Separation from Malaysia: How crucial was Dr Goh's role?
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May 28, 2010 - ST Forum
Separation from Malaysia: How crucial was Dr Goh's role?
MINISTER Mentor Lee Kuan Yew made an interestingly significant remark about Singapore's separation from Malaysia in his eulogy at Sunday's state funeral for his colleague-in-arms, former Deputy Prime Minister Goh Keng Swee.
MM Lee said he had asked Dr Goh to negotiate a looser rearrangement for Singapore, but to keep Singapore within Malaysia.
Added MM Lee: 'He (Dr Goh) decided that the best alternative was a clean break. After (Malaysian Deputy Prime Minister) Tun Abdul Razak and (Minister for External Affairs) Tun Dr Ismail Abdul Rahman agreed, (Law Minister) Eddie Barker and I worked furiously to settle the terms of the separation.'
MM Lee's remark is intriguing in the light of the conventional narrative of the events leading up to Separation in 1965. From all that historians have gleaned prior to MM Lee's remarks on Sunday, MM Lee, who was then Prime Minister, played the pivotal role involving Separation.
His remarks suggest that the decision to break away from Malaysia was decided unilaterally by Dr Goh at the crucial moment; against the proposition MM Lee, and perhaps the collective Cabinet, had decided; which was at the very least, to still remain a part of the Malaysian federation of states.
If the above is true, the apparent contradiction should be resolved. A key question that arises from MM Lee's remarks is this: What was the extent and significance of Dr Goh's role in Separation? Furthermore, MM Lee's remark also suggests that the key Malaysian leaders - Tun Razak and Dr Ismail - agreed to Dr Goh's proposal of a clean break.
This would imply that it may well have been Singapore which precipitated the idea of Separation, rather than Malaysia, as has been the notion all this while, stemming from first Malaysian Prime Minister Tunku Abdul Rahman's view. He reconfirmed, when I interviewed him a few years before he died, that he overruled the strident objections of his extremist colleagues in Umno in deciding to sack Singapore from Malaysia.
It would be informative, if not instructive, if MM Lee or Dr Toh Chin Chye (then chairman of the PAP and the only key surviving member of the Old Guard today) shed more light on this critical turning point in the history of Singapore and Malaysia.
Associate Professor Hussin Mutalib
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If the clean break was suggested by Dr Goh, then the father of Republic of Singapore should be Dr Goh Keng Swee.
LKY never wanted to be independent.
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Originally posted by Clivebenss:
If the clean break was suggested by Dr Goh, then the father of Republic of Singapore should be Dr Goh Keng Swee.
LKY never wanted to be independent.
LKY never wanted SG to be independent ah. Else, he wouldn't have cried so hard on TV when he had to announce that. -
From time to time the official statement was that Sg got kicked out of Malaysia. Therefore, I hope MM can quickly give an answer as the other partners to the separation are all dead.
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Originally posted by Clivebenss:
If the clean break was suggested by Dr Goh, then the father of Republic of Singapore should be Dr Goh Keng Swee.
LKY never wanted to be independent.
Another prata man ! hahahha!Master mind of prata men . . . ..
die die must win, picture must always look beautiful.
If Dr Goh were to be our PM, we would not have been in this shit that that someone has intentionally put us through.
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Originally posted by hasene:
Another prata man ! hahahha!Master mind of prata men . . . ..
die die must win, picture must always look beautiful.
If Dr Goh were to be our PM, we would not have been in this shit that that someone has intentionally put us through.
A divorce rather than kicked out.
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Originally posted by Clivebenss:
A divorce rather than kicked out.
Any alimony? -
Originally posted by kramnave:
LKY never wanted SG to be independent ah. Else, he wouldn't have cried so hard on TV when he had to announce that.how i pity Goh Keng Swee, even in death his body was made use by LKY and son to make themselves look good and now LKY is trying to pin him with another discredit.
by the way, the death of Goh is a most positive thing !
these old villains should have gone to meet their maker long long time ago.
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If one can just twist the fact, how true is the history of Singapore we have been reading? Not principle driven to tell the truth, how sad!
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Originally posted by hasene:
If one can just twist the fact, how true is the history of Singapore we have been reading? Not principle driven to tell the truth, how sad!
most history is not what it meant to be, sometimes twisted beyond the fairy tales.
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most wanted a "malaysian malaysia"...but there was too much inter-racial bloodshed and internal rivalries....and finally we were cast onto the troubled waters of Nanyang in 1965...amidst communism and Sukarno's Indonesia....
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Originally posted by Fcukpap:
most wanted a "malaysian malaysia"...but there was too much inter-racial bloodshed and internal rivalries....and finally we were cast onto the troubled waters of Nanyang in 1965...amidst communism and Sukarno's Indonesia....
Sukarno's great Tagaroa.
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It was not easy to be in the driver seat when spore was booted out.
MHO, lots of stress and fright during that moment that will never be tasted to the pple.
Just like watching malaysia cup final, at home, wont feel any thing, at stadium, you will get to feel the electrifying moment.
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it was a time of collective political consciousness and nationalism without an identity - then still unknown on the world map....
but now...our consciousness is on the upcoming WORLD CUP 2010! YEAH!....GOAL GOAL GOAL!!!
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Originally posted by Fcukpap:
it was a time of collective political consciousness and nationalism without an identity - then still unknown on the world map....
but now...our consciousness is on the upcoming WORLD CUP 2010! YEAH!....GOAL GOAL GOAL!!!
Will rtm 2 show live matches? -
haha...i dun know yo....but they r definitely into soccer than us
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football and Sg independence??