Lessons of May 13, 1969

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Tan Sri Abdul Aziz Abdul Rahman

Tuesday, December 21st, 2010 13:23:00

IN ASHES: A squatter village near Kampung Baru in Kuala Lumpur lie in ruins on May 14, 1969

THE violence that erupted in Kuala Lumpur on May 13, 1969, and the happenings on that day are a blot on the history of Malaysia.

Prior to that, the country's progress to independence, the transition to power and of the evolution of an independent national spirit, all these phases in the history of our people had been by and large peaceful in character.

The tragedy of May 13 was so serious the Federal government had to take drastic actions which led to the breakdown of the Constitution as the whole of the legislative structure of the Constitution was virtually suspended. Maybe, at this juncture, it is appropriate to trace the events leading to the tragic day.

It began when Parliament was dissolved on March 20, 1969, and a general election for the Dewan Rakyat and all State Legislative Assembl ies was starting on Saturday, May 10. Vigorous campaigning by politicians took place and feelings became inflamed, culminating in inter-racial rioting beginning on Tuesday, May 13, in Kuala Lumpur.

It temporarily disrupted the machinery of the Federal government, but fortunately the rioting was quickly contained. We can speculate the reasons for the rioting.

It can be said that the reasons were many, revolving around political, social and economic issues.

Two days after the outbreak of violence, the Yang di — Pertuan Agong proclaimed a state of emergency under Article 150 of the Constitution. At the same time, acting under clause (2) of the Article, he promulgated the Emergency (Essential Powers) Ordinance No. 1, 1969, giving himself wide powers for securing public safety, the defence of Malaysia, the maintenance of public order and of supplies and services essential to the life of the community. All elections that had not been completed were suspended.

Then the King promulgated a second Ordinance delegating the executive authority of the Federation to a Director of Operations (Tun Abdul Razak Hussein, then Deputy Prime Minister) who was also appointed by the King. The Director of Operations was given wide powers and was assisted by a National Operations Council (NOC).

During emergency, there was established a National Consultative Council (NCC) consisting of members of all races and all political parties except one whose leaders refused an invitation from the government to serve.

The NCC discussed privately the causes of the riots and arrived at certain conclusions. The most important outcome of their discussions was amendment to the constitution effected by the Constitution (Amendment) Act, 1971, assented to on and effective from March 10, 1971, which had been passed by the necessary two-thirds majority though the government did not have a two-thirds majority in the lower House. Some Opposition members voted with the government in the national interest.

The amendment makes it sedition or (if Parliament makes law to that effect) a crime if anyone were to question the rights and privileges established or protected by those provisions of the Constitution relating to citizenship (Part III), to the national language and the use of other languages for non-official purposes (Article 152), to quotas for Malays and natives of Borneo, and to the protection of the legitimate interests of other communities (Article 150) and to the sovereignty of the Rulers (Article 181) though there is no bar to anybody questioning implementation of those provisions.

Even in Parliament and in State Legislative Assemblies, it is now forbidden to question these rights and privileges (Sedition Act 1948).

They are commonly referred to as "sensitive issues".

Many emergency Ordinances and Regulations were passed by the NOC for the purpose of restoring law and order and also for instituting measures relating to social and economic issues.

With the tragedy of May 13 fresh in the minds of the people, with so many dead and with the disruptions and dislocations it caused, the NOC under Abdul Razak realised the achievement of national unity and racial economic integration was the most critical problem confronting the country. The political leadership was of the view that a new course had to be charted to forge a cohesive and united Malaysian nation which would be based on equal justice and fairer share of the fruits of economic development for Malaysians, irrespective of race or origins.

Only then, it was thought, would it be possible to avoid another similar tragedy and to establish lasting political stability. Towards this end, the national ideology of Rukun Negara was proclaimed to the nation on the anniversary of Independence Day in 1970.

The Rukun Negara reads as follows: "Our nation Malaysia being dedicated to achieving a greater unity of her people; to maintaining a democratic way of life; to creating a just society in which the wealth of the nation shall be equitably shared; to ensuring a liberal approach to her rich and diverse cultural traditions; to building a progressive society which shall be oriented to modern science and technology; We hear peoples pledge our united efforts to attain these ends guided by these five principles:
• Belief in God.
• Loyalty to King and Country.
• Upholding the Constitution.
• Rule of Law.
• Good Behaviour and Morality.

The political statesmanship and foresight of this approach to nationbuilding by means of consensus instead of confrontation and through frank but closed-door discussions of sensitive national issues, has been  demonstrated by the uninterrupted political stability of the country since 1969. Rukun Negara represents a passport towards achievement of not merely the co-existence of the various races but the inter-mingling of the
various races in this country harmoniously.

The government also took steps to implement plans to provide for a more just and equitable society in the country. The New Economic Policy (NEP) was formulated as the economic foundation of the Rukun Negara.

Abdul Razak, in his wisdom, was fully aware that, important though the ideas of Rukun Negara and consensus building might be, the battle for unity would be worn or lost in the economic and social restructuring of the nation.

The NEP was therefore designed with the intention of giving content and substance to the new Malaysian ideology of nation-building as embodied by the Rukun Negara.

Beginning with the Second Malaysia Plan as the first phase, the NEP was launched with the hope that a new Malaysian society would gradually emerge with a common value system transcending ethnic, cultural and social-economic differences.

A two-pronged strategy was adopted toreduce and eventually eradicate poverty by raising income levels and increasing employment opportunities for all Malaysians irrespective of race; and accelerate the process of restructuring Malaysian society to correct economic imbalances so as to reduce and eventually eliminate the identification of race with economic function.

This process of restructuring society involved the modernisation of rural life, a rapid and balanced growth of urban activities and the creation of a viable Bumiputra commercial and industrial community in all categories of enterprises and at all levels of operation so that they will become real and effective partners in all aspects of the economic life of the nation.

Now, of course, there is a need to examine as to whether or not the objectives of the NEP have been achieved. Whatever the case may be, everyone must not lose sight of the main national objective of enabling the Malays and the natives of Sabah and Sarawak to be eventually integrated into the economic mainstream.

It appears that lately the government has been focusing on efforts to fight corruption and therefore in my next article, I shall highlightcorruption issues and offer some solutions for consideration by those concerned.