The Emergence of Malaysia

??ell over half of this profile of Malaysia is given to Singapore, although this atypical city will not be the capital of the new federation, nor does it occupy the greatest space, nor does it account for the majority of the population. It seems to be the city the author knows best and finds most intriguing, and intriguing it is. A Malayan city the majority of whose people are Chinese, Singapore confronts imposing political and economic problems. Not the least of these is a strong, active Communist party; but the widespread terrorist secret societies, the almost complete absence of educational facilities for Chinese, the narcotics trade, the wholesale unemployment and hopelessly overcrowded living conditions are also challenging. By contrast, Kuala Lumpur, which will be the capital, is anti-Communist, and has a majority Malayan population, seems something like the ideal state. The states of North Borneo, which will complete the federation and which are primitive but rich, receive but little attention. This is not an excessively well written book, and it suffers from a rather superficial preoccupation with personalities, but the topic is important and, on the whole, this contribution offers some stimulating material. (Kirkus Reviews)