The presentations were made by Major Mudsamir Abdullah, air attache at the Malaysian embassy in London, who said the medal was for outstanding services to the Malayan people. "It represents our appreciation of the sacrifices you all made in upholding the peace and serenity of our nation," he told the old soldiers, some of whom were as young as 18 when they were sent to the Far East.
The Malayan campaign has been described as one of Britain's forgotten
conflicts. It began officially with the "emergency" of 1957 when the country's
Communist party began its opposition to a British presence and sought to
overthrow the government. An intensive jungle war followed, with troops and
air personnel from Britain, Australia, New Zealand, Fiji and Nepal fighting to
contain Communist incursions from Borneo, Indonesia as well as stabilising
Malaya (now called Malaysia).
"The Americans had Vietnam, we had Malaya," said Pete Griffith, a former
Stamford butcher who now lives in Deeping St James and served with the Royal
Lincs. "It was a baptism of fire. Fighting was hand-to-hand and I lost many
friends to snipers" said Tony Townsend, of Castle Bytham, who was with 42
Commando.
"Temperatures were 100F, humidity 90 and you couldn't walk 70 yards without
breaking sweat," said Roger Garford, of Maxey.
"The Malayan people were mainly friendly and the Dyack tribesmen were
magnificent trackers," said Terl Bryant, of Stamford.
The ceremony was organised by Joe McColgan, of King's Cliffe, and several of
those who attended were members of the 6,500-strong National Malaya and Borneo
Veterans' Association.
Yet there was bitterness on the great day. "The Government made us wait for
this medal," said Joe. "They frowned on us receiving overseas awards, even
though Australians and New Zealanders had received theirs years ago. It was
only when the King of Malaya made a personal plea that the wheels were put in
motion."