Lest We Forget: Malaysia Almost Crushed at Birth Adam Leong Kok Wey

Malaysia has just celebrated her 57^th founding anniversary on the 16^th of September 2020. Although the Covid-19 pandemic may have a hand in the restrained Malaysia Day celebration this year but for many years, the yearly Malaysia Day celebrations had been always muted. Unlike Merdeka Day (Independence Day) which falls on 31^st August every year, there were no classic war dramas played on television, no remembrance service for fallen warriors and no patriotic programs. Malaysians generally see Malaysia Day as another public holiday. However, not many Malaysians knew that Malaysia was almost crushed during its birth and Malaysia won a ‘war’ to preserve her sovereignty with a lingering feud still simmering today. The ‘war’ was known as the Indonesia-Malaysia Confrontation or Konfrontasi that started as soon as Malaysia was formed. The remaining feud that has lingered on is Philippines’s unwavering claim of Sabah.

The Konfrontasi was an “undeclared war” fought between Malaysia and Indonesia. The conflict started when Malaysia, consisting of Malaya, Sabah, Sarawak, and Singapore, was formed on September 16, 1963. Indonesia under President Sukarno was vehemently against the formation of Malaysia, which Sukarno saw as a British grand strategy to contain Indonesia’s geopolitical ambitions in the region. Indonesia then was suspected to be sympathetic to the communists and they were worries among the Western powers that Indonesia may be used as a springboard to support the spread of communism in the region. Numerous Southeast Asia countries were facing internal communist insurgencies at that point and these suspicions were justified then.

The Philippines was also against the formation of Malaysia as it claimed parts of Eastern Sabah (Sabah was known as North Borneo then). The Philippines broke off diplomatic relations with Malaysia but did not resort to the use of military forces. Sukarno however, launched a “Ganyang Malaysia” or “crush Malaysia” campaign, initially using political, economic, and propaganda means. When these actions failed, he decided to launch military attacks against Malaysia.

The first major battle fought during the Konfrontasi was the Battle of Long Jawai on 28 September 1963. A small force, comprising 6 Gurkhas, 2 Royal Malaysian Police Field Force personnel and 21 Malaysian border scouts, was attacked by 200 Indonesian soldiers at Long Jawai. The British-Malaysian force was defeated and the Indonesians executed 10 captured Malaysian border scouts. Indonesian military forces continued to conduct cross border raids in Sarawak and Sabah from Kalimantan (Indonesian Borneo) through the porous mountainous and jungle borders. This was slowly but effectively countered by Malaysian security forces, aided by a strong contingent of British Commonwealth military forces – mostly from the United Kingdom, Australia, and New Zealand. The slow and miserable results gained from the Indonesian cross border raids in Sabah and Sarawak frustrated Sukarno and prompted him in the middle of 1964 to open a second front in Peninsular Malaysia to divert the attention of the British Commonwealth and Malaysian security forces, and to boost the morale of Indonesian military forces embroiled in the fringes of Sabah and Sarawak.

Indonesian commandos launched amphibious raids on the coastal areas of Johor and Singapore on 17 August 1964, and later para-commandos were also parachuted into Peninsular Malaysia on 2 September 1964 to conduct subversion and sabotage attacks. All of these Indonesian commando operations were foiled with the Indonesian commandos either killed or captured by Malaysian and British Commonwealth security forces. Meanwhile, the Indonesian military forces continued to attempt cross-border attacks in Sabah and Sarawak but were continuously disrupted by track-and-ambush operations conducted by Malaysian and British Commonwealth security forces. Some of these operations were kept secret and codenamed ‘Claret’ that involved dangerous cross border track-and-raid operations inside Indonesia’s Kalimantan. The British 22 Special Air Service Regiment (SAS) (and Australia and New Zealand SAS) conducted numerous successful clandestine cross-order special operations in support of ‘Claret’, which are still studied today at some military Staff Colleges around the world.

Meanwhile, Indonesia had also used international propaganda to degrade Malaysia. Jakarta initially gained the trust of the Afro-Asian states, at that point an important group of mostly ex-colonial newly independent states which form a large group of members in the United Nations and Non-Aligned Movement (NAM). Their opinion and support was important to provide international recognition and within the United Nations. Malaysia countered Indonesia’s claims by conducting a whirlwind of diplomatic visits between 1964 and 1965, led by the Deputy Prime Minister of Malaysia Tun Abdul Razak and Singapore’s Chief Minister Lee Kwan Yew. The visits explained the reasons behind Malaysia’s formation and eventually managed to turn the tables on Indonesia. Malaysia subsequently obtained recognition from almost all of these Afro-Asian states.

The Konfrontasi lasted until 1966, when Indonesia under its new leader Suharto (who had replaced Sukarno at the end of 1965 in the midst of a failed coup), and suffering serious military setbacks and without much international support for its cause, decided to explore diplomatic options in ending the conflict. Both Indonesia and Malaysia held peace talks leading to the final conclusion of the undeclared war with the signing of a peace treaty in Bangkok on 28 May 1966. During the Konfrontasi, Malaysian and British Commonwealth security forces lost 114 men killed with the Indonesian military forces suffering close to 600 men killed.

The end of the Konfrontasi led to the formation of the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) in 1967. It was initially formed as a regional organization to reconcile relations among three of its five pioneer members namely Malaysia, Indonesia, and the Philippines, and serve as an important confidence building measure. ASEAN has since expanded and included all of the Southeast Asian states. ASEAN has served remarkably well in quelling regional competition and suspicions among its members, even though most of its members are still entangled in border and territorial disputes with each other.

As for Indonesia and Malaysia, both of these states have rebuilt their relationship and today are close partners in continuing ASEAN’s collaborative spirit. Malaysia and the Philippines had restored their diplomatic relations and works closely today in the ASEAN. The Philippines however, has not dropped its claim on Sabah yet. Recently, Philippines Foreign Affairs Secretary Teddy Boy Locsin has stated that ‘Sabah is not in Malaysia’. The Philippines’s House Committee on Foreign Affairs has also approved a bill to change the maps printed on Philippines passports to include Sabah. Philippines has also announced its plans to revive the Sabah Bureau to defend its claim. Malaysia has rebutted Philippines’s claims as baseless.

The Konfrontasi should be better remembered in Malaysia. For a start, every Malaysia Day must begin with a remembrance service and solemn parade for all servicemen killed defending Malaysia. More war movies about the Konfrontasi could be made that are similar in quality as PASKAL: The movie, and rivals the popularity of the classic war movies, Bukit Kepong and Leftenan Adnan. Needless to say, the full political and military history of the Konfrontasi should be taught at schools, local colleges and universities. These initiatives will drive the understanding that Malaysia fought a ‘war’ for its survival at birth and our nation was not built on a bump-free trajectory. When Malaysians understand that their nation was born on a war footing, perhaps we can build stronger patriotism and national cohesion – qualities in deficit today - to face contemporary and future strategic challenges.

Dr Adam Leong Kok Wey is an Assoc. Professor in strategic studies, and the Deputy Director of Research in the Centre for Defence and International Security Studies (CDISS) at the National Defence University of Malaysia. His latest book is Killing the Enemy! Assassination Operations During World War II, published in 2020 by Bloomsbury, London. Some portions of this article have been previously published in The Diplomat and CDISS Commentary.