Tunku Abdul Rahman
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| Order: | 1st Prime Minister of Malaysia |
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| Term of Office: | August 31, 1957 - September 22, 1970 |
| Date of Birth: | February 8, 1903 |
| Date of Death: | December 6, 1990 |
| Place of Birth | Alor Setar, Kedah |
| Place of Death | Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia |
| Wife | Sharifah Rodziah Syed Alwi Barakbah |
| Occupation | Lawyer |
| Political Party: | UMNO |
| Deputy PM: | Tun Abdul Razak (1957 - 1970) |
Y.T.M Tunku Abdul Rahman Putra Al-Haj ibni Almarhum Sultan Abdul Hamid Shah (February 8 1903–December 6 1990) known simply as the Tunku (a princely title in Malaysia), and often called Bapa Kemerdekaan (Father of Independence) or Bapa Malaysia (Father of Malaysia), was Chief Minister of the Federation of Malaya from 1955, and the country's first Prime Minister from independence in 1957. The Tunku remained Prime Minister after Sabah, Sarawak, and Singapore joined in 1963 to form Malaysia.
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Early life
Born in Istana Pelamin, Alor Setar, Kedah, on February 8, 1903, Tunku was the seventh son and twentieth child of Sultan Abdul Hamid Halim Shah, the 24th Sultan of Kedah and his mother, Cik Menyalara, was daughter of Luang Naraborirak (Kleb), a Thai district officer during the reign of King Rama V.
Tunku had his early education in 1909 at a Malay Primary School, Jalan Baharu, Alor Setar and was later transferred to the Government English School, currently known as Sultan Abdul Hamid College, Alor Setar, and read the Quran in the afternoon. Two years later, when he was just eight years old, he was sent to study at the Thebsurian School (Debsirindir School) in Bangkok along with his three brothers. In 1915, he returned and continued his studies at Penang Free School.
In 1918, Tunku was awarded a Kedah State Scholarship to further his studies at St. Catherine College, University of Cambridge, where he obtained his Bachelor of Arts degree in 1925. Tunku was the first student from Kedah to study in the United Kingdom under the sponsorship of the Kedah State Government.
Upon his return home, the Tunku worked in the Kedah public services and was once appointed as District Officer of Kulim and Sungai Petani, but some time later returned to England to complete his law studies at the Inner Temple, but was forced to stop them in 1938 and, on the outbreak of World War II, he returned to Malaya. He resumed his studies at the Inner Temple in 1947 and, in 1949, he qualified for the Bar.
The Tunku met with Abdul Razak Hussein (later known as Datuk and Tun). The Tunku was elected as president of the Malay Society of Great Britain, and Abdul Razak, who was 26 then, was his secretary.
Early political career
After his return to Malaya in 1949, Tunku was first posted at the Legal Officer's office in Alor Star. (As the Tunku once said during the later years, his return was not a journey's end, but a beginning of a new life.) The Tunku later asked to be transferred to Kuala Lumpur. In Kuala Lumpur, the Tunku became a Deputy Public Prosecutor (a magistrate), albeit getting the same salary as what he received in Alor Star, but with a monthly allowance of RM150. He was later he was appointed as president of the Sessions Court.
During that period, nationalism was running high among the Malays, with Datuk Onn Jaafar leading UMNO in the struggle against Britain's Malayan Union.
In August 1951, a small storm left little ripples in Umno's teacup. The internal crisis eventually forced Datuk Onn to resign as party president in October. The Malays then looked for Tunku Abdul Rahman for leadership. Following which, the Tunku was elected as the new president held the post of the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) President for the following 20 years.
In early 1952, a by-election for Kuala Lumpur municipality was held, where both UMNO and the newly-formed Malayan Chinese Association (MCA) agreed not to fight against each other. As a result of this understanding, the UMNO-MCA Alliance was born, and both sides emerged as winners.
In 1954, the Tunku led a delegation to Britain to seek independence for Malaya, but the trip proved to be unfruitful. In the following year, the first federal general election was held, and the Alliance won 51 out of 52 seats contested. With the majority of the seats attained, the Tunku was elected as Malaya's first chief Minister.
The Alliance was later joined by the Malayan Indian Congress (MIC) in 1955, representing the Indian community. The outcome was noted for a stronger-than-ever coalition representing a large bloc of the people from Malaya.
Road to independence
In 1955, the Alliance Party was formed, which soon won the country's first general election, which was held in the same year. Tunku was then appointed as the Chief Minister of Malaya.
The Tunku made another trip to appeal for (successful) independence of Malaya with the British in London in 1955, and August 31, 1957 was decided as the date for Malaya's independence. The Tunku then declared Malaya's independence for the first time on February 20, 1956 in Melaka. It was noted that the news was received by Malayan people with tremendous joy.
The First Malaya Plan, which was initiated since 1956, was carried on to spur interracial ties and economic development to give the necessary components to prepare for the newfound Independence.
When England officially lowered its flag in Kuala Lumpur on August 31, 1957, the Tunku lead the crowd in rejoicing "MERDEKA!" The image of Tunku raising his hand, and his emotional but determined voice leading the cheers is arguably the most featured Merdeka icon until today, and have become a nostalgic reminder of the momentous event.
Tunku Abdul Rahman became Malaysia's first Prime Minister in 1957, and led the Alliance to mostly landslide wins in the 1959, 1964 and 1969 general elections.
On 27 May, 1961, Tunku Abdul Rahman made a speech at the Foreign Correspondents Association of Southeast Asia, Singapore. He proposed the idea of a federation which brings Malaya, Singapore, Sabah, Sarawak and Brunei.
The Tunku was also noted for leading Malaya into the international arena, joining the United Nations and the Commonwealth; established an-anti-apartheid policy and supported the struggle of the people of Palestine and Congo.
On 16 September 1963, along with Malaya, Sarawak, Sabah and the state of Singapore, the Tunku was formally restyled as the Prime Minister of Malaysia.
However, the racial factor was worsened with the inclusion of Singapore, which increased the Chinese proportion to close to 40%. Both UMNO and the MCA were nervous about the possible appeal of Lee's People's Action Party (then seen as a radical socialist party) to voters in Malaya, and tried to organise a party in Singapore to challenge Lee's position there. Lee in turn threatened to run PAP candidates in Malaya at the 1964 federal elections, despite an earlier agreement that he would not do so (see PAP-UMNO Relations). This provoked Tunku Abdul Rahman to demand that Singapore withdraw from Malaysia, which it did on August 7, 1965.
The Tunku also initiated the establishment of Association of Southeast Asia (ASA) in 1961; grouping Malaya, Thailand and the Philippines. The grouping was later disbanded to make way for a larger grouping, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) which was formed on August 8, 1967.
Following racial riots in 1969, Tunku's powers as Prime Minister were severely curtailed under the emergency committee MAGERAN. Subsequently, on September 22 1970, the Tunku was forced to resigned as Prime Minister of Malaysia, in favour of Abdul Razak. He subsequently resigned as UMNO President in June 1971.
Involvements in Islam
After making Islam the state religion, in 1960 the Tunku established the Islamic Welfare Organisation (PERKIM), an organisation to help Muslim converts adjust to new lives as Muslims. The Tunku was President of PERKIM until a year before his demise.
In 1961, Malaysia hosted the first International Quran Recital Competition, an event that developed from the Tunku's idea when he organised the first state-level competition in Kedah in 1951.
In 1969, the Tunku helped to set up the Organisation of Islamic Conference (OIC), of which he was the first Secretary-General. Subsequently, he initiated the setting up of the Islamic Development Bank as a specialised institution within the OIC. The Tunku was also President of the Regional Islamic Da'wah Council of South East Asia and the Pacific (RISEAP) from 1982 to 1988.
Later life
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Tunku later served as Secretary General of the Organisation of Islamic Conference (OIC) in Jeddah. He was active in many Muslim based organisations such as PERKIM. In 1977, having acquired substantial shares in The Star, a Penang-based newspaper, Tunku became the newspaper's Chairman. His columns, "Looking Back" and "As I See It", were largely critical of the government, and in 1987, Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad banned the newspaper.
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In 1988, following the banning of UMNO by the country's High Court, Tunku and another former Prime Minister Tun Hussein Onn set up UMNO Malaysia, but the new party's registration was quashed by Mahathir Mohamad, who set up his own UMNO Baru. Tunku later supported Parti Melayu Semangat 46, a splinter group of UMNO led by Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah. He campaigned actively for the latter in the General election of 1990, but was already in very poor health. He died at the Kuala Lumpur General Hospital on December 6, 1990.
In his later years, Tunku resided in his house in Penang, he often told of how Malaya gained independence, his thought on 1 August of the approaching 31 August 1957 was: One whole month. Less one day.
Tunku died on December 6 1990 at the age of 87 and was laid to rest at the Langgar Royal Mausoleum in Alor Star.
Family
Tunku married at least four times. By his first wife, a Chinese named Meriam Chong, he had Tunku Ahmad Nerang Putra and Tunku Khadijah. On Meriam's death, he married his former landlady in England, Violet Coulson. Ordered to divorce her by the Regent of Kedah, he married a distant cousin, Sharifah Rodziah Syed Alwi Barakbah, with whom he adopted four children. He also had a daughter by his fourth wife, a Chinese lady.
Miscellanous
An avid sportsman, Tunku Abdul Rahman initiated the Pestabola Merdeka (Independence Football Festival) in 1957, which was an international football tournament. The following year, he was elected as the first president of Asian Football Confederation (AFC), a post he held until 1976.
| Preceded by: (none) | Prime Ministers of Malaysia 1957-1970 | Succeeded by: Abdul Razak |