Abstract
Malaysia was one of the countries faced with the security threat from Communist insurgency inflicted by the Communist Party of Malaya (CPM). The CPM launched their armed revolt on 16 Jun 1948, in the name of war and anti-imperialist struggles against the British Government. The success of the Malayan Security Forces (MSF) during the Malayan Emergency 1948-1960 (the First Malayan Emergency) was based on the careful implementation of the Intelligence Services executed by the Police Special Branch (SB), known for its high reputation and efficiency in counter-intelligence details in defeating the insurrection of the CPM. This study aims to explain how the SB utilized their tactics and strategies in countering the CPM subversive activities, specifically during the First Emergency period. It has a vital significance on the studies of intelligence as most of the intelligence tactics and strategies utilized were classified and less highlighted to the public. This study will focus, dissect and extract the roles and functions of the SB, primarily on the efficiency of its intelligence strategies and tactics in defeating the CPM movement.
Highlights
This article focuses on the problems encountered by Malaysia ( Malaya) in dealing with the Malayan Emergency 1948-1960
The First Malayan Emergency had significantly shown that the Special Branch (SB) was unprepared, weak, and poor in providing the Malayan Security Forces (MSF) with reliable intelligence information in the initial stage
The SB has evolved by concentrating on the training of their officers and operatives in order to build up the degree of quality of intelligence gathering on the field through the formation of the SB Training School in Kuala Lumpur
Summary
This article focuses on the problems encountered by Malaysia ( Malaya) in dealing with the Malayan Emergency 1948-1960 (the First Malayan Emergency). The SB upheld clear objectives in supplying the Malayan Security Forces (MSF) with adequate, reliable, and sufficient intelligence information on the enemy. Intelligence is a vital element in a guerrilla warfare, serving as a guiding tool for the troops on the field to locate enemies anywhere within their operational area. The intelligence provided by the SB during the First Malayan Emergency may have prevented the loss of lives of the troops involved in the Search and Destroy operations since it provided the forces with safety measures and precautions in searching and eliminating the enemy. Eliminating the enemy through intelligence requires a lot of preparation that involves efficient police strategies and tactics, coordination of combat, as well as decision-making, which in turn, would determine the number of lives lost on the battlefield
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