Hold That Line

The two-year-old Federation of Malaya is a nation in which the Malays have most of the numbers, the Chinese most of the money. It can exist only if the twain can meet. Thanks largely to the foresighted leadership of Tengku (Prince) Abdul Rahman, a wealthy, Cambridge-educated Moslem prince, peaceful and prosperous Malaya is run by a coalition Alliance Party, which has established a tenuous racial harmony among Malaya's 6,500,000 polyglot population.

Last week the ties that for seven years have bound the Alliance--Malays, the self-sufficient and aloof Chinese, and the Indians--began to fray. The ties held only when the Tengku proved that under his bland exterior he can be a hard man indeed. Trouble began over how the Alliance would distribute its candidates for the 104 parliamentary seats in next month's federal elections. Word got out that the Tengku would give the Indian minority half a dozen seats, the Chinese (who represent 40% of the population) would get 28 seats, and the rest would go to Tengku's own United Malay party. The Indians seemed satisfied. The Chinese decidedly were not.

The disgruntled president of the Malayan Chinese Association, Dr. Lim Chong Eu, wrote a "secret" letter to the Tengku (which was soon leaked), demanding 40 seats. Answered the Prince angrily: "Your action in presenting me with an ultimatum at this late hour is really a stab in the back to me."

Put on the spot, forced to choose whether to give way or to break up the Alliance, the Chinese party called a hurried meeting of its general working committee. In a secret vote 89 delegates voted to continue in the Alliance, with 60 opposed. Hurrying to the Tengku with the news, Lim mopped his brow as the Prince, pressing his advantage, demanded that the Chinese party expel "irresponsible members responsible for the crisis." Then, as a small sop, he promised that the number of Chinese to be named on the coalition ticket would be raised from 28 to 32.

As the embittered losers began to resign their jobs in the Malayan Chinese Association, the Tengku, holding the Alliance together, had plainly scored a personal triumph. But there were wounds that would last. Sighed Dr. Lim: "I'm happy the Alliance has averted a break, but personally, I'm finished. Never in my life have I been so misunderstood or so abused."

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