EMAILS RECEIVED FROM VETERANS

The emails contained on this page are all in connection with the PJM (Pingat Jasa Malaysia) that has been offered to the British Service Men who served in the Far East between Aug 31, 1957, & Aug 12, 1966.  I would like to thank ALL members and non-members for their active part in keeping the pressure on the British Government.  I can confirm that the Malaysian Government have offered this medal to the British Government.  The pressure must be kept up as I am sure everyone will.

Fred

 

Hi there has been a lot of views on the PJM, I was in Borneo in 1966 and was awarded the 1962 GSM with bar Borneo. I also did a couple of tours in N I and was awarded a bar to go on the GSM one medal two bars.
          I have watched various programs about the Royal Family, HRH Prince Charles wears six medals never saw active service, HRH Prince Edward wears three couldn't take the Marines, HRH Prince Andrew earnt his medals in the Falklands war and deserves them, Prince Harry still in training wearing a medal and the government is denying us the PJM, Tony Blair has been asked to go to the states to receive the Congressional Medal for backing Bush in the Gulf, so far he has not done so but he will and then we can slag him for accepting a foreign medal. I it says it all have attached a photo of Prince Edward from the paper today it says it all
                                    Keith Davis
DEAR SIRS,
I AM A VETERAN OF BORNEO, ADEN, OMAN, AND THE COMMONWEALTH TEAM IN UGANDA 1982, WHAT DO I WEAR ON MY CHEST A GSM WITH 3 BARS, YET THEY [BRITISH GOVERNMENT] SEEM TO BE ISSUING A DIFFERENT MEDAL FOR EVERY NEW CONFLICT FROM THE FALKLANDS ISLAND ONWARDS. WHY SHOULD WE AS
PROUD VETERANS NOT BE ALLOWED TO WEAR ANOTHER MEDAL WHICH WE DESERVE I ONLY DID ONE TOUR IN EACH THEATRE SO WHAT ABOUT THE GUYS WHO DID MULTIPLE TOURS TALK ABOUT BRAVERY. MY OWN PERSONAL OPINION WE SHOULD DEFY THE GOVERNMENT PEACEFULLY AND WEAR OUR FOREIGN AWARDED MEDALS WITH PRIDE NOT TO BREAK THE LAW BUT BECAUSE WE EARNED THEM AND ALSO IN MEMORY OF THOSE WE LEFT BEHIND, ALSO TO HONOUR OUR BROTHERS IN ARMS, THE AUSSIES, KIWIS, GURKHAS, AND LAST BUT NOT LEAST THE MALAYSIAN ARMED FORCES AND POLICE, THE IBAN TRACKERS AND CIVILIANS WHO RISKED THEIR LIVES TO HELP US. GOD BLESS YOU FOR FIGHTING FOR OUR RIGHT TO WEAR THIS MEDAL.
YOURS AYE, DAVE MILLWARD EX 148 COMMANDO.
I served in a couple of Air Despatch units in Borneo during 'KONFRONTASI' and during this time befriended, and was befriended by many Malaysians civil and military.
I am very humbled that the people, government and the King wish to honour us in this way.
I actually feel embarrassed for our government in refusing this award.  It is a slight to those peoples who are nothing but the friendliest I have ever met.  They had very little back in the 50's and 60's ... but what they did have, they shared ... with US!
In my view, we should wear that medal WITH GREAT PRIDE!
We voted this government in ... we can certainly vote them OUT!
Yours aye
Ted Medler
ex-Corporal 69 Air Despatch Squadron RCT.
23337828 Pte Franks TJ
1st Btn Royal Lincolnshire Regiment
600 days in various parts of Malaysia, from Kroh South through Taiping, Ipoh, Batu Pahat and Yong Peng. & of the soldiers with whom I served seven are buried in Malaysia.   I wear my GSM with pride and to have the PJM would be a great reward for the time I served in the Far East.
I have written 35,000 words recently, about my National Service days and the National War Museum have a copy.   As I am still teaching part time I have put up, in school, a display of 'A Military Funeral' under the heading 'Why we must remember them'   It has received quite a bit of attention.
I have just read of the existence of the NMBVA through the article in the Sunday Telegraph.   I have down loaded a list of addresses to whom I will be writing in support of veterans of those conflicts, being allowed to wear the PJM as it is awarded by a friendly Government in recognition of the service of Her Majesty's Armed Forces.
Best wishes
Tim Franks 
I have , today received from my MP, Mary Creagh MP,information regarding above, in the form of a copy of a letter from Ian Pearson MP, Minister for Trade and Foreign Affairs and he states " We are very conscious of how much this medal means to the veterans who served in Malaya and Borneo. Jack Straw has, therefore, asked for certain principles of the Government's rules governing the accepting and wearing of non-British awards to be reviewed, in the light of the Malaysian request to present the PJM medal. We hope that this review, which is being co-ordinated by the Cabinet Office, will be completed soon."

This information sounds quite encouraging to me.

Please feel free to disseminate this information to interested bodies

Yours truly

Melvyn Taylor

Dear sir,

Following the news of the death of Pte. Wakefield, who was the latest British soldier to be tragically killed Iraq, Tony Blair, the British Prime Minister, while speaking at Labour's election news conference, sent his "profound condolences" to the soldier's family.

Mr. Blair said:

"His death underlines once again the extraordinary work and sacrifice that the Armed Forces are making to help Iraq become a stable and democratic country that is no longer a threat to its region and the world. We should be immensely grateful for the work they do."

Quite rightly, Mr Blair says we should be immensely grateful for the work that the British Army has done in Iraq. However, that being the case, Mr Blair needs to be asked why shouldn’t the same level gratitude be shown to those who have fought in past wars.

It must not be forgotten that this very same prime minister has refused to sanction the award of the Pingat Jasa Malaysia medal which Malaysia wishes to award to all those 10000 plus British and Commonwealth soldiers who, on orders from the British government, put their lives on the line for freedom during the Malayan Emergency in the 1950s and the Malaysian Confrontation with Indonesia during the 1960s. Mr Blair’s reported reasons for this stand is;- 1, Those involved in that war received a bar to their GSM,;- 2, The Malaysian situation took place a long time ago and should now be forgotten;- and 3, The British army does not allow the wearing of foreign Medals. The latter of course, we all know is not so…today there are many currently serving servicemen proudly wearing medals which have been awarded by a foreign nation.

Today, I read in the Australia papers than when Mr Blair was asked how many British lives had been lost in Iraq, his answer was ‘70 to 80’. I believe the fact that the British Prime Minister, the very man who sent Britain into this war, doesn’t know how many lives have been lost as a result of his actions, is not only a disgrace to his government, it ia also an insult, to not only those who have lost their lives, but also an insult to the whole British army and the British nation.

I sincerely hope that the NMBVA will continue to put pressure on this ‘out of touch’ Prime Minister until his unfair and unreasonable stance on the awarding of the Malaysian medal to all those deserving ex servicemen has been reversed.

Ken Nichols, Ex British Army Malayan Veteran.

Adelaide Australia
Subject: Is Tony Blair ignorant regards British post WW2 military history?

Many British politicians like Tony Blair today may only remember Western failures against communism like Korea and Vietnam but few nowadays recall the victory in Malaya-Borneo. Does Britian's prime minister really know that the Malayan Emergency (1948 -1960) & Indonesian Confrontation (1962 to 1966) was the only war the west won against communism?

After the defeat of the Japanese in WWII, a new problem emerged for Malaya. In 1948 Chinese guerrilla fighters (who had been armed and air supplied by the British during the war) emerged from the jungle and under Chin Peng, began their terror campaign to take over the country by force. Thus an intense jungle war began, fought by the British, Commonwealth and Malay forces against the Malayan Communist Party. The British, Government of the day, along with many others in the Western bloc, were apprehensive about the spread of international communism.

So began one of the longest continuous military commitment in British and commonwealth history. British, Australian and New Zealand servicemen fought a most unrecognised and secret war, the campaign to defend the newly established Malaysia formed in 1957 against confrontation by Indonesia & China. The Emergency lasted for twelve years, ending in 1960, during which time 6707 of the enemy were killed - 4000 either captured or surrendered. 446 British Armed Forces personnel lost their lives. The combined force's losses including civilians, totalled 5313 - dead or presumed missing. The Malayan Government finally decided to declare the Emergency over on 31st July 1960.

Operations against Indonesia in Borneo and West Malaysia lasted from 1962 to 1966. This was also similar to the role in the Malayan Emergency, an "undeclared war", largely unpublicised. The British, Australians and New Zealanders now deployed forces on behalf of the nation of Malaysia, a country of 8 million, against Indonesia, a country of 100 million. Some 50,000 soldiers eventually fought in jungle theatres, backed up by one-third of the British fleet, supported by ships of the RAN and RNZN. Along with the campaign in Aden, the Indonesian conflict in Borneo was one of two ferocious campaigns that the British fought at the same time that the Americans waged war in Vietnam.

In 1972 President LBJ and the US Government unfortunately lost their 10 year war against communism in Vietnam having to accept humilating defeat and withdraw their troops. Britain and their allies of Australia and New Zealand on the other hand won a successful war against communism in Malaya-Borneo. Yet while returning US servicemen received a number of medals for their service in Vietnam their British and commonwealth counterparts received the ubiquitous British General Service Medal with one of four clasps. (Malaya 48-60, Brunei 62, Borneo 62-64, Malaya Peninsula 64-66). But unlike American servicemen who also received a South Vietnam foreign medal, British servicemen never received a foreign medal from Malaysia the country they were defending against communism.

Some 40 years later in November 2004 the Malaysian government decided to award all British and commonwealth servicemen who served their country with a commemorative medal called the 'Malaysian Service medal'. The Australian and New Zealand governments accepted this award for their servicemen with the gracious thanks which it deserved.

MEDALS FOR DEFENDERS OF MALAYSIA. http://www.nst.com.my/Current_News/NST/Thursday/National/20050407080714/

But guess what, Tony Blair¹s government has rejected Malaysia's kind offer.

LORDS HANSARD TEXT FOR 11 JANUARY 2005 (250111w03) http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/ld199697/ldhansrd/pdvn/lds05/text/5

0111w03.htm#50111w03_sbhd0

Now 50 000 British servicemen who helped Harold Wilson 40 years ago win the only war against communism in the far east, have been told they are not allowed to accept or wear this foreign medal from Malaysia. Surely readers must agree if Tony Blair knew the great success of a war fought on behalf of a former British labour government he would certainly not have rejected this offer by the Malaysian Government

 

 

Dear sir,

While browsing through the Electronic Telegraph today I came across the link 

http://www.thankyoutony.com/index.html

. which led me to the following which appears to be a Telegraph promotion.

"Please join me in sending a petition to President George W. Bush to recommend that the United States honor British Prime Minister Tony Blair with the Presidential Medal of Freedom (learn more about this award). Your name and address are only for the purpose of inclusion in a petition and will not be collected or provided or sold to any third party sources."

So Mr. Blair, or his supporter wishes to be honoured by the US for sending British Forces to Iraq to help in the struggle to over come that country's present difficulties.

I am one of those ex Veterans who the British government has deprived of the well deserved Pingat Jasa Malaysia Medal (PJM) which the present Malaysian Government sought to bestow on the 10000 plus British veterans as a 'thank you' for the sacrifice and hardship suffered during the Malayan Emergency and the Indonesian Confrontation in the 1950s and 1960s when defending what is now Malaysia and ensuring that country's  independence and freedom from a foreign aggressor.

I believe it is disgraceful that the leader of the current British Government can even consider the acceptance of such an award, and at the same time refuse a grateful nations award to those British servicemen, many of them were frightened teenaged national service conscripts and away from their homes and families for the first time in their lives.

These men actually put their lives on the line because the British Government of the day ordered them to do so and now they are being told 'it is against the rules' and 'it is too long ago, forget it'.

Those ex servicemen who would have received the award are now in their twilight years and would have been very proud to wear the PJM. Should Mr Blair receive any award from the US, surely that would be the greatest injustice and insult ever to to the British Army, and I sincerely hope that you and your organisation will do everything possible to make that fact known to the British public.