§ Interestingly, Zainal also stressed that Malaya had in fact “never been colonised” and was only a “protectorate” of the British. He shared that no document since the Pangkor Treaty 1874 states that the state will be colonised, rather it will be protected. “Being a protectorate is not the same as being colonised... Only three states were colonised - Singapore, Malacca and Penang... Stop saying (Malaya) was colonised for 400 years. That is a big mistake,” he said. He added that Malaya was only actually colonised for two years as the Malayan Union from early 1946 to the end of 1947, as well as under the Japanese occupation. Additionally, the MPN in its statement said that while Malaya was never colonised “the British administration was a form of colonialism”. “The British were given the powers to ‘administer’ in the areas of governance and finance, as well as exploiting natural resources. “Historians researching the history of colonial Britain label this ‘colonialistic’ behaviour as a ‘breach of trust’ and ‘indirect rule’,” it said. The MPN added that while the British governed Malaya, the nation remained sovereign under its Malay rulers. §
Posted on: Fri, 28 Mar 2014 08:14:09 +0000
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