Jumaat, 16 September 2011

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Saga of communist insurgency in <b>Sarawak</b> | BorneoPost Online <b>...</b>

Posted: 16 Sep 2011 12:16 AM PDT

by Francis Chan & Phyllis Wong. Posted on September 16, 2011, Friday

IN REMEMBRANCE: Neo (left) and a friend looking at pictures of fallen comrades on a memorial wall.

AT 61, Neo Kiaw Hong looks like a retired teacher or an 'everyday' housewife.

It is, thus, hard to imagine this slim, almost frail, woman once roamed the deepest jungles of Sarawak for 22 years a communist guerilla, only laying down her arms with the last remnants of a 52-strong guerilla group as late as November 3, 1990.

In the foreword of her memoirs, Neo, from Sibu, wrote: "For 22 years, we left footprints in the virgin forests and reforested areas, climbed through mountains, stepped on swampy lands and travelled through the rivers of Sarawak, Rejang, Oya, Mukah, Tatau, Kemena, Baram, Limbang to the borders of Brunei and Indonesia." (translated from Mandarin).

Indoctrinated with communist ideology by her teachers and peers, Neo joined the revolutionary struggle and entered the jungle at 19 in 1968 for what she and her comrades believed to be a fight for social justice.

They left their homes in the prime of their youth, fired by a fervour 'to rock Sarawak to gain independence', risking their lives and undergoing extreme hardships in the often unforgiving wilderness of the state.

It was a fire that finally went out after the focal point of their inspiration died as early as 1972 when China established bilateral relationships with Malaysia.

Since early 1981, Deng Xiao Peng had encouraged the communists in Malaysia to seek an avenue for a peace accord which was eventually signed in Haadyai, Thailand, on December 2, 1989.

That accord — and perhaps the realisation that time was passing them by as they soldiered on with an increasingly irrelevant struggle — persuaded Neo and her comrades to denounce their futile insurgency.

World realities

But life as a guerrilla was not bereft of the realities of the normal world and the inevitable when young men and women lived and fought together.

In between almost constant movement in the jungle and occasional skirmishes with the security forces, some of them fell in love and got married.

Neo, the midwife of her group, said she delivered 10 babies in the jungle.

She met her husband, Yii Sie Tung, from Kanowit in the jungle and they got married in 1979, stealing out of the jungle for a proper ceremony and a wedding photo shot.

After the 1990 surrender, the couple settled down to normal life in Sibu after a brief period of adjustment and they have a daughter now in higher secondary school.

Yii, now working with a trading company after holding several other jobs, was calm and composed when we interviewed him and his wife in Sibu recently.

Looking back 20 years after laying down their arms, the couple believe they fought for the people of Sarawak.

"Our struggle together with many others had its significance," they claimed.

THEN AND NOW: Neo and husband, Yii as young, idealist insurgents (left) and today, very much the everyday couple with a daughter in higher secondary school.

Heavy toll

The communist insurgency in the state exacted a heavy toll on their members. With an almost resigned look and a tinge of sadness, Yii said they had documented 763 of their comrades who died in the struggle.

However, not all of them died in action – the jungle can be an unforgiving host. Sicknesses and accidents contributed to many of their casualties.

Neo recalled a comrade who died falling down a steep hill and smashing his head against a stone while carrying a wild boar he had shot.

That being said. The jungle can also be a generous host, providing them with game, fish, fruits and vegetables.

Neo said they sometimes feasted like kings on deer and wild boar they shot, and during fruit season, they often collected wild durians by the hundreds – more than they could eat.

There were times too when food was scarce as they had to be constantly on the move. Communist groups have existed in Sarawak since 1941.

Hsueh Hsih (communist indoctrination) groups were fi rst formed in Kuching in 1949-50, following the communists' seizure of power in China. Communism in Sarawak had its origin in the Chinese schools in the 1950s.

They were especially active in Kuching Chung Hua Schools.

The two key leaders who emerged from the Chung Hua Middle School and were later pivotal in setting up the Clandestine Communist Organisation (CCO) in Sarawak were Weng Min Chyuan and Bong Kee Chok.

47-day strike

In March 30, 1954, students of Kuching Chung Hua Middle School held a 47-day strike to protest against the school authority's teaching methods and its measures in expelling students.

"The students eventually won and this developed into a revolutionary organisation and group spreading to other towns.

"Because of this, the group's influence grew bigger, not only in the schools as it also spread to the business community and farmers, who were parents of the students." recalled Yii who was 19 when he joined the revolutionary group in 1968.

Another former CCO member Liew Min Jaw, from Bau, has settled in Miri and returned to what he was doing before taking up arms in the jungle – farming.

When met in Miri recently, Liew was initially rather reserved in his replies to our questions but loosened up after a while.

He said he entered the jungle in May 1963 when he was 24 years old, adding that they were forced by circumstances and infl uences of their teachers into taking up arms.

"We were also very much influenced by our school teachers who moved us towards the ideals of socialism and communism where everyone was supposed to be equal," he added.

Liew returned to society much earlier than Yii and Neo — a few months before the signing of the Sri Aman Treaty between the Sarawak government and Bong Kee Chok in 1973.

Liew lived in Kuching for many years, working as a barber before going back to farming with his family in Miri.

Hiung Kiew Ming, 64, is another former CCO member who surrendered in 1973.

He was only 15 when he joined the communist movement and walked into the jungle in 1962.

Hsiung, from Sibu, has also settled down in Miri. He worked in several companies after he got out, including a few years with a newspaper in Miri.

Communist infl itration

Like Liew, he too was influenced by his teachers and peers into joining the communist movement at an age when most of his friends were still in school.

Hsiung's case is a good example of how the communists influenced Chinese school students in the 1950's and early 60's, making use of these schools as the main recruitment base for new cadres.

According to a government White Paper — The Communist Threat to Sarawak — the CCO had also infiltrated the trade unions and Chinese media and covertly taken over Sarawak United People's Party (SUPP), Sarawak's earliest political party.

Based on excerpts from the White Paper, the SUPP was "controlled" by the CCO since just after its formation in 1959 as a base to its subversive campaign.

It was assessed that the CCO had penetrated nearly all levels of the SUPP and exercised complete control at the branch level and below where the communist influence had been reflected from time to time in SUPP's political rallies, cultural activities, recruiting drives, etc.

However, in a newspaper interview then, Ong Kee Hui, one of the founding leaders of SUPP, said his party was not a communist organisation and that there was no place in it for any CCO members.

"We are a legitimate political party and we have no place for people who choose to conduct activities outside the law.

If the Party had any evidence of any member involved in such activities, it would have no hesitation in taking firm and proper action."

Nevertheless, Liew confirmed this: "I joined SUPP in 1960, and many of the members were also like me (SUPP-CCO)."

Image from file

Large scale arrests

Following the Brunei Rebellion in 1962 when AM Azahari launched his attempt to overthrow the Brunei Sultanate, the British carried out large scale arrests of anti-colonisation and anti-Malaysia elements.

According to Liew, the 'migration' of the mostly Chinese youths to the Indonesian border was prompted by arrest orders issued by the British to round up suspected communists.

About 700-800 CCO members and supporters slipped across the Sarawak border into Indonesia where they received intensive training in guerilla warfare.

It was this group that formed the core of the communist guerrilla units — Pasukan Rakyat Kalimantan Utara (PARAKU) and Pasukan Gerilya Rakyat Sarawak (PGRS).

Liew recalled joining a group of 30 to Serikin on the border with Indonesia.

"The intensive training included swimming, tree climbing, blind-folded assembly, disassembly of guns and TNT explosive handling."

In the midst of all this, Tunku Abdul Rahman launched his federation plan to incorporate Singapore, Brunei, Sarawak and Sabah into a single political entity called Malaysia.

"The fi rst operation of the trained members was to lead about 60 guerillas as a show of force to the Cobbold Commission visiting Sibu.

But the plan failed when the guerillas lost their way in the jungle and ran out of food too."

Another former cadre Lee Nguk Sang, 70, said:

"The timing could not be better for the CCO as Sukarno vowed he would 'crush' the federation of Malaysia even before it was formed.

"The Indonesian leader became an instant ally of the CCO, providing the organisation with supplies and training facilities in Kalimantan."

Lee, unlike Liew, Yiu, Neo and Hiung, did not "walk" into the jungle.

He was more a CCO sympathiser and a vital contact in the town for them.

The tide turned however, things began to sour for the CCO when Suharto took power in Indonesia in 1965.

Suharto did not share his predecessor's vision, and launched a mopping up operation against the communists and their supporters in Indonesia.

It was just a matter of time before the CCO would be targetted.

Suharto's acceptance of the federation of Malaysia meant the safe haven for the CCO in Kalimantan had disappeared overnight.

Liew revealed Suharto actually sent a letter to the CCO with an ultimatum that they laid down arms and returned to Malaysia or disarmed and stayed on in Indonesia or the Indonesian army would attack and eliminate the CCO.

On the Sarawak side, the government had instituted the lessons learnt from the Emergency in the peninsula.

'New Villages' were created along the Kuching- Serian road to ensure the Chinese and native farmers were out of the CCO's reach.

Villagers were kept under close supervision and security at night.

By 1970, Sarawak had a new coalition government made up of Parti Bumiputera and SUPP with Rahman Yakub as the chief minister. The 'moderates' in SUPP were in full control.

Stephen Yong was appointed deputy chief minister.

The CCO found it harder and harder to operate.

Sri Aman peace deal The CCO also officially established the North Kalimantan Communist Party (NKCP) in 1970 with the manifesto written by Bong (Kee Chok).

In 1973, Bong wrote a letter to Rahman Yakub, then Sarawak's chief minister, calling for talks.

A secret meeting was held in Simanggang, leading to the signing of a memorandum between the Sarawak government and PARAKU on Oct 21, 1973.

To commemorate this event Simanggang was renamed Sri Aman.

The 'Sri Aman' operation on Oct 21, 1973 had severely weakened the people's armed revolutionary power in Sarawak.

It was the futility of their struggle that prompted Liew and Hsiung and some of his comrades to follow Bong's initiative in laying down arms to rejoin society.

After 1973, the remaining 121 CCO members, led by Hung Chu Ting and Wong Lian Kui, continued to fi ght.

Yii and his wife Neo were among them.

From 1974 onwards, the war of attrition continued mostly in the Rejang Delta. There were killings on both sides and many innocent civilians lost their lives.

"The catalyst for the ending of the armed struggle was the peace agreement signed between the MCP and the Malaysian government in 1989.

Weng Min Chyuan, from China, issued instructions that the CCO should also open negotiations with the Sarawak government," recalled Yii who was one of the negotiators.

A series of negotiations took place in Bintulu in July 1990. On October 17, 1990, a formal peace agreement ending the communist insurrection in Sarawak was signed at Wisma Bapa Malaysia, Kuching, following which, the last group of 52 communist guerillas, led by Ang Cho Teng, surrendered.

Ex-CCO members have formed friendship associations to keep in touch with one another, and various memoirs of several ex-CCO guerillas have been published in Chinese.

EARLY DAYS: The founder of the CCO, Bong Kee Chok (back second left) in a picture with SUPP Kuching division members and a group from the Padawan Bidayuh community at their longhouse in 1961.

PROPAGANDA: The banner pictured above typifi es the anti-Malaysia sentiment during the 60s.

A rock and a hard place | BorneoPost Online | Borneo , Malaysia <b>...</b>

Posted: 16 Sep 2011 01:06 AM PDT

Posted on September 16, 2011, Friday

AMICABLE TERMS: The signing ceremony of the Memorandum of Understanding between then Chief Minister, Abdul Rahman and Bong, director and political commissar of PARAKU at Rumah Sri Aman, Simanggang.

The circumstances that led to Op Sri Aman and the fi rst of a series of peace treaties between the communist insurgents and the Sarawak govt

THROUGH a personal letter addressed to then chief minister Tun Abdul Rahman Yakub, dated Oct 10 1973, director and political commissar of the North Kalimantan Communist Party (PARAKU) Bong Kee Chok stated that he and his colleagues would agree to lay down arms "for the realisation of peace in the State and cessation of war to carry out reconstruction and development".

A compilation of notes and documentations by the late Datuk Lawrence Lim.

The realisation had been a long time coming.

Image from file

Internal struggles within the Party Central Committee in what was then, First Division, along with growing disheartened revolutionists resulted in many of them surrendering, including the leader of 330 combat unit, Sim Kian Peng and Bong's own secretary, Bong Sai Yung and her husband Fam Kuok Kion on Sept 30 1973.

With their surrender, vital intelligence on his movements and his whereabouts had also been given up, effectively numbering the days for him and his men.

A massive encirclement cutting off all communication and supply routes had been cut off to Bong's unit.

The former director and political commissar of the PARAKU realised he was cornered. After some deliberation with his subordinates, there was only one thing they could do: hold peace talks. But first, they had to contact the leaders of the other factions.

Bong Kee Kwan and Tiong Hoe Hung were sent out with two letters each. O n e for the chief minister, and the other to the leaders of other factions – Overall Military Commander of the First Division Bureau Military Unit Bong Kee Hiu and Hung Chu Ting, Deputy Director of PARAKU and Overall leader of the Second Bureau operating in RASCOM.

Their intention was to inform them of their resolution for peace talks, and to ultimately surrender.

Before they could reach the other factions, however, both emissaries were captured by the police at Engkilili on their bus routes to their separate destinations.

They were subsequently taken to Kuching for a meeting with the chief minister and met him at his residence on Oct 13, 1973.

He expressed his willingness to meet Bong and agreed to the peace talk.

Almost a week later, Bong emerged from the jungle accompanied by his two emissaries Bong Kee Kwan, Tiong and his bodyguard Chai Ai Yew on Oct 19 and proceeded straight to the Residency in Simanggang where he would talk with Abdul Rahman.

Their first meeting was deliberately casual, allowing both sides to gauge the others' intentions and character.

On Oct 20, formal talks were held with the meeting being concluded on Oct 21 with the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding.

At the MoU ceremony held at Simanggang (later renamed Sri Aman to commemorate the event),Bong proposed that PARAKU units under his command would lay down their arms and rejoin society under the following considerations:

1. That Malaysian citizenship status of PARAKU members be guaranteed and PARAKU members who were Indonesian nationals be granted Malaysian citizenship upon application.

Abdul Rahman explained that there were three categories of persons involved in the issue of citizenship.

The first category referred to those who were Malaysian citizens.

Secondly, those who were Indonesian nationals wanting to be Malaysian citizens and lastly, foreigners, if any who wanted to be Malaysian citizens.

2. That members of PARAKU would be given opportunity to participate in the management of the Sarawak coalition government.

In his response, Abdul Rahman replied that it would be entirely up to the component parties' concerned to decide on the nomination of the candidates.

The candidates, he added, would not be chosen by the government.

Thus for ex-communists to be nominated as candidates depended entirely on the respective component parties.

3. That those who were detained under Preservation of Public Security Regulations (PPSR) should be released and be allowed to return to society as a result of the realisation of peace.

Abdul Rahman argued that the PPSR gave power to the authority to detain any person whose activities in Sarawak threatened the security of the country.

He added that the government had from time to time reviewed the detainees' cases and many of them had, in fact, already been released.

Abdul Rahman said those who were still retained would certainly be considered for release, provided that the government was satisfied that they were no longer a threat to national security.

4.That the controlled areas would be abolished on restoration of peace.

To this request, Abdul Rahman assured that upon the restoration of complete peace in the state, favourable consideration would be given to the abolishment on controlled areas.

Under the MoU, 321 PARAKU members from the First and Second Divisions withdrew in 69 batches. However, 16 of these PARAKU members decided to return to the jungle and rejoin their comrades.

Therefore, the actual number of those who rejoined society after the Sri Aman peace talk was 302. Under the peace deal, a total of 2245 firearms, 4390 assorted ammunition and 28 mines/grenades/bombs were destroyed at Bukit Siol in Kuching.

Following the announcement of the peace treaty, the government organised and carried out a series of successful peace rallies throughout Sarawak.

The aims of the peace rallies were twofold. Firstly, it was to provide opportunity for the government to explain the Sri Aman Peace Treaty to the masses with the view to recondition their thinking towards new political development.

Secondly, it was desirable to take the full advantage of the favourable political situation to mobilise the general public towards ensuring that the remaining Paraku members would withdraw completely from the jungle.

These peace rallies were met with excellent public response and enthusiasm.

When Op Sri Aman I was terminated on June 12 1974, it was surmised that the 52 remaining PARAKU members in the First Division who refused to come up to join their fellow comrades were the cream of its armed force preparing for a second armed struggle in future.

Hung held on in the jungle. Guided by Mao Tse-Tung's armed revolution theory, he believed that the only course of revolution open to them was to seize political power by force by surrounding the city from the rural areas.

Although he did not criticise Bong and Wong Lee Seng for taking part in Op Sri Aman, he was determined to see their armed struggle to the end.

However, the remaining members fi nally laid down their arms on Oct 17 1990, finally concluding three decades of armed communist insurgency in Sarawak.

PARAKU was the armed wing of North Kalimantan Communist Party (NKCP), a communist based in Sarawak founded on Sept 19, 1971.

Before that, the group operated under the name of Sarawak Communist Organisation led by Wen Min Chyuan, previously a leading member of the Sarawak United People's Party from 1960-64.
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