MERDEKA FOR MALAYA

This film is held by the Imperial War Museum (ID: MGH 2245).

Synopsis

Independence Day celebrations in Malaya, 31 August 1957.

Over shots of government buildings, the British voiceover introduces the film; ‘The eve of Independence, we decorate our towns and await our great moment, for we the people of Malaya to celebrate our coming of age’. At the airport, the Duke of Gloucester arrives with his wife and son, Prince William. He is met by the retiring High Commissioner, Sir Donald MacGillivray and local rulers. The film…

 

Context

An article in The Straits Times less than three weeks after the country’s independence, stated that ‘millions of people throughout the world next week will be able to see how Malaya celebrated the advent of independence’. The paper noted that the Malayan Film Unit was turning out 120 prints of Merdeka for Malaya ‘in all languages’ which would go initially to America, Australia, England, India and Jakarta where the unit had its own agencies…

 

Analysis

Merdeka for Malaya provides a valuable historical record of the independence celebrations in Malaya, showing the handover of power, but also the investiture of the King and Prime Minister and the opening of Parliament. The film places a particular emphasis on the pageantry and dignitaries, rather than the local people, and celebrates the British involvement within Malaya (Malaya ‘will always remember with gratitude the assistance that we have received from Great Britain…

 

Works Cited

Brendon, Piers, The Decline and Fall of the British Empire, 1781 – 1997 (London: Jonathan Cape, 2007).

Harper, T.N. The End of Empire and the Making of Malaya (New York: Cambridge University Press, 1998).

Stockwell, A.J., “Malaysia: The Making of a Neo-Colony?”, Managing the Business of Empire: Essays in Honour of David Fieldhouse, edited by Peter Burroughs and A.J. Stockwell (London: Frank Cass, 1998).

Stockwell,…

 

Titles

  • MERDEKA FOR MALAYA
 

Technical Data

Year:
1957
Running Time:
33 minutes
Film Gauge (Format):
16mm
Colour:
B&W
Sound:
Sound
Footage:
1242 ft
 

Production Credits

Production Countries:
GB
 

Countries

 

Themes

 

Production Organisations