PAP to contest the 1964 Malaysian General Election

On 1 March 1964, the People’s Action Party (PAP) announced that it would be sending a token team of candidates to contest the upcoming Malaysian general election to be held on 25 April. The PAP’s objective was to establish itself as a national Malaysian party to fight the anti-Malaysian parties so as to ensure the success of the Federation of Malaysia.^[1] The PAP contested nine parliamentary seats but only managed to win the Bangsar seat.^[2]

The PAP’s participation in the general election caused a political uproar in Kuala Lumpur. Tunku Abdul Rahman, then the Malaysian Prime Minister, saw the contest as a political challenge and an attempt by the PAP to intervene in federal politics.^[3] Subsequently, the winning PAP candidate and the rest of the Singapore representatives were branded as opposition in the federal parliament, and Lee Kuan Yew, then the Prime Minister of Singapore, was offered the post of leader of the opposition.^[4] Although Lee declined the offer, he highlighted in his first post-election speech in the federal parliament that Kuala Lumpur’s communal approach to politics might not be conducive in the long-term for promoting racial unity. He was of the view that the federal government should look to the PAP for new directions so as to better integrate the races. In response, the Tunku made it clear to Lee that the PAP should confine its role to Singapore and devote its energy to turn the island into “the New York of South East Asia”. In exchange, the Tunku assured Lee that his Alliance party would not interfere in the affairs of Singapore.^[5]

However, extremists within the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) party did not agree to such a compromise. They launched a smear campaign against the PAP, accusing Lee and his government of mistreating the Malays in Singapore, and depriving them of the special rights enjoyed by their counterparts in Malaysia. The extremists used a combination of fiery language and appeals in Malay newspapers and rallies to stir up sentiment within the Malay community in Singapore.^[6] It was believed that the tense atmosphere created by the smear campaign led to the eventual outbreak of communal riots in Singapore on 21 July and 2 September 1964.^[7]

References
1. Pestana R. (1964, March 2). PAP to contest. The Straits Times, p. 1. Retrieved from NewspaperSG.
2. Mauzy, D. K., & Milne, R. S. (2002). Singapore Politics Under the People's Action Party (p. 21). London; New York, N.Y.: Routledge. Call no.: RSING 320.95957 MAU; Baskaran, K. (1964, March 30). In 14 days – a tight little PAP organisation. The Straits Times, p. 10. Retrieved from NewspaperSG.
3. PAP’s entry into 1964 polls rouses fears in KL. (1998, July 5). The Straits Times, p. 44. Retrieved from NewspaperSG.
4. Lau, A. (2003). A moment of anguish: Singapore in Malaysia and the politics of disengagement (pp. 131–134). Singapore: Eastern Universities Press. Call no.: RSING 959.5705 LAU.
5. Lee, K. Y. (1998). The Singapore story: Memoirs of Lee Kuan Yew (pp. 134–135). Singapore: Times Editions, Singapore Press Holdings. Call no.: RSING 959.57 LEE.
6. Kwa, C. G., et. al. (2009). Singapore, a 700-year history: From early emporium to world city (pp. 176–177). Singapore: National Archives of Singapore. Call no.: RSING 959.5703 KWA.
7. Koh, T. (Ed.). (2006). Singapore: The encyclopedia (p. 466). Singapore: Editions Didier Millet in association with the National Heritage Board. Call no.: RSING 959.57003 SIN.