THE MEMOIRS OF MUSTAPHA HUSSAIN - Malaysia Today

130 Memoirs of Mustapha Hussain
Minister of Social Welfare). Most of them seemed to be fighters. It goes
without saying that our discussions focused on the woeful plight of the
Malays in their prosperous homeland. At that time, in the 1930s, Malay
politics questioned efforts by ‘others’ to ‘seize’ Malaya from the Malays.
Political meetings and discussions were held in absolute secrecy.
Before the outbreak of World War II, a government servant like me had
to be extremely careful in choosing his friends. Many government officers,
including senior ones, were under surveillance by both the Police Special
Branch 1 and the colonial Intelligence team. The British could not rest easily
if they knew the Malays were stirring and becoming politically conscious.
The locals working with British Intelligence were mostly government
servants, especially from the Education Office and the Co-operatives
Department. They were entrusted with intelligence responsibilities only
after undergoing screenings and after pledging absolute allegiance to the
British. These Intelligence Officers were then interspersed among other
government servants, the Malay Rulers, pilgrims and other groups. Their
reward? Special allowances, quick promotion and access to British
Officers, for example, the Resident nearest them.
Meanwhile, Indonesian refugees, initially Dutch colonial nationals
who had migrated to Malaya for certain reasons (perhaps political ones),
were under the surveillance of both Dutch Intelligence and the Special
Branch. I therefore had to be extremely careful whom I met with. One
afternoon, I came across a man in his early fifties talking in an Indonesian
accent to a group of Malay youths. The subject was the global labour
movement. This small-built Indonesian, Sutan Jenain, had a magnetic pair
of eyes and a humble smile. Unlike the many Indonesian traders and
shopkeepers in Kuala Lumpur, Sutan was educated, at least up to middle
school, and could converse in Dutch and English. He lived alone, planting
pineapples in Bukit Belachan, while his family lived in Ulu Langat,
Selangor. His daughter married Police Officer Enchik Abu Bakar bin
Baginda, who was later appointed Selangor’s first Chief Minister.
We started to hold meetings and lectures on the quiet. The most
pertinent question asked: “Why are the Malays dirt poor in their own
homeland when it is overflowing with wealth?” Sutan was the first person
to enlighten us. He answered very simply, “It is because we are not yet
Merdeka (independent). A nation is like a fish. If we are independent,
we can enjoy the whole fish – head, body and tail. At the moment, we
are only getting its head and bones. With independence, we, the nation’s
own people, can run the country economically, politically and administratively.
But first, we must gain Independence.” This answer generated
many related questions: Aren’t the Malays already quite progressive?