THE MEMOIRS OF MUSTAPHA HUSSAIN - Malaysia Today

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Dr Burhanuddin’s family in Singapore. Dr Burhanuddin had once told
me, “It is easy for you, your wife understands. It is very hard for me.
They do not want to understand.” He often asked me to convince his
wife of our cause.
Contributing to Indonesia’s Struggle (1946-49)
I made some contribution to Indonesia’s (home of my forefathers) nationalist
struggle. During the Malayan Emergency, when not a single soul
dared to fly the Indonesian Sang Saka Merah Putih flag, I hoisted it
from my Sunday Market stall on 17 August 1949, to celebrate Indonesia’s
4 th National Day. I closed my shop that day in gratitude to the Almighty.
A week before, I had met with prominent Indonesian residents in
Kampung Baru and Kuala Lumpur as well as members of the Indonesian
Independence Association. They were afraid to celebrate the day, but
agreed to attend if I arranged a celebration. So, I cycled around to collect
donations, sent invitations, arranged the venue and invited two speakers.
It was a special day for Indonesia and I.
That afternoon, a tea party was held at the Wong Kee Garden Café
along Batu Road, attended by about a hundred Indonesians and leftist
Malays. Radin Mas Sumarto (last seen living in Tasik Malaya, Indonesia)
spoke on the Indonesian struggle from 1941 towards Independence. Munir
bin Said, now living in Setapak, Kuala Lumpur, elaborated on their political
and military struggle against the Dutch from 1945 until 1949. The
delivery engrossed many, who later came to ask me where I had found
these two wonderful speakers. They wondered if the two would assist
them some day. I replied, “Do ask them yourselves. But I assure you they
only take one kind of bait, that of patriotism.” Throughout the celebration,
I feared a call from the police but nothing happened, and I was thankful.
That same day, my children, who had suffered much, were given an
opportunity to enjoy themselves to the full. After treating ourselves to
the bangsawan opera, we took a family photo. We still have this photo,
which survived our many moves. I had five children then: Ayesha,
Hendun, Adelain, Dinah and Insun. The photo was captioned: “17-8-1949
– Fourth Indonesian Independence Day.”
Assisting a Young Indonesian Lieutenant
Living amidst Indonesians and Malays, I came to hear of many problems
faced by the poor. Although a committee ran Kampung Baru, there were
matters not to be left to them, especially those concerning the Indonesians.