Studies in Malaysian and Singapore History: Mubin Sheppard Memorial Essays

The Proclamation of Independence Memorial in Malacca: History, Memory and Silences

The Proclamation of Independence Memorial in Malacca: History, Memory and Silences EISEN TEO Introduction Malacca’s Proclamation of Independence Memorial (PIM), actually more a two-storey museum than a memorial, was officially opened on 31 August 1985 by Malaysia’s founding father Tunku Abdul Rahman to coincide with Merdeka Day celebrations.1 At a cost of RM1.4 million, it was converted from a British clubhouse, the Malacca Club, a two-storey structure with Mogul domes erected in 1912 (Fig. 1). It stands resplendent in the heart of Malacca’s old quarter, the recipient of UNESCO World Heritage status in July 2008. Flanking it are other famous attractions such as Bukit St Paul, the Santiago Fort and Padang Banda Hilir, where the Tunku himself announced the successful conclusion of independence talks with the British on 20 February 1956. Inside the museum rests even more history: display panels, exhibits and dioramas spread over fifteen sections chart the ‘progress’ of Malaysia’s history from the ‘incursion’of unwanted ‘foreign powers’into the peninsula between the fifteenth and nineteenth centuries through the stirrings of twentieth-century Malay nationalism and the traumas of the Japanese Occupation and the Emergency, finally culminating in the triumph of independence from colonial rule. The message seems clear and simple: here is the story of Malaysia’s hard-won independence from British rule, thanks to the efforts of post-war Malay nationalists eventually united under the political umbrella of the Tunku’s party, the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO). How does the PIM construct its narrative, then? Are there contesting voices—and silences—emerging from and challenging its textual and spatial presentations ? How have writers analysed the contents of the PIM, and what are their motives for doing so? How is the PIM relevant to post-colonial nationalism, nation-building, and the tensions between history and individual or collective 73 1 This thesis is the result of three visits to the Proclamation of Independence Memorial in Malacca, Malaysia, in February, July and December 2008. memory in a multi-ethnic nation like Malaysia? What does studying the PIM reveal about Malaysian history, politics and society, and the role of museums in them? Methodology To answer these questions, this thesis will first critique existing literature on the PIM, arguing that it neither does justice to the historical and intellectual complexity of the museum nor situates its narrative within the broader context of Malaysian history, politics and society. Both rigours are necessary to understand how the PIM came to be what it is today, and how that gels or grates with the society it exists in. The first section then orientates the reader to the PIM, including pictures for better visualization. The second section draws similarities between developments in Malaysian history and the contents of the PIM, to see how its imagination of the modern Malaysian nation was shaped by history. The third section analyses the tensions and contestations surrounding the PIM’s portrayals of Malay primacy and the ‘Malay hero’.2 The fourth section investigates how the dialectics of mentions 74 FIG. 1. The Proclamation of Independence Memorial (PIM), which is situated next to other famous Malaccan landmarks such as Bukit St Paul, the Santiago Fort and the Padang Banda Hilir. (Photo: Eisen Teo) 2 This will be a good time to clarify the use of seemingly simplistic yet inherently complicated terms like ‘Malay’, ‘Chinese’ and ‘Indian’. Unless otherwise stated, and silences materialize in the PIM, leading to even more tensions between official history and the memories of different social groups. These collectively make the case that while the PIM is both the product and conduit of tensions in contemporary Malaysian history and politics, it runs the risk of losing relevance in a complicated, rapidly evolving national discourse. This thesis concludes by commenting on the possibilities of writing a definitive Malaysian history, the complications and responsibilities associated with it, and what the PIM can do to remain relevant to Malaysians today. Literature Review To date, there is only one journal article that significantly covers the PIM: Nigel Worden’s ‘National Identity and Heritage Tourism in Melaka’.3 However, he neither focuses exclusively on the PIM nor delves into the deeper complications and nuances of its constituent sections. Instead, his agenda is to find out how state use of heritage and historical sites in Malacca constructs a ‘highly-contested’ contemporary Malaysian identity,4 something that becomes problematic when Malaysia tries...