Malaya medals for old heroes

05 March 2008 06:32

Half a century ago they were young men and women, serving their country in inhospitable conditions thousands of miles from home.

Yesterday more than 300 British veterans who served in Malaya (now Malaysia) in the 1950s and 60s were honoured with a special medal from the Malaysian government.

The veterans from Norfolk, Suffolk and Essex were awarded their medals in two ceremonies at Norwich City's Carrow Road stadium.

The Pingat Jasa Malaysia - the name translates as “Malaysian Service Medal” - was created in 2004 and is awarded to British and Commonwealth forces, who served during the Malayan Emergency and the Malaysian-Indonesian Confrontation between 1957 and 1966.

The award is in recognition of their “distinguished chivalry, gallantry, sacrifice, or loyalty” in contributing to the freedom and independence of Malaysia.

The medals were awarded yesterday by Colonel MD Tajri Alwi, defence adviser to the High Commission of Malaysia.

He acknowledged the contribution the veterans made nearly fifty years ago, telling them: “I can imagine you were young, strong, perhaps innocent at that time.

“You were sent into the remote jungle to fight communist terrorists and restore law and order. You also had to fight the mosquitoes, leeches and wild animals. Perhaps your experiences in Malaya then helped you to become a better person.

“We Malaysians are very grateful for all the sacrifices you have made. Presenting this medal is a little gesture from our country.

“There is an old Chinese proverb: 'If you drink the water from the well you must not forget those that dug the well.' Ladies and gentlemen, you are the ones that dug that well.”

The medal can also be awarded posthumously, and among those collecting the medals yesterday were the wives, children and even the grandchildren of Malayan veterans. Many of those who served were on National Service.

The Pingat Jasa shows a map of Malaysia and a shield with two lions, with a ribbon in blue, red, and yellow, the colours of the Malaysian national flag.

The decision to award it has been controversial, however. In 2005 the Malaysian government approached the Foreign and Commonwealth Office to seek approval, but the British government announced it would refuse the medal for British citizens since it contradicted official policy.

Eventually it conceded, announcing that while the medal could we awarded, official permission to wear it could not be granted. Veterans have been campaigning against the ruling, with many announcing their attention to disregard official advice and wear their medals with pride.

Yesterday was bitter-sweet for Kitty Gaylard, who was collecting a Pingat Jasa medal on behalf of her late husband, David, who served in Malaya with the RAF.

“It means a lot. He passed away last year and had already applied for the medal,” said Mrs Gaylard, 70, of West Winch, near King's Lynn.

“He was very proud to have served. It's a very emotional day for me. I'm trying to keep calm but I wish he was here,” she said.

Iain “John” Innes, 65, served in Borneo with 209 Sqn RAF from 1962 to 1965 as an electrical fitter. “I was 20 when I went, and it was quite different to the wilds of Norfolk,” said Mr Innes, of Framingham Earl, near Norwich

“I saw a flying snake, which was a novelty - you don't see many of them about. The bread had extra protein: they used to cook the weevils into it.

“It was definitely life-changing and character-forming. You were in a totally different environment to what you had been used to, from little things like brewing coffee on a solid fuel tablet at the side of a monsoon ditch to making friends with the locals.

“It means a great deal to me to collect this medal.”

Mr Innes's daughter Ria Bentley, 42, accompanied him to the medal ceremony. “Dad's always telling stories about his time in Borneo,” she said.

“I was in the forces too - I served three years in the WRAC (Women's Royal Army Corps) so I know what this medal means.”

Also among the recipients were Tony and Peggy Webster, of Cromer. The pair met while in Malaya on peace-keeping duties, falling in love at Kuching, Borneo in 1965, getting engaged six weeks later and marrying in Cromer the following year.

Mr Webster, who did three spells in Malaya, was a captain in a field ambulance unit and Mrs Webster was a lieutenant nursing sister in a field hospital.

The Malayan Emergency and Indonesian-Malaysia Confrontation

The Malayan Emergency was a state of emergency declared by the British colonial government of Malaya (now Malaysia) in 1948 and lifted in 1960 in response to a communist uprising.

It developed into a full-scale guerrilla war between the Malayan National Liberation Army (MNLA) and Commonwealth forces.

The fighting, much of which took place in the jungle, was fierce but eventually the Commonwealth forces were victorious, defeating the last of the rebels by 1960.

The war was the last successful counter-insurgency campaign by a Western army, and last year Malaysia's deputy prime minister Najib Razak said the example set by the British Army “set the benchmark” for such actions.

Some 1,346 Malayan troops and 519 British personnel were killed, with the death toll on the opposing side reaching 6,710. Civilian deaths numbered 2,478, with 810 missing.

The Indonesian-Malaysia Confrontation broke out in 1962 following the division of the island of Borneo into four separate states, a move opposed by the government of Indonesia.

British troops became involved after the Sultan of Brunei, who had escaped capture by the rebels, appealed for help. Royal Navy warships and RAF squadrons were deployed, and 18 battalions of Commonwealth ground forces were also committed.

The Commonwealth troops' main role was to prevent Indonesian incursions into Malaysia. The end of the conflict was marked by the signing of a peace treaty on August 11, 2006.