MALAYA EMERGENCY

An emergency declared in Malaya in June 1948 as a result of the assassination of the governor and the increase of acts of  terrorism committed by mainly Chinese Communist insurgents. Clearly the local police Special Branch was unable to cope with the scale of the problem and MI5 responded initially by appointing new security liaison officers in Singapore and Kuala Lumpur, but later took control of and reorganized the local security apparatus with conspicuous success. The entire population was documented, issued with identity cards, and encouraged to resist the intimidation and withdraw into protected villages, known as “white areas.” This latter policy was implemented by Field Marshal Sir Gerald Templer and effectively starved the Chinese into defeat.