The Road to Full The Road to Full Internal Self Internal Self GovernmentGovernment

1955 - 1959

Outcome

1959: A Year of Firsts

1955 Elections: Limited Internal Self Government

Labour wins marginally.

Results:

Labour: 10

SPP: 4

PAP: 3

Others: 8

1959: Full Internal Self Government

PAP Victory: 43/51 seats.

What is Full Internal Self Government?

How did it come to this?

Full Internal Self Govt: A Comparison

What is Full Internal Self Government?

Simply put: Full Internal Self Government was achieved when a locally raised political party has almost complete control over domestic affairs .

Exceptions: security related matters (internal and external) and foreign relations.

What was at stake in the What was at stake in the 1959 Elections?1959 Elections?

Comparison: 1955 and 1959

1955 1959

No. of eligible voters (electorate

300,292 587,797

Number of elected seats

25 51

Number of contesting parties

6 13

Number of candidates

79 194

What was at stake in the 1959 elections?

Simply put: the Party that won the most votes would lead Singapore into Full Internal Self Government and have almost complete control over domestic affairs .

Exceptions: security related matters (internal and external) and foreign relations.

What We have Learnt So Far…

1959 elections first truly democratic elections in Singapore

Local winner of elections to be given complete control over domestic affairs.

Exception of external affairs, defence and internal security.

The Big Question: How was Full Internal Self Government Achieved between 1955 – 1959?

Issues:

1959 Elections:1959 Elections:The Key Actors The Key Actors

1955 – 1959: People InvolvedSingapore Labour

FrontPAPThe Voters

The Communists The British

The Constant Variable: British Concerns

Elected government must NOT:

Either

Be pro-communist

And/or

Be unable to control the communists

1955 – 1956:What happened in between?

Issues:

1955: Singapore Labour Front Wins Elections

SLF wins 1955 elections by 10/25 seats.

British expected SPP to win.

David Marshall becomes Chief Minister.

David Marshall’s power limited.

1955: Hock Lee Bus Riots Communist instigated

April: Singapore Bus Workers Union workers go on strike for better pay and working conditions.

229 workers dismissed

Workers deliberately block front gate.

David Marshall’s Commission of Inquiry fails to appease strikers.

Climax reached on 12 May 1955: 20 lorries with students arrive, riots get violent.

4 killed, 31 injured.

Workers got their job back

1956: First Merdeka talks

Marshall leads a delegation to London to negotiate for full internal self government.

To be in effect by 1957

Talks fail.

Marshall steps down as Chief Minister.

Lim Yew Hock takes over

For Today…

The British were not satisfied with Marshall’s performance in relation to the communist threat and were not willing to grant Singapore full Internal self government during the first Merdeka Talks.

However, it was Marshall’s drive for full internal self government that paved the way for Lim Yew Hock to succeed in pushing for elections full internal self government during the Second Merdeka talks.

Singapore still had a long way to go. The communist threat was still not defeated, and the British were still not satisfied.

Issues:

Issues:

1956: Prelude to Riots

Lim Yew Hock clamps down hard on Communists by shutting down Singapore Chinese Middle Schools’ Student Union.

4 students leaders arrested

142 students expelled

1956: Student Riots

Students Camp at Chung Cheng High School and Chinese High School for two weeks.

Workers join in after talk by Lim Chin Siong

26th October, school stormed by police

Rioters take to the streets destroying public property

Curfew imposed

13 dead, 100 wounded

Arrests Made:

Communists/ Associated with Communists

Devan Nair

Lim Chin Siong

Fong Swee Suan

James Puthucheary

S.Woodhull

What do you think the British and Chinese

think of Lim Yew Hock at this point?

1957-1958

1957: 2nd Merdeka talks Lim Yew Hock leads second delegation to London.

Succeeds in negotiating for full internal self government.

November 1958 Constitution approved

Issues:

1959: Elections

525,000 voters

194 candidates

51 seats

13 political parties

1 winning party

“Why did the PAP win?”

Issues:

Conclusion

PAP won because: They built on the weaknesses and

achievements of the Labour Front They were united and well organised They were in touch with the people

on the ground They had a comprehensive plan for

Singapore.

Building on the Achievements and Weaknesses of the Labour Front

They built on the achievements of the Labour Front government. David Marshall demanded for Full Internal Self Government,

but never won the confidence of the British. Lim Yew Hock, succeeded where Marshall had failed by

gaining the trust of the British by being hard on the communists. However, he had lost the confidence of the Chinese educated.

They Labour Front thus lost the confidence of the local population. Moreover, the party underwent a split during Lim Yew Hock’s term.

All of this paved the way for the first truly democratic elections to be held in 1959. Without this chance, the PAP may not have had the chance to come to power.

They Were United and Well Organised

Large pool of voluntary helpers from the Trade Unions and Chinese School

Portrayed themselves as an honest party.

They Were in Touch with the People

“We combed every village, walking from house to house. My knowledge of Malay came in handy in Kampong Chantek; I switched to Hokkien in the predominantly dialect speaking neighbourhood of Yea Sua Buay.”

Adapted from On the Beat to the Hustings: An Autobiography by Lee Khoon Choy.

They Had a Comprehensive Plan for Singapore

“We drafted policy papers on economics, education, housing, health, rural development, labour and women’s rights, which we published in a series of pamphlets entitled, “The Tasks Ahead…”

Adapted from “The Singapore Story”: Memoirs of Lee Kuan Yew. By Lee Kuan Yew.

Conclusion

PAP won because: They built on the weaknesses and

achievements of the Labour Front They were united and well organised They were in touch with the people

on the ground They had a comprehensive plan for

Singapore.

Was it So Simple?

“It was a victory but I was not jubilant. I had begun to realize the weight of the problems that we were to face – unemployment, high expectations of rapid results, communist unrest, more subversion in the unions, schools and associations, more strikes, fewer investments, more unemployment, more trouble. Lim Chin Siong and Fong Swee Suan would soon work on the Chinese- speaking ground again to undermine us”

Adapted from “The Singapore Story”: Memoirs of Lee Kuan Yew. By Lee Kuan Yew.