By Dr Chen Man Hin, DAP Life advisor
From a poor communist country has been transformed into the fourth richest country in the world after USA, Japan and Germany, the man who started the phenomenal change was Deng Xiao Peng who introduced liberal and modernisation policies.
Although it still keep its communist ideology, China now intend to be friends with the whole world. She has won friends with the West, the developed countries and has given large financial handouts to the poor countries of the world. Her diplomacy offensive as a friend of the world has won tremendous appeal.
Malaysia ostensibly also adopt a policy of being a friend to the whole world, and PM Najib’s visit to China tomorrow is meant to expand and strengthen Malaysia-China relationship.
LET CHIN PENG RETURN
if we are friendly with China, then why is Chin Peng denied his desire to return to Malaysia as he is a citizen of this country?
He has long given up the communist struggle of world domination which was the battle cry of Communism last century. He is no longer a threat to the security of Malayaia.
Historically speaking, Chin Peng was a freedom fighter during the Japanese occupation of Malaya. Many of his comrades died in the struggle to free Malaya from imperialist Japan.
Those who opposed the return of Chin Peng said that he was responsible for the deaths of many Malayan army and police officers. True, but was not Japanese soldiers responsible for the killing of untold innocent people of Malaya during the Japanese occupation.
The war with Japan is over, and Malaysia and Japan are now friends. If Japan could be forgiven for countless atrocities, why cannot be Chin Peng be forgiven. He fought not as a murderer but as a solider in the service of communism.
Communism in Malaysia is not a threat any longer, as is communism in Russia and China.
It is time to allow Chin Peng to return. Relationship with China would become warmer and stronger. PM Najib should announce this while visiting Chinese, to show ‘let bygones be bygones’.
To forgive Japan, but not Chin Peng is a grave injustice.
A lot had been said about Chin Peng returning to Malaysia.
However, let’s consider this Bernama news article, shown below, about another leader of the Malayan Communist Party, which can be found on-line at
http://www.bernama.com/bernama/v5/newsindex.php?id=366092
October 21, 2008 00:11 AM
Shamsiah Fakeh, The Iron Lady Of The Communist Party Of Malaya
KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 20 (Bernama) — A firm lady and one who did not give in easily to defeat in pursuing her struggles is how Jamaluddin Ibrahim describes her mother, Shamsiah Fakeh, a former leader of the now-defunct Communist Party of Malaya (CPM).
Shamsiah, who spent almost 40 years of her life in exile in China, breathed her last at the age of 84 at her home in Tropicana, Damansara here.
Jamaluddin said his mother was a high-spirited and responsible woman who cared about her family and children.
“We didn’t realise that she was dead until about 9am this morning when we went to wake her up,” he said when met after the funeral at the Tunas Bakti Muslim cemetery, Sungai Besi here later Monday.
He said Shamsiah was admitted to the Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (HUKM) Medical Centre two months ago due to old age and was discharged two days ago.
Shamsiah, whose parents were Saamah Nonggok and Fakeh Sultan Sulaiman, was born in 1924 in Kuala Pilah, Negeri Sembilan.
At the age of 13, she was sent to study at the Sekolah Agama Rahmah Al-Yunusiah, Madrasah Tuddimiah, Padang Panjang in West Sumatra where she stayed until 1940.
She was the leader of the Angkatan Wanita Sedar (AWAS), a leftist political party formed in February 1946 to fight for Malaya’s independence, and among her comrades was Ahmad Boestamam, the leader of Angkatan Pemuda Insaf (API).
When AWAS was banned by the British during the Emergency in 1948, Shamsiah continued with her struggles to fight for Malaya’s independence.
She then joined the 10th Regiment of the Communist Party of Malaya and pursued her cause and over the years, she and her husband, Ibrahim Mohamad, were sent to China, Indonesia and Vietnam.
In 1968, she was sacked from the party, but continued to stay in Beijing, China where she worked at an iron factory. She also used her knowledge of the Malay language by working with Beijing Radio and the Beijing Institute of Foreign Languages.
Shamsiah and her family returned to Malaysia on July 23, 1994 following the signing of a peace agreement between the CPM, the Malaysian government and the Thai government in Haadyai, Thailand in 1989.
— BERNAMA
Can the government of the Federation of Malaysia explain & enlighten the people why was this woman, who obviously was a leader in the outlawed Malayan Communist Party, allowed to be returned to Malaysia after the signing of the peace agreement, when Chin Peng has not been allowed to do the same since then?
Another news article about Shamsiah Fakeh from
http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2008/10/20/nation/20081020143111&sec=nation
Published: Monday October 20, 2008 MYT 2:32:00 PM
Veteran communist leader Shamsiah Fakeh, 84, dies
KUALA LUMPUR: Shamsiah Fakeh, the veteran Communist leader who spent nearly 40 years in exile in China, died at 9am on Monday, after a lung infection. She was 84.
She passed away at her home in Jalan Kuchai Lama, according to her son Jamaluddin Ibrahim, 46.
Shamsiah was in poor health following a stroke in 1999 and, in the years prior to her death, she was largely unable to speak or walk, he said.
She is survived by two sons and four grandchildren.
An important figure in the struggle before independence, Shamsiah led the Angkatan Wanita Sedar (AWAS), Malaya’s first nationalist women’s organisation.
When the Malayan Emergency was declared in 1948, Shamsiah joined the predominantly ethnic-Malay 10th Rejiment of the Malayan Communist Party (MCP).
After 8 years in the jungle, she was sent to China in 1956 before returning to Malaysia in 1994.
The Kuala Pilah native, whose life was documented in the recent book Shamsiah Fakeh: Dari AWAS ke Rejimen Ke-10, was married 5 times and her husbands included nationalist leader Ahmad Boestamam and fellow MCP leader Ibrahim Mohamad.
Malaysians are now being allowed to pursue further studies in China and also Cuba.
Since the governments of both these countries have not denounced their communist ideology, isn’t the government of the Federation of Malaysia worried that these Malaysian students are ‘vulnerable’ to the communist ideology while studying over there in those countries and later return to Malaysia as possible ‘subversive elements’?
The problem with some is more equal then others perpetuated by Umno since the beginning of their time.
according to IMF and CIA world factbook, in 2008, china had surpassed germany as world third largest ecomony (measured by gdp nominal). if measured in term of gdp (ppp), china is second after usa.
It was our PM who said the communists in Malaysia have laid down their weapons and returned to society. There is no more threat from the communists, so why is the government so hesitant to allow an old man in his eighties come back to his motherland? It just goes to show that the government had not done enough in eradicating communism in Malaysia if it still fears an eighty plus year old man!
The murders of Altantuya are more dangerous than an old man like Chin Peng, and PDRM is highly efficient in arresting people anyway.
Are we so weak as to fear a harmless old man?
The reason is very obvious, Chin Peng was a true freedom fighter and a pure nationalist….somthing, the UMNO goons who are just nationalist pretenders find it difficult to accept. With Chin Peng’s presence in the country, the pretenders have nothing to shout about…just empty flashy claim of herioism to deceive the ignorants.
Malaysians are too polite to tell them in their faces and let them get away for half a century of bullsh#tting!!!
They worry he may disclose the classified stories of how Malayan got indepedence and many inside stories.
UMNO is racist , plain and simple.
See how they deny or delay to grant citizenship to your spouses of non-malay even after 40 years of marriage with children or grandchildren.
See how they try to deny to issue you your child birth certificate if you, for any unforeseen circumstances, not able to register the birth within the stipulated period.
See how they purposely deny your children scholarship even though they may have the best results.
See how they restrict your child admittance to the local universities even though they very good results.
See how they restrict you in the government services.
See how they use the racist nep policy to deny or restrict you of your legitimate rights to all the entitlements as citizen of the country.
Since they did all these to encourage you to leave the country as so many have done, so why would they want to let in Chin Peng? That is my million dollars question!
chin peng should be shot on sight
Communism is already history, not only in Malaysia but throughout the world.
It is strange that some of our leaders lately use the Chin Peng issue to warn the people of the revival of communism in the country. How an old man in his 80s can pose a threat to the country?
In an armed struggle there are bound to be people who die and maim and their family members suffer as a result. Everyone sympathizes with the suffering and hardship being endured by family members of the armed forces and police who died during that period. But the duty of the government is to make the most of the prevailing peace in the country to provide an ever better life for the rakyat. Never make a political capital out of the sufferings of the families of armed forces and police who died. You see American troops inflicted untold sufferings on the millions of Vietnamese during the Vietnam Conflict. Yet the Vietnamese have put the history behind them, and have made friends with their former enemy. Communism in Malaysia is dead long ago. It is our history. The leaders should not blame anybody, or the descendants of any community.
Everybody knows that Chin Peng and the CPM was once supported by the Chinese Communist Party in China, but that is the past. Forgive and forget by treating CP like any other citizen will help in enhancing Sino-Malaysian relations.
The very STRONG reason MALAYA got indepedence because BRITISH want MALAYA to promote DEMOCRACY in the region during when Communist is very strong.
The British worry Malaya may fall in the Communist hands then will impact the rest of countries into communist.
Malaya got indepedence the strong reason is because of Communist, the British worry and intended Malaya promote DEMOCRACY in the region.
Before Malaya indepedence, Malaya was among the richest money bowl/producer , the weath created by chinese and indian, to the British.
They allow Malaya indepedence with the demand of Malay, Chinese and Indian, etc, was targeted to promote DEMOCRACY in the FAR EAST region fight communnist.
IT WAS POLITICAL MOTIVATED.
The Malaya indepedence passion was began and created by the Communnist.
The British saw it if the people was passion about it either let it independence into democracy or risk fall into communist.
They plan it to promote DEMOCRACY in the region.
what are you rambling about a2a?? learn to think in english and write in english. what passion are you talking about?
the british worried about malaya turning communist and so gave the country independence?? you cannot even put your thoughts together let alone write.
# TomThumb Says:
Today at 09: 05.08 (1 hour ago)
chin peng should be shot on sight”
So should the person who ordered the killing of the poor Ms. Altantuya. You should also have to shoot all the corrupt umno politicians and their cronies, the policemen who tortured and murdered Kugan, Don’t forget to include the IGP and also the rest of those who abused their power. You can shoot the ah longs anytime and they don’t deserve any of our sympathy. Good luck to your endeavour
Agree, agree, agree, all the criminals must be shot, including the mat rempits, snatch thiefs and rapist.
TomThumb/a2a,
Recently I read somewhere that the British granted Independence to Malaya on the condition that the Chinese and Indians in all the Federated and Non-federated Malay States be given Malayan citizenship. All the residents of the former Straits Settlements of Penang and Malacca are automatically citizens of Malaya by Operation of Law.
I remember a few years back RTM televised the interview Tunku gave a few years before he died in 1990, in which he related how the three races cooperated to gain Independence for the country. Don’t believe, ask RTM to re-televise the interview, so that you people need not argue over it. Only extremists want to twist historical facts for their own ends.
///To forgive Japan, but not Chin Peng is a grave injustice.///– Dr Chen
Japanese invaded Malaysia and committed a lot of atrocities. Apparently since TDM initiated the look east policies, the government, and particularly UMNO not only forgave Japanese, they love them. Chin Peng fought the Japanese during their occupation, and wanted to push out British colonist, for self rule in Malaysia. UMNO fought against Malayan Union and worked towards independence. The objective was the same, though through different approaches. As British subjects in pre-independent Malaya they have equal right to work towards the future they see fit. Communists fought against the British, and there were solders in the employ of the British government who fought and lost their lives. That was part of occupational hazards, and they could hardly blame the adversaries. Indeed without the adversaries they might not have been employed. As for the others who died in cross-fire, killed by the communists or the British army; that was the results of turbulent days, and they should have to blame their fate.
Tunku and David Marshall met with Chen Tian, representative of Chen Ping at Baling in 1955 for the only peace talk held between the communists and the elected representative of Malaya. Though there was no concrete peace agreement but Tunku was promised by the communists that they would cease armed hostilities when Tunku gained independence for Malaya. They must have kept the promise which made it possible for an end to the emergency rule in Malaya in 1960.
It might be recalled that Independent for Malaya was envisaged for 1958. It was brought forward a year earlier when the British had the assurance of non-hostility by the communists against independent Malaya. Had Chen Ping insisted that they wanted a role in the Independent Malaya for peace, the British would not have allowed Malaya independent in 1957, and the consequence could only be speculated. Thus, Chen Ping had indirectly help ensured that Malaya gained independence a year ahead of time. He had ceased hostility after Malaya’s independence.
If Najib does not understand history, then he is not fit to be Prime Minister.
UMNO has been trying to distort history; they started with depriving full recognition of the role played by Tunku in history. Now UMNO wants to ensure that history record only UMNO was involved in seeking independence for Malaya, and non-Malays were pendatangs after Malaysia have been established. That should justify the special position of Malays on historical basis rather than a fact that it was the agreement reached among the leaders of the three communities that the special position endowment to Malays was for 15 years for them to catch up with other races.
Najib intends to wrap figure with paper, as the saying goes. He considered denying Chen Ping’s return would remove any traces of history which would record that non-Malays were fighting against the British in pre-independence Malaya and UMNO did not monopolise in that role.
If Najib would treat all Malaysians equal, in keeping with the only sensible interpretation of 1Malaysia, he has no need to distort history. His refusal to the return of Chen Ping creates doubts on the intention of his 1Malaysia slogan.
First must change new government, then change all the laws and policies. Then clean up all the shits and most important of all, change PDRM!
“Everybody knows that Chin Peng and the CPM was once supported by the Chinese Communist Party in China ..” ctc537
mcp was left very much on its own by china because it is their policy that the movement be left on its own to develop indigenous roots. part of the dialectical materialism narrative.
TomThum
you recommended chin peng should be shot on sight
Why don’t you go to UN tell everyone that Japanese should be shot on sight too?
You may granted a hero award.
On 2nd June 2009 at 09:05.08, TomThumb said:
chin peng should be shot on sight
If that is so, it should also apply to Shamsiah Fakeh, who was as much as part of the leadership in the Communist Party of Malaya as Chin Peng was.
Shamsiah was allowed to return to Malaysia in 1994, but Chin Peng wasn’t.
Doesn’t that look like the application of double standards?
On 2nd June 2009 at 10:59.46, TomThumb said:
the british worried about malaya turning communist and so gave the country independence??
One of CPM’ majors propaganda about why it started to wage its guerilla war in 1948 is to fight to free Malaya from British colonial rule. So, the British obviously had no choice but to deal with the pro-democratic independence movement in Malaya that wants to achieve its goals peacefully, which eventually paved way to the Alliance party winning the first pre-independent Malayan general election in 1955, setting up the foundation for a self-rule government which would take over after independence in 1957.
Towards the late 1950s, the British were also reluctant to grant independence to Singapore, as they had already granted to Malaya in 1957, for fear that it would become a sort of haven for communists. The British finally granted independence to Singapore when it joined the Federation of Malaysia together with Sabah & Sarawak in 1963.
Today at 19: 40.32, TomThumb said:
mcp was left very much on its own by china because it is their policy that the movement be left on its own to develop indigenous roots. part of the dialectical materialism narrative.
Let’s not forget that the 2nd Malaysian premier’s first visit to communist China (in 1975, if I’m not mistaken) to officially open diplomatic relations had played some role in causing CPM to ‘drift apart’ from communist China. Eventually, towards the beginning of the 1990s when the Iron Curtain in Europe started to fall and when communist China’s ‘capitalist experiment’ was at its infancy, the communist ideology has lost its steam & eventually CPM was disbanded after signing peace agreements with the governments of Malaysia & Thailand.
On 2nd June 2009 at 18:21.30, Loh said:
///To forgive Japan, but not Chin Peng is a grave injustice.///– Dr Chen
Japanese invaded Malaysia and committed a lot of atrocities. Apparently since TDM initiated the look east policies, the government, and particularly UMNO not only forgave Japanese, they love them. Chin Peng fought the Japanese during their occupation, and wanted to push out British colonist, for self rule in Malaysia. UMNO fought against Malayan Union and worked towards independence. The objective was the same, though through different approaches.
Yes, it was the Malayan People’s Anti Japanese Army which later became the guerilla army for the Communist Party of Malaya. However, CPM had made a major irreversible mistake by waging armed struggle against the British. Believe or not, prior to the beginning of the Emergency in 1948, CPM was not regarded hostile or outlawed by the British who regarded the MPAJA as a valuable ally in their resistance to the Japanese Occupation during World War 2. MPAJA was part of the British Force 136 resistance against the Japanese, and the CPM even took part in the WW2 victory celebrations in London, in 1946 if I’m not mistaken. If the hostilities of the Emergency had not happened, CPM could have been a legitimate party in Malaysian politics today. Note the example of a communist party existing in India today which even took part in its recent elections because the Indian communists did not wage armed struggle against the Indian government.
On 2nd June 2009 at 18:21.30, Loh said:
Tunku and David Marshall met with Chen Tian, representative of Chen Ping at Baling in 1955 for the only peace talk held between the communists and the elected representative of Malaya. Though there was no concrete peace agreement but Tunku was promised by the communists that they would cease armed hostilities when Tunku gained independence for Malaya. They must have kept the promise which made it possible for an end to the emergency rule in Malaya in 1960.
I don’t know which is the true version and which is the distorted version. What has been reported in the newspapers then and taught in the history books for decades is that the Tunku, with David Marshall, did meet Chin Peng at the Baling talks in 1955. During the talks, Chin Peng rejected Tunku’s condition that the CPM should surrender and eventually be disbanded, and Tunku rejected Chin Peng’s request that CPM be recognised as a legitimate political party should hostilities cease. In the end, each side went its own way after the talks ended.
When Malaya did achieve independence in 1957, gradually more CPM members became disillusioned with their armed struggle. After all, there’s no further reason to fight after Malaya had become independent. So, more surrendered and eventually hostilities from the CPM began to wind down to a lower magnitude that the Emergency was declared over in 1960.
But there were still the stubborn ones who still insist that the struggle must go on in the deeper jungles of Malaya and one of them was Chin Peng himself. This went on through the 1960s, 1970s & eventually ended in the late 1980s.
On 2nd June 2009 at 18:21.30, Loh said:
It might be recalled that Independent for Malaya was envisaged for 1958. It was brought forward a year earlier when the British had the assurance of non-hostility by the communists against independent Malaya. Had Chen Ping insisted that they wanted a role in the Independent Malaya for peace, the British would not have allowed Malaya independent in 1957, and the consequence could only be speculated. Thus, Chen Ping had indirectly help ensured that Malaya gained independence a year ahead of time. He had ceased hostility after Malaya’s independence.
As mentioned earlier, the 1955 Baling talks ended without either side agreeing on the terms for peace, and the Emergency which began in 1948 was declared over in 1960 although the CPM had not actually and totally surrendered, and instead, retreated deeper into the jungles to wage war at a smaller scale. The communist insurgency had only officially ended when CPM finally signed the peace agreement in 1989.
It can’t be denied that the Emergency may have forced the British to speed up its schedule in granting Malaya independence. After all, the sun was setting on what’s left of the British Empire after WW2. But it appears that the British also wanted to avoid the mistakes it made when it left Palestine and India from happening to Malaya.
Of course, we know that Zionist Jews displaced the majority of Palestinian Arabs and turned Palestine into Israel, the moment the British had hastily left that territory, creating over many decades of animosity which seems to have no end.
And we know that the British had somehow agreed to allow India to be partitioned to create a new nation called Pakistan which led to bloodshed between Hindus & Muslims, Indo-Pakistani wars & the still unsettled dispute over Kashmir.
Today at 19: 40.32, TomThumb said:
mcp was left very much on its own by china because it is their policy that the movement be left on its own to develop indigenous roots. part of the dialectical materialism narrative.
Let’s not forget that the 2nd Malaysian premier’s first visit to communist China (in 1975, if I’m not mistaken) to officially open diplomatic relations had played some role in causing CPM to ‘drift apart’ from communist China. Eventually, towards the beginning of the 1990s when the Iron Curtain in Europe started to fall and when communist China’s ‘capitalist experiment’ was at its infancy, the communist ideology has lost its steam & eventually CPM was disbanded after signing peace agreements with the governments of Malaysia & Thailand.
Tun Razak visited Beijing in May, 1974, months before the August, 1974 GE. There, the then Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai told Tun Razak that the Chinese Communist Party had always party-to-party relations, and it should not be a hindrance to the Malaysia-China relations. Tun Razak apparently agreed and that’s how the two countries established diplomatic relation in 1974.
In 1978, Chinese leader Deng Xiao Ping visited Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand where he got the message from the respective leaders that they were very much against China giving moral support to communist insurgency in SEA. After that, the Communist Party of China officially cut its by stopping The Voice of Malayan People’s Revolution broadcast from Yunnan Province, China. After that, the radio broadcast from China officially stopped. In Spring, Deng officially announced China’s 4 modernizations. So, I’m really perplexed as to why our leaders suddenly warned the people of the revival of communism. CPM is officially dead after Deng took over the leadership of China.
The Star Online reports on Najib’s remark in China: “We began as friends and the friendship between the Malay world and the Chinese world is not new. It began during the era of the Ming Dynasty when fleet commander Zheng He visited Malacca with 35,000 troops and 300 vessels.”
Hmmm…. I wonder whether he still remembers his remarks in 1969, hahaha. The moral of the story is when you are rich or on your way to great wealth, you can be Communists and who cares… but if you are poor, you can fight for human rights and all those altruistic values and who cares.