The War of the Running Dogs: Malaya 1948-1960 by Barber Noel

Author:Barber, Noel
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781780226132
Publisher: Orion
Published: 2013-05-29T16:00:00+00:00

14 THE SUPREMO

Almost from the moment General Templer arrived at Kuala Lumpur in February 1952, the people of Malaya were left in no doubt that a dynamic, unconventional figure with immense energy had landed among them. On his way to King’s House, an aide told him that forty servants would be lined up to receive him. Templer asked, ‘What do I do? Shake hands?’ The shocked aide replied, ‘But the High Commissioner never shakes hands with them.’ ‘This one dies,’ said Templer crisply, and on arrival proceeded to shake hands with every one of the servants and gardeners. This done, he demanded to see the servants’ quarters, and, after an inspection, discovered there was a credit of £4,000 in Whitehall’s annual budget for repairs and renovations to King’s House.

‘Spend the lot on improving the servants’ quarters,’ said Templer (adding later to a friend, ‘After what happened to poor Gurney I thought that at least I’d better get the staff on my side.’)

After taking one look round the extensive ornamental gardens of King’s House, he ordered it to be fenced in with barbed wire. Three days later he telephoned the Public Works Department and asked, ‘Is that PWD?’

‘Yes sir.’

‘This is General Templer. Can you hear me? Clearly? Are you sure you can?’

‘Yes sir, quite clearly,’ replied the startled head of PWD.

‘Well then,’ said Templer, ‘where the hell is that bloody barbed wire?’

Within a few days Templer’s withering language – and his insistence that every order be obeyed at the double – was the talk of every club and bar in Malaya. He was merciless to anyone who smacked of old-time colonialism. When he heard that the all-white Lake Club in Kuala Lumpur had refused entry to a distinguished Malay, he called the committee together and told them in a fury: ‘For the security forces there is no such thing as a colour bar. British boys, Rhodesians, Gurkhas, Africans and Fijians are risking their lives side by side with Malays, Chinese and Indians. These men see the real enemy in Communism. They also see their real friends.’ The club committee resigned – and a new committee agreed to multi-racial membership.

When he found that Chinese and Malay Muslims refused to co-operate in a pig farm project because non-pork-eating Malays did not like to work with the Chinese at breeding pigs, he said, ‘I want a pig farm here in a week.’ Despite religious objections, he got it – and won the admiration of the local people. Two days later he indented to London for half a dozen prize British boars to improve the stock.

Working with an astonishingly small staff of nine, which included a policeman and a civil servant, he spent as little time as possible in Kuala Lumpur. He wanted things done – and done quickly. He had no time for woolly thinking, and this made him totally unpredictable and at times unfair. There is some truth in the observation of Victor Purcell, the author: ‘With him “theoretical” was a term of high opprobrium, while “academic” was his nearest approach to obscene.

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