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The differences between the state government of Singapore and the central government of Malaysia had become so acrimonious that I decided that it was best that Singapore went its own way. Otherwise there was no hope for peace.” This confirms that Singapore was forced to leave Malaysia at the Tunku’sorder. It was not Singapore that sought to secede or initiated the negotiation to separate from Malaysia, as some scholars seek to argue. Indeed in the months leading to its constitutional eviction, Singapore had been warned by Malaysian leaders against seeking secession or a partition of Malaysia between the former states of Malaya and the new states – Singapore, Sarawak and Sabah, as well as Penang. That partition had been proposed by Singapore as an alternative constitutional arrangement for a looser confederation. That proposal had developed from the call made by political parties grouped in the Malaysian Solidarity Convention for a “Malaysian Malaysia” that would ensure equality among all the states and ethnic groups in the country.This dual demand infuriated the ruling Alliance in Malaysia, especially the dominant United Malays National Organisation (UMNO). Sections of the ruling parties called for strong retaliation against Singapore’s ruling People’s Action Party (PAP) which they accused of treason for seeking secession. Some “ultra nationalists” called for the arrest of PM Lee and even imposing direct central rule on Singapore. As the conflict of words raged and Malay passions were roused, Malaysia’s senior leaders feared that violence might break out leading to racial clashes across the whole country. It was against this deteriorating political situation that the Tunku began to consider a surgical solution to this intractable problem.

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One, it soon became obvious that the Tunku wanted Singapore out of the Malaysian Parliament altogether. But he wanted Singapore to contribute to the cost of Malaysian defence, with a portion of Singapore's tax revenue going to Kuala Lumpur. There could be no taxation without representation, Mr Lee told the Tunku. We cannot become a colony in Malaysia.

Two, Kuala Lumpur wanted Singapore out of Malaysian politics but it wasn't prepared for the quid pro quo: Malaysia out of Singapore politics. Their fundamental precondition, Mr Lee was to write in his memoirs decades later, "was that, not only in Malaysia but even in Singapore itself, the PAP should stay out of the Malay world and leave it entirely to UMNO to deal with the Malays… even in Singapore."

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From the outset, Lee and the founders of the ruling People’s Action Party (PAP) had always believed in a united Malaya with Singapore, believing that the island had been hived of by the British to serve colonial interests. The PAP waged an epic battle for merger against the communists and pro-communists in the referendum in 1962 and in the 1963 general election. It won both resoundingly.

But merger turned out to be ill-conceived. The root cause triggering the chain of events which contributed in separation was the opposing visions of the federal and Singapore leaders. Lee and his party advocated a non-communal, multi-racial Malaysia with equal treatment of all races while the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) leaders swore by Malay dominance with affirmative action and special privileges for Malays.

The uneasy partnership and lack of trust between the leaders on both sides of the Causeway was evident right from the start. They disagreed over revenue contribution, taxes and development loans. Singapore was frustrated by the lack of a common market and pioneer status for its industries.

Political tensions between Kuala Lumpur and Singapore escalated as each got involved in the politics of the other. UMNO fielded candidates in Singapore’s September 1963 elections, while the PAP put up a challenge in the Malaysian general election in April 1964.

A war of words erupted in the hustings, the press and the federal parliament stoking communal tension and raw emotions. These arguments turned into blood on the streets when two race riots broke out on the island in 1964.

Tunku decided that the only way to avoid further bloodshed was for Singapore to leave the federation. An attempt for a looser federation was made by Lee but it was rejected by the Malaysian prime minister.

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There were political tension between the two major political parties. The People Action's Party (PAP) from Singapore, believe that there should be equal treatments to all races. However the United Malaya National Organisation (UMNO) believe that Malays.

Another reason for the cause of separation, is the disagreement for the economical tax, development loans and the revenue contribution from Singapore.

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The economical disagreements began when the Singapore failed to see the Malaysian government prior to the merger.  Largely, it was because the Malaysian government was more interested in pursing its own trade expansion than to keep its words.  As a result, Singapore was unable to trade with Malaysia in a common market, and this affected its economy.  Besides, there was also a great deal of confusion and disagreement on how Singapore should contribute to the Federal treasury and development loans to the Borneo states.

In the perception of the Malaysian government, the challenge of the PAP in the election meant a declaration of political war.  The PAP had become an enemy with the desire to break the unity of the Alliance in the government and the social unity in the country.  In response to the infiltration, the ultras (Malay extremists) in the United Malay National Organization (UMNO) of the Alliance, staged a retaliation campaign in Singapore.  It called the Malay community in the island to unite and denounce the PAP.  As a result, this resulted in two major racial riots in Singapore in July and September (Chew and Chew, 145).

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That the Singapore-Malaya did not everlastingly endure could be attributed to several factors. Chief among them is the racial composition of both present day sovereigns.Singapore is predominantly Chinese with racial minorities while Malaysia, on the hand,is a Malay Muslim majority nation having substantial non-Malay population.         This compromised both countries       Right from the onset,the merger was doomed.The Malayans under the leadership of Tengku Abdul Rahman demanded that Singapore Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew relinquished his status to be relegated to that of Chief Minister.But the latter correctly refused to comply simply because it was an inherited legacy left by the British after the island state obtained self government in 1959.       The very fact that Singapore was already a nation by itself  by 1959 unlike Sarawak and North Borneo,both then still British colonies,also compounded the situation.        Add this was the seeming refusal of Malaya to cooperate with Singapore over the expected creation of the Common Market.The failure on the part of the Malayans to accede to Singapore's request for economic expansion and opportunities could not but explain the ultimate collapse of a merger fraught with insurmountable woes.      Separation,if we recall,could have been averted or avoided had both antagonistic parties -Singapore and Malaya- fully comprehended and understood each other. But the Malayan politicians,in particular those from Umno,were to grossly immersed in race and religion to facilitate any rational or meaningful discourse with the PAP leaders.       In the end,both had no recourse but to sever any political connection.That in itself led to the separation of Singapore from the Malaysian Federation in 1965.

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One of the major concerns was that the PAP continued to ignore these disparities in their repeated cry for a "Malaysian Malaysia" – the equal treatment of all races in Malaysia by the government which should serve Malaysian citizens without any regard for the economic conditions of any particular race. Another contributor was the fear that the economic dominance of Singapore's Port would inevitably shift political power away from Kuala Lumpur in time, should Singapore remain in the Federation.

The state and federal governments also had disagreements on the economic front. Despite an earlier agreement to establish a common market Singapore continued to face restrictions when trading with the rest of Malaysia. The situation escalated to such an intensity that talks soon broke down and abusive speeches and writing became rife on both sides. UMNO extremists called for the arrest of Lee Kuan Yew.

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https://goo.gl/1rCEA9

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However, the merger with Malaysia was fraught with difficulties from the onset. This was due to a series of fundamental clashes between the PAP government in Singapore and the Alliance leaders in Kuala Lumpur over issues ranging from extremist politicking to contentious economic and financial arrangements. One of these disagreements was over the 39.8 percent share of the new taxes that Singapore was required to contribute even though Singapore’s population was just 17 percent of the total population of Malaysia.[7] These new taxes were announced bythe federal government on 25 November 1964 in a bid to raise $147 million to address the federal deficit of $543 million.[8]

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These two Asean neighbours, right next to each other, had to forgo a union forged in 1963 due basically to economical and racial clashes.

That the Singapore-Malaya did not everlastingly endure could be attributed to several factors. Chief among them is the racial composition of both present day minsters.

Singapore is made up of Chinese with racial minorities while Malaysia, on the hand, is a Malay Moslem majority nation.

Given this race composition disparity could Singapore and Malaya be in a position to compromise with each other? Or would both engage in a bitter fight that originally brought about the historic breakaway.

Right from the onset, the merger was doomed.The Malayans under the leadership of Tengku Abdul Rahman demanded that Singapore Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew gave up his status to be given a inferior rank to that of Chief Minister. But the latter correctly refused to comply simply because it was an inherited legacy left by the British after the island state obtained self government in 1959.

The very fact that Singapore was already a nation by itself  by 1959 unlike Sarawak and North Borneo, both then still British colonies, also 'mixed' the situation.

Add this was the seeming refusal of Malaya to cooperate with Singapore over the expected creation of the Common Market. The failure on the part of the Malayans to agree to Singapore's request for economic expansion and opportunities could not but explain the ultimate collapse of a merger filled with unconquerable woes.

Separation, if we recall, could have been averted or avoided had both hostile parties -Singapore and Malaya- fully comprehended and understood each other. But the Malayan politicians, in particular those from UMNO (United Malays National Organisation), were to grossly immersed in race and religion to facilitate any rational or meaningful discourse with the PAP leaders.

In the end, both had no recourse but to sever any political connection.That in itself led to the separation of Singapore from the Malaysian Federation in 1965.

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Singapore is predominantly Chinese with racial minorities while Malaysia, on the hand,is a Malay Moslem majority nation having substantial non-Malay population.

Given this ethnic composition disparity could Singapore and Malaya be in a position to compromise with each other?Or would both engage in an acrimonious stand off that originally brought about the historic breakaway.

Right from the onset, the merger was doomed.The Malayans under the leadership of Tengku Abdul Rahman demanded that Singapore Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew relinquished his status to be relegated to that of Chief Minister.But the latter correctly refused to comply simply because it was an inherited legacy left by the British after the island state obtained self government in 1959.

The very fact that Singapore was already a nation by itself by 1959 unlike Sarawak and North Borneo, both then still British colonies,also compounded the situation.

Add this was the seeming refusal of Malaya to cooperate with Singapore over the expected creation of the Common Market. The failure on the part of the Malayans to accede to Singapore's request for economic expansion and opportunities could not but explain the ultimate collapse of a merger fraught with insurmountable woes.

Separation, if we recall,could have been averted or avoided had both antagonistic parties -Singapore and Malaya- fully comprehended and understood each other. But the Malayan politicians,in particular those from UMNO, were to grossly immersed in race and religion to facilitate any rational or meaningful discourse with the PAP leaders.

Thus, Singapore had to separate from the Malaysian Federation in 1965.

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In May 1961, the Prime Minister of the Federation of Malaya, Tunku Abdul Rahman, announced the possibility of a merger with Singapore. Disagreement over this issue prompted a split in the PAP in July 1961. The pro-communists led by Lim Chin Siong first tried to bring down the government in the Legislative Assembly. When they failed, they broke away to form the Barisan Sosialis. The trade unions also split – those loyal to the PAP formed the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC), while the pro-communist unions set up the Singapore Association of Trade Unions (SATU). This resulted in a fierce battle for the hearts and minds of Singaporeans. Lee Kuan Yew made a series of radio broadcasts to expose the communists – their aims, methods and organisation – and visited all 51 constituencies. A referendum was held in September 1962 in which the PAP’s proposal for merger with the Federation won 71 percent of the votes. A year later, on 16 September 1963, Singapore became part of Malaysia. Five days after Merger, the PAP won 37 seats in the 1963 General Elections, compared to the Barisan Socialis’ 13. The PAP – with Mr Lee’s “superb political generalship,” as Dr Goh Keng Swee later described it – had survived the communist onslaught. Separation Merger, however, turned out to be an unhappy experience. The PAP contested the 1964 Malaysian General Election, but won only one seat in the peninsula. Racial riots broke out in Singapore on 21 July 1964. Relations between Singapore and 1 July 1964. Relations between Singapore and Kuala Lumpur deteriorated as Lee Kuan Yew campaigned for a non-communal “Malaysian Malaysia”. On 9 August 1965, Singapore separated from Malaysia. The image of Mr Lee on television crying over this “moment of anguish” was something rying over this “moment of anguish” was something no Singaporean would forget.

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The merger with Malaysia was fraught with difficulties from the onset. This was due to a series of fundamental clashes between the PAP government in Singapore and the Alliance leaders in Kuala Lumpur over issues ranging from extremist politicking to contentious economic and financial arrangements. One of these disagreements was over the 39.8 percent share of the new taxes that Singapore was required to contribute even though Singapore’s population was just 17 percent of the total population of Malaysia. These new taxes were announced by the federal government on 25 November 1964 in a bid to raise $147 million to address the federal deficit of $543 million.

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However, the merger with Malaysia was fraught with difficulties from the onset. This was due to a series of fundamental clashes between the PAP government in Singapore and the Alliance leaders in Kuala Lumpur over issues ranging from extremist politicking to contentious economic and financial arrangements. One of these disagreements was over the 39.8 percent share of the new taxes that Singapore was required to contribute even though Singapore’s population was just 17 percent of the total population of Malaysia.[7] These new taxes were announced bythe federal government on 25 November 1964 in a bid to raise $147 million to address the federal deficit of $543 million.[8]

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What happened in Malaya, though, were a few factors that drove the Chinese and the Malay communities apart. First was the special protected position of the Malays. The British had always recognised aborigine rights in Malaya and instead imported the Chinese and Indians to do the hard labour in that region. Then there was World War 2, where the Chinese were singled out for "special treatment" by the Japanese and this drove a rift between the two communities. Also, in the formation of Malaya's nationhood, in order to secure the co-operation of the sultans of Malaya, you had to promise that the Malays would be treated specially, effectively creating a patron system. Most importantly was the Malayan emergency, which turned Malaya into something of a police state in the 50s. If democracy had been allowed to flourish, then it was not inevitable that you would have the rise of the bumiputra state. The Malayan Emergency was also a manifestation of another split between the Chinese and the Malays because while there were Chinese and Malays amongst the "Communists", they were dominantly Chinese.Malaysia's leeway to give economic opportunities to Singapore was going to be limited.More importantly, Malaysia and Singapore have things that the other side wants. Malaysia has the land and the raw materials. Singapore has the good governance and the efficiency.

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Singapore and Malaysia are cited prime examples to illustrate why political experimentation done to facilitate geographical,social and economic union between territories had failed.

The Singapore-Malaya did not everlastingly endure could be attributed to several factors. Chief among them is the racial composition of both present day sovereigns.Singapore is predominantly Chinese with racial minorities while Malaysia, on the hand,is a Malay Moslem majority nation having substantial non-Malay population.Given this ethnic composition disparity could Singapore and Malaya be in a position to compromise with each other? Or would both engage in an acrimonious stand off that originally brought about the historic breakaway.The merger would not work.The Malayans under the leadership of Tengku Abdul Rahman demanded that Singapore Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew relinquished his status to be relegated to Chief Minister.But he correctly refused to comply simply because it was an inherited legacy left by the British after the island obtained self government in 1959.The fact that Singapore was already a nation by itself by 1959 ,also compounded the situation.     Add this was the refusal of Malaya to cooperate with Singapore over the expected creation of the Common Market.The failure on the part of the Malayans to accept Singapore's request for economic expansion and opportunities could not but explain the ultimate collapse of a merger fraught with insurmountable woes.

Separation,if we recall,could have been averted or avoided had both antagonistic parties -Singapore and Malaya fully comprehended and understood each other. But the Malayan politicians,in particular those from UMNO,were too immersed in race and religion to facilitate any rational or meaningful discourse with the PAP leaders.  In the end,both had no recourse but to sever any political connection.That led to the separation of Singapore from the Malaya in 1965.

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The Federal Government of Malaysia, dominated by the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO), was concerned that as long as Singapore remained in the Federation, the bumiputera policy of affirmative action for Malays and the indigenous population would be undermined and therefore run counter to its agenda of addressing economic disparities between racial groups. One of the major concerns was that the PAP continued to ignore these disparities in their repeated cry for a "Malaysian Malaysia" – the equal treatment of all races in Malaysia by the government which should serve Malaysian citizens without any regard for the economic conditions of any particular race.

On 7 August 1965, Prime Minister Tunku Abdul Rahman, seeing no alternative to avoid further bloodshed, advised the Parliament of Malaysia that it should vote to expel Singapore from Malaysia.[2] Despite last-ditch attempts by PAP leaders, including Lee Kuan Yew, to keep Singapore as a state in the union, the Parliament on 9 August 1965 voted 126–0 in favor of the expulsion of Singapore, with Members of Parliament from Singapore not present. On that day, a tearful Lee announced that Singapore was a sovereign, independent nation and assumed the role of Prime Minister of the new nation.

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At the political front, the grossly imbalanced Malay-Chinese population in both countries made each vulnerable to communal prejudices which were played up by political leaders. The two major political parties in Malaysia, the People’s Action Party (PAP) and the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO), were soon accusing one another of communalism. The accusations escalated into tensions until they erupted into racial violence in Singapore on 21 July and 2 September 1964.[12] Despite agreeing to a two-year truce in September 1964, the acrimony between UMNO and PAP soon flared up again. At the heart of the rift was Lee’s multi-racial slogan, “Malaysian Malaysia”, which sowed deep distrust among UMNO leaders, especially the “ultras”, who viewed his vision of a non-communal Malaysia as a challenge to their party’s raison d'être of undisputed Malay dominance.

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Singapore Prime Minister Lee was involved in a series of discussions with the Malaysian leaders but "all these (negotiations) came to nought", as noted by Dr Goh. Dr Goh recalled, during his interview with Dr Melanie Chew in the book Leaders Of Singapore: "In the early days there were a lot of discussions about changing the terms of Malaysia by the Prime Minister, Rajaratnam and Toh Chin Chye. It got nowhere."

Dr Goh said that when he and Mr Lee first proposed the merger, they did not expect the situation with Malaysia to deteriorate to this level, "so the best thing would be to call it quits; we should go our separate ways". Dr Goh recalled: "I just want to get out. I could see no future in it; the political cost was dreadful and the economic benefits, well, didn't exist."

Dr Goh proposed: "Well, we leave Malaysia, become an independent state, and you will be relieved of all these troubles, and we would also be relieved of troubles from you. All these tensions that have built up, communal tensions, will all be over. We are on our own, you are on your own."

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In July and September 1964, there were racial riots which led to damage, serious injuries and loss of lives in Singapore. On the economic front, the common market of Peninsular Malaysia and Singapore did not materialise.

In November 1964, the then Malaysian Finance Minister Tan Siew Sin proposed raising an extra RM147 million in taxes.

This could have led to Singapore taxpayers contributing more than 35 per cent towards the federal budget, although the Singapore population comprised only about 17 per cent of the whole population in Malaysia at that time.

Furthermore, the proposed turnover and payroll tax would seriously affect businessmen in Singapore. The Malaysian Finance Minister also wanted to increase the contribution of Singapore to the federal government from 40 to 60 per cent of its revenue.

In addition, there were increasing tension and differences between the People's Action Party leaders in Singapore and the leaders in the Malaysian central government.

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Political tensions between Kuala Lumpur and Singapore escalated as each got involved in the politics of the other. UMNO candidates in Singapore’s September 1963 elections, while the PAP put up a challenge in the Malaysian general election in April 1964.

A long argument started in the a place where political campaign , the press and the federal parliament adding fuel to communal tension and raw emotionalism. The incendiary speech provokes more rioting which turned blood on the streets when two race riots broke out on the island in 1964. The carnage: 23 killed and 454 injured in July and 13 killed and 106 injured in September.

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Singapore and Malaysia examples to show why merging countries were not to be desired. Noordin Soopie in his report "From Malayan Union to Singapore Separation" enightens us as to why and how these two countries next to each other geographically had to destroy a union forged in 1963 due to political views and racial clashes.

There were several fundamental issues that we could not resolve in our political union that was crafted by the 1964 race riots.

Firstly, in the political sphere, our political views differed greatly. Singapore's PAP believed in a meritocratic, non-communal form of government that strived to treat everyone equally and reward them based on their merit, rather than their race or religion. Such a belief was expressed through our pledge, for example.

The dominant political party in the Malayan Penisula believed that the Malays, being the dominant race, deserved special privileges over the other races. This resulted in the government practicing a heavily pro-Malay affirmative action policy, in a bid to bring them up to the economic levels of the Chinese. The political parties at that time, (UMNO, MIC, MCA) were largely based on race, with the Malay-based party, UMNO being the biggest and strongest. Considering that Singapore(and the PAP) was predominantly Chinese, there was the perception that the inclusion of Singapore into the Malaysian Federation would dilute the power of the Malays and increase the influence of the Chinese. Actions by both parties only served to worsen the acrimonious relations between Singapore and Malaysia.

Economically, the lack of progress in establishing a common market also served to dilute the appeal of a union with Malaysia. As a resource-poor, economically undeveloped territory, the leaders felt that union with Malaysia was the best outcome for the survival of the state.  One of the main benefits would be to gain access to a larger consumer base to sell their goods to. However, by 1965, progress on this common market had stalled. Thus, our economic impetus for joining up slowly faltered.

With the racial riots in 1964-5 between the Chinese and the Malays, leaders of both countries felt that the situation could not continue. It was best to split before it broke down furthur. As a result, 48 years ago on 9th August, Singapore declared their independence.

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In July and September 1964, there were racial riots which led to damage, serious injuries and loss of lives in Singapore. On the economic front, the common market of Peninsular Malaysia and Singapore did not materialise.

In November 1964, the then Malaysian Finance Minister Tan Siew Sin proposed raising an extra RM147 million in taxes.

This could have led to Singapore taxpayers contributing more than 35 per cent towards the federal budget, although the Singapore population comprised only about 17 per cent of the whole population in Malaysia at that time.

Furthermore, the proposed turnover and payroll tax would seriously affect businessmen in Singapore. The Malaysian Finance Minister also wanted to increase the contribution of Singapore to the federal government from 40 to 60 per cent of its revenue.

In addition, there were increasing tension and differences between the People's Action Party leaders in Singapore and the leaders in the Malaysian central government.

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Singapore's PAP advocated a meritocratic, non-communal form of government that sought to treat everyone equally and reward them based on their merit, rather than their race or religion. Such a belief was expressed through our pledge, for example. The dominant political party in the Malayan penisula on the other had believed that the Malays, being the "sons of the soil", deserved special privileges over the Chinese and Indians. This resulted essentially in the government practicing a heavily pro-Malay affirmative action policy, in a bid to bring them up to the economic levels of the Chinese. The political parties at that time, (UMNO, MIC, MCA) were largely based on race, with the Malay-based party, UMNO being the biggest and strongest. Considering that Singapore(and the PAP) was predominantly Chinese, there was the perception that the inclusion of Singapore into the Malaysian Federation would dilute the power of the Malays and increase the influence of the Chinese. Actions by both parties only served to worsen the acrimonious relations between Singapore and Malaysia.

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1. Economic reasons: The Common Market could not be established.
2. The inability to get pioneer status from Kuala Lumpur for Singapore industries
3. Racism
4. Political differences / views
5. Clashes between the leaders
6. Increased Revenue Contribution (taxes)