Abstract
Drawing on archival sources in Britain, Singapore, Malaysia, and the United States, this article explores late-colonial anxieties about the influence of Chinese nationalism in Malaya (and especially among students in Chinese-medium schools) in the lead up to self-government in 1957. It demonstrates that the colonial fear of communism in Malaya was not always synonymous with the fear of cultural influence from “new China” and that the “rise of China” in the mid-1950s was viewed as a challenge to colonially sanctioned programs for “Malayanization.” More importantly, in exploring some of the ways in which the colonial state mobilized anti-communist cultural workers from Hong Kong to help counter the perceived threat from China, the article argues that more focus should be placed on the role of colonial agency in shaping “Sinophone” cultural expression in Southeast Asia during this period.
Highlights
In his 1997 study of "the Malayan Chinese and China," Fujio Hara details the gradual decline in what was labeled "China minded-ness" in 1950s Malaya, alongside the rise of what he refers to as a "Malaya-oriented identity consciousness" (Hara 1997, 102) within ethnic Chinese communities there
Admitting the limits of colonial planners in combating PRC "subversion," Watts painted a picture of a late colonial state which might well have lost its battle against PRC influence in the mid-1950s had it not been for its "Third Force" allies: It became apparent that the Union Press Group provided the most valuable instrument if not the only one in combating communist influence among the Chinese educated and increasing use was made of their services over a wide range of activities (BOD 1959)
In the desire to explore new identities and ideas which emerged as a result of decolonization, and to broaden the lens beyond the sorts of sources that once typified fields such as imperial history, this "postcolonial turn" has generated important local perspectives on hitherto "imperial" questions. Such an approach has tended to downplay the importance of cultural developments emerging in this period which are not defined as forms of "resistance." the adoption by anti-colonial voices of the "Malayanization"
Summary
In his 1997 study of "the Malayan Chinese and China," Fujio Hara details the gradual decline in what was labeled "China minded-ness" in 1950s Malaya, alongside the rise of what he refers to as a "Malaya-oriented identity consciousness" (Hara 1997, 102) within ethnic Chinese communities there. The Union Press in Malaya Up to this point, my story has been one of colonial reactions to the perceived threat of (initially) May 4th nationalism and, from late 1954 onwards, Chinese cultural nationalism, in Malayan schools Such reactions ranged from the enlisting of local organizations such as the MCA in sourcing new reading material to outright censorship. In a detailed report penned by UP staff in Malaya in June 1956, the organization noted the "soft-going strategy" that had been adopted by the PRC since Geneva, as well as UP's plans for expansion into the postcolonial era to counter this continuing threat Such plans ranged from the establishment of bookstores (for the distribution of "Free World literature") and printing presses in Singapore and Kuala Lumpur, to drama troupes, youth camps, and orchestras (HIA 1956)― all manner of "alternative pabulum for the young Chinese mind" that British officials were asking for at this very time. Admitting the limits of colonial planners in combating PRC "subversion," Watts painted a picture of a late colonial state which might well have lost its battle against PRC influence in the mid-1950s had it not been for its "Third Force" allies: It became apparent that the Union Press Group provided the most valuable instrument if not the only one in combating communist influence among the Chinese educated and increasing use was made of their services over a wide range of activities (BOD 1959)
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