By: Yee Xin Chai, C J Koh Law Library, National University of Singapore
IALL Board member
As the national day of Singapore was celebrated on Saturday the 9th of August, I thought I that I should would write a short post on the history of separation of Singapore from the Federation of Malaya thought I would write a short post on the history of separation of Singapore from the Federation of Malaya.
Since the formation of the new Federation of Malaya in 1963, tensions had been rising between the central government in Kuala Lumpur and the Singapore Government which eventually lead to Singapore seceding from the Federation in 1965 [1] [2].
As they prepared for secession, Lee Kuan Yew assigned the drafting of the Separation Agreement to Singapore’s Law Minister, Edmund William Barker. Born in Singapore and educated at Cambridge, he was a close friend of Lee Kuan Yew and joined Lee’s cabinet as the Minister of Law in 1964, a year prior to the separation [3].
Barker based the draft agreement on the British West Indies Act 1962 which he had found in the Law Library of the University of Singapore. From there, three documents had been drafted: the Separation Agreement, the amendment to the Malaysian constitution to allow Singapore to separate, and the Proclamation of Independence [4].
It should be noted that the agreement and plans for separation was done in secrecy between Malaysia and Singapore, to prevent interception by the British. As such, Barker’s Separation Agreement was praised by Lee Kuan Yew as a “bloodless coup” against the British Government.
Despite it being a result of strife between Singapore and Malaysia, it was a step towards Singapore’s independence as a nation, celebrating also the end of British colonialization in the country. Additionally, it also paved the way for Singapore to operate independently from Malaysia as, most notably, it included the water agreements between the state of Johore and Singapore that allowed Singapore its own water source [5].
The nation’s perseverance towards independence and its continued march towards progress truly is reflected in its history. It makes it befitting that the title of its national anthem, Manjulah Singapura, translates to “Onwards, Singapore” as they persevere towards happiness.
Sources
[1] NLB, Singapore’s Separation from Malaysia. Singapore Infopedia.
[2] NLB, Lee Kuan Yew declares de facto independence for Singapore
[3] Tan, K. YL. & Er, LP (Eds.), Lee’s Lieutenants: Singapore’s Old Guard, 2018.
[4] Barker, E.W., Oral History Interviews, 1982
[5] Tan, K. KL, International Law, History and Policy Singapore in the Early Years, 2019.
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