I refer to the Malaysiakini report Create a 'heroes and traitors' museum .
Omar Mohd Hashim of the Malaysian History Association (PSM) is living in his own deluded world. Yes, as a former soldier from a very well-blooded regiment , I too stand with other soldiers in not allowing Chin Peng to settle in Malaysia.
I, too, have friends who were maimed and killed during the insurgency. I say Osman Mohd Hashim is deluded is because he says, ‘This was the first time that an independent country had managed to defeat the communists'.
Well, we did not defeat the communists if one were to read and understand the peace treaty. The treaty is titled ‘Agreement Between The Government Of Malaysia And The Communist Party Of Malaya To Terminate Hostilities' which is a historic document.
The operative word here is ‘Cessation of Hostilities'. I cannot and did not see the word surrender in the document. We did not defeat them, we could have decimated them to the last man, if not for the capitulation of Dr Mahathir Mohamad.
It states in Para 3.2 that ‘Members of the Communist Party of Malaya and members of its disbanded armed units, who are not of Malaysian origin, may be allowed to settle down in Malaysia in accordance with the laws of Malaysia, if they so desire'.
It is an international treaty. Our so-called Great Leader, Mahathir had this treaty negotiated without a referendum from the Malaysian people. But then he was a dictator, surrounded by sycophants and apple-polishers.
On the Jan 6, 1956 on a mountain top in Malaya, Tunku abdul Rahman, John Davis, a senior district officer in the government of Malaya, Singapore's Chief Minister David Marshall and Sir Cheng-Lock Tan, president of the Malayan Chinese Association, met Chin Peng.
The Tunku asked this of Chin Peng, that the Communists would only be allowed to return, if they surrendered, disbanded their armed forces, and abolished the Communist Party.
After their surrender they would each be subjected to a loyalty investigation and would be restricted to a specific area of the country, but once investigated, most would be allowed to enter political life again so long as they did not pursue a communist line. Said Chin Peng: ‘I and my people will never submit to investigation'.
Singapore's David Marshall responded by saying this: ‘As a human being, I ask you to realise that there are seven million people people in Malaya and 3,000 communists. I appeal to you to think of their welfare and to accept the sacrifice of your pride in the mild humiliation which you state is implied in the investigation of the loyalty of MCP members before their release.'
Chin Peng responded: ‘To report to the police means surrender'.
Snapped the Tengku: ‘I will never give in, so you must give in.'
Replied Chin Peng: ‘The amnesty means surrender. Surrender means humiliation. We will not accept surrender at any time. We will carry on the struggle to the last man.'
The Tunku was a warrior at heart and not a quitter. The communists did not surrender, period. We could have defeated them but then the Chief of Armed Forces, General Hashim Ali was the brother-in-law of our ‘Great Leader'. The IGP was Mohd Haniff Omar. Can I say, I blame him for capitulating to this dastardly parchment?
The army which bore the brunt of the fighting was one of the most experienced counter- insurgency fighting forces in jungle warfare, and I may be so bold as to add, in the world.
We could have totally defeated them in the same way the Sri Lankans did to Vellupillai Prabhakaran. We would not be spending our time and energy discussing Chin Peng's return today, nor would our ‘Great Leader' have embarked on a policy of marginalising certain segments of the Malaysian population.
He capitualted for expediency. So who did actually surrender? Mahathir went against everything the Tunku wanted as far as the CPM was concerned.
In his reasoning he fails to discuss the double standards. See images of our enemies with Malaysian VIPs. See more double standards here where an enemy of ours, Shamsieh Fakeh and her family applied to the Malaysian government for permission to return to the country from 1985 onwards.
People like Omar Mohd Hashim of the Malaysian History Association (PSM), should just keep quiet. I know there are many like him who push forth their own agenda and who ignominiously have no problems with double standards.
The message to him should be to stop insulting the intelligence of the soldiers and civillians alike.
