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An invitation to rethink nation’s modern history
Author Dr Collin Abraham must be commended and congratulated for succinctly narrating and discoursing the long process of British colonization of Malaya and the struggles for independence with a theoretical framework of modern political economy informed and supported by in-depth knowledge of empirical history. Allow me to make several personal observations as my share of contributing to the rational discourse:
It has succeeded to a high degree in organizing a mass of facts and figures in the modern history of Malaya, which has always been known for its diversity not only in terms of race, religion, language and culture but also social class and ideology, into an analytical framework that is intelligible.
In particular, the restoration of the class and ideological analysis of the forces, groupings and personalities that participated in the making of modern Malaya has, I believe, made the understanding of the Malayan history even more insightful.
For example, like it or not, the Chinese Malayan community has never been politically and ideologically monolithic. As Abraham observes with deep insights, there was, first and foremost, a deep division between the nationalists (Kuomintang) which was generally supported by the wealthier segment of the community on one hand and Left on the other which was predominated by the lower-middle and working classes.
It has succeeded to a high degree in organizing a mass of facts and figures in the modern history of Malaya, which has always been known for its diversity not only in terms of race, religion, language and culture but also social class and ideology, into an analytical framework that is intelligible.
In particular, the restoration of the class and ideological analysis of the forces, groupings and personalities that participated in the making of modern Malaya has, I believe, made the understanding of the Malayan history even more insightful.
For example, like it or not, the Chinese Malayan community has never been politically and ideologically monolithic. As Abraham observes with deep insights, there was, first and foremost, a deep division between the nationalists (Kuomintang) which was generally supported by the wealthier segment of the community on one hand and Left on the other which was predominated by the lower-middle and working classes.
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