of life, willing to be a member of the British Commonwealth, and what is most important, willing to remain in the sterling area. For the alternative is military suppression, a policy which another imperialist power has found impossible in Indonesia. We may take heart in the knowledge that no one can concede more graciously an already untenable position than the English. Our duty is clear: to help to bring about social cohesion, and to bring home to even the most diehard imperialist that his is an untenable position.

  What actual steps we take when we get back will depend on the political temper at that time. Whether we can openly advocate and propagate our views or whether we should be more discreet and less vociferous is something that can be answered only when the time comes. Only if a spirit of cooperation and political independence is infused among our fellow Malayans can pan-Malayan political parties really exist, and Malayan leadership emerge. We must break the soporific Malayan atmosphere and bring home the urgency of the problems facing us. We must break down the belief that we are inferior and will always remain inferior to the Europeans. If every returned student makes known his convictions to his own immediate circle, the cumulative effect will be tremendous. A small pebble dropped in a pond can cause extensive ripples. Without the countless unnamed Indian patriots who did their share in awakening a sense of national pride and dignity and independence, there could have been no Congress Party, no Gandhi, no Nehru and no Indian Republic.

  If we fail to fulfil our duty, the change that still will come must be a violent one, for whatever the rights and wrongs of communism, no one can
deny its tremendous appeal to the masses.

  Order or chaos?

  If we fail to fulfil our duty, the change that still will come must be a violent one, for whatever the rights and wrongs of communism, no one can deny its tremendous appeal to the masses. Whatever our political complexion, from deep blue Tory to bright red communist, we must all remember that we are not indispensable in this struggle for freedom. But we can affect the speed and orderliness of the change. What the individual returning home chooses to do is a question of personal inclination, economic circumstances, and political convictions. But if the majority of us choose to do nothing, choose to believe that Malaya can be insulated from the nationalist revolts that have swept the European powers from Asia, then we may find that there is no place for us in the Malaya that is to be after the British have departed.

  Lee Kuan Yew contested the general election in 1955, Singapore’s first under a newly constituted legislative assembly. The People’s Action Party fielded four candidates and three won. Lee won in Tanjong Pagar, a seat he has held for 42 years and 11 general elections. In this campaign speech on March 21, 1955, he spoke about the ugly face of colonialism and what the PAP would do to correct the situation.

  Colonies are out of date

  There is something wrong with Malaya, something rotten with the colony of Singapore. You know it and I know it. We’ve known it for a long time. We are a colony and colonies are out of date. Colonialism is on the way out but is not moving fast enough. We in the PAP intend to give colonialism a final push and sink it for good in Southeast Asia. But colonialism alone is not our enemy. Our enemy is the evil that colonialism brings. The colonial system is the rock on which rich men build their houses and colonialism is the swamp on which the poor put up their slums or their tumbledown attap shacks. Colonialism corrupts because quite a lot of them can do very nicely for themselves under the system. Colonialism looks after them and their profits very well.

  Now we all know there is something wrong with Malaya. But for the past six years, all we have been able to do is to grumble to each other. Or, if we are too poor or too afraid even to grumble, we just suffer. Colonialism maintains itself by supporting capitalism and its emergency regulations, ostensibly aimed at communism, are very convenient for keeping shut the mouths of those who would like to destroy the system constitutionally.

  What do we complain about? That we are governed by gentlemen in London. That others in London, not quite such gentlemen, are able to come here with their businesses and their rubber estates to squeeze profits out of us. Exploitation is the word.

  What do we complain about? That we are governed by gentlemen in London.

  The rulers from London, when they first came, perhaps, gave us better rule than we could then give ourselves. That is all done with. Now we are ready for self-rule. No man can be a full human being if he has to say “Yes Sir”, “No Sir” to a boss who is boss because he belongs to the ruling race. And how can our workers fight for a fair wage, for a fair return for their labour when the white tuan or the Chinese towkay or the merchant from India is encouraged by the colonial system to make money out of the workers’ sweat? We don’t blame the tuans and the towkays making a good thing out of this country while they can. But now it is time for the workers to claim their rights, to claim a fair share for their labour, and we blame the colonial system which allows the rich to get richer, and the poor to have to make do with what they can get.

  We in the PAP intend to give colonialism a final push and sink it for good in Southeast Asia.

  The time has come for Malayans to unite for we can’t stop this exploitation unless we are masters in our own country. So that is the first thing that has to be put right. We’ve got to have independence. But what do we see today?

  Civilian employees of the British army, navy and air force are kept outside the labour code of their own country, even the inadequate labour code of a colonial power. Over wide parts of the island the services enjoy almost extraterritorial rights. We have appalling slums. People packed in cubicles and dark, airless tenements. We see attap dwellers evicted and their simple houses pulled down. Most of the building that goes on in Singapore is by individual capitalists building for their own profits. Don’t blame them. Blame the system that allows houses for those who can afford them while the poor live in blackness and squalor. We have not nearly enough schools. More are being built much too slowly. The government used to blame the high cost of materials but private buildings went on. A fine new cinema was put up. Our schools seem to aim at creating Malayans with an unhealthy respect for their colonial masters. Do we agree with our education policy? However, I won’t go on.

  You all know from your own experience of injustice, discrimination and exploitation. I have seen it face-to-face when I met employers over trade disputes in which various trade unions have been involved. So what are we going to do about it? I and a number of others – trade unionists, teachers, labourers, journalists, clerks, professional men – have formed a party, the People’s Action Party, because we have watched for too long the antics of our so-called politicians and our so-called leaders. Till now the term “political parties” has been almost meaningless and in danger of falling into disrepute because till now this is the sort of thing that has happened. A few gentlemen get together and decide that it would be a good thing for their business, good for themselves or flattering to their self-esteem: the honourable Mr so-and-so to get a seat in the Legislative Council so that the self-interest may not seem too obvious. They go through the motions of forming a political party. But you and I are not deceived by these gentlemen.

  At the last elections, only one in six of those eligible to vote registered, and of those only half bothered to vote. Need I say more? Political apathy towards the professional politicians, yes. But are the people of Singapore politically apathetic? I don’t think so. Last Thursday, over 2,000 people came to our PAP election meeting. On Saturday, over 3,000 came and last night over 6,000 people flocked in from miles around just to listen to the PAP candidates. I must admit that there is political apathy towards the other so-called parties. One party brings along a lion to draw the crowd. Another party brought a fold-mattress, and very nice too. And another party seldom has meetings because it does not seem able to get anyone to come along and listen.

  We formed a party because we felt that we must have a genuine political party rooted in the people. Our members are people of all races and they come from all classes of society. It was after we had formed the party that our members decided to contest these elections. Our helpers are all voluntary, ordinary workers like you and me – professional men, teachers, clerks, messengers, bus drivers, factory workers, hawkers. They come after their work to help because the People’s Action Party is their party. The PAP will fight for complete independence and for the rights and dignity of the workers. We are contesting four seats in these elections. We do not like this new constitution. We are not content with streamlined colonialism. But we intend to put four men in the new Assembly so that the colonial government and its supporters can hear our voice, can hear our voice at first hand, and our voice is yours because we know you feel the same as we do about injustice, discrimination and exploitation.

  Now here, briefly, are some of the points in our election platform which distinguishes us from the other parties:

  Unity with the Federation. The PAP believes that immediately after the elections in Singapore and the Federation, negotiations should be started to bring about the unification of Malaya.

  National Service. We shall seek to repeal the National Service Ordinance. We are not in principle opposed to conscription but we believe that only an independent government freely chosen by the people and responsible to them has the right to ask its citizens to die for it.

  Emergency Regulations. The PAP seeks the removal of the arbitrary powers of arrest and detention without trial in open court, restrictions on the freedom of speech, assembly and association – all contained in the Emergency Regu
lations.

  Some of the other parties believe in some of these things. But the People’s Action Party will continue to believe in all of them and to fight for all of them, long after the elections are over.

  Trade Unions and Politics. The Trade Union Ordinance must be amended to permit trade unions to set up political funds. The Trade Dispute Ordinance must be repealed. This Ordinance is a copy of the English Trades Disputes Act introduced after the general strike in 1926 in Britain by a Conservative government to prevent trade unions from assisting one another by united strike action. It has now been repealed in England. It must be repealed in Singapore.

  Education. There should be free and compulsory education for all children till the age of 16 and a comprehensive scholarship scheme for higher education.

  Malayanisation of the Public Services. The Public Services must be Malayanised completely within the next four years. No new expatriate should be recruited on the permanent establishment.

  Economic Control. The government of the people should have full control of its trade and the dollar it earns and the management and disposal of sterling balances and national savings. Measures like control of rubber must go.

  Housing. We must create a housing authority for slum clearance and subsidise housing by interest-free government loans instead of the present interest-bearing loans from the government to the SIT [Singapore Improvement Trust].