The Somerset Light Infantry - The Malayan Emergency, 1952 - 1955
Background to the Conflict
The Malayan Emergency had its roots in colonial insurgency, but became a fight against communism. With India leading the way, the British colonies began to call for independence. In Malaya the process was not a smooth transition. During the Second World War the British and American governments had supported the Malayan Communist Party (MSP), as they provided the only organised resistance against the Japanese. This however, trained the MCP in guerrilla tactics and led to their hero worship by the Malayan people. The end of the war was accompanied by calls for independence, and by 1947 some were campaigning for the establishment of the Federation of Malaya. It was during this campaign that the MCP turned against the British. To the MCP, the British agreement to the Federation of Malaya signalled that the British wanted to control the independence process and to prevent the establishment of a communist government in Malaya. It was also believed that an armed revolt by the MCP would ensure a community government.
The Conflict
The uprising began in June 1948 with the murder of three British rubber-planters. It soon evolved into a continuous terror campaign in which was seen the murdering, butchering, torturing and terorising of British and native inhabitants. The infrastructure was also sabotaged and a general air of civil unrest grew. The terrorist forces, numbering about 10,000, were mainly based in the jungle but were supported by a vast network of Chinese spies living in local villages. The first action taken by the British was a holding operation to keep the terrorist continually on the move, whilst also relocating whole villages to safe areas in order to stop the flow of food and information to the terrorists.
The Somerset Light Infantry did not join the conflict until November 1952. Their first action was a session of intense jungle training, where the term 'shoot to kill' had to be learned, along with how to fight, live and survive in the jungle. The Regiment's first operation began in early 1953, and saw them trying to clear a jungle swamp south-west of Kuala Lumpur. Although the operation was successful, most time in Malaya was spent on jungle patrol, looking for elusive terrorists who often had prior knowledge of patrols and soon vanished into the jungle.
After the successful completion in the swamp, the Regiment's attention was turned to hills that lay to the east of Kuala Lumpur. The operation aimed to cut food supplies to the terrorists. In October 1954 the Regiment became responsible for the State of Selango, before moving to the State of Pahanh in December.
In September 1955, a major change occurred in the attitude to the terrorists: the Malayan government declared an amnesty, which meant that captures and surrenders became more important than kills. It was soon after this amnesty that the 1st Battalion was relieved of duty by the Royal Licolnshire Regiment. The Battalion's success had varied during their stay in Malaya: in total they killed 54 bandits and captured seven, and they had emptied the North Swamp and Pehang of terrorists.
