Brunei revolt

Last updated

Brunei revolt
Part of the beginning of Indonesia–Malaysia confrontation and Formation of Malaysia
THE BRITISH ARMY IN BRUNEI, JANUARY 1963.jpg
Queen's Own Highlanders on guard in the Seria oilfield.
Date8–17 December 1962
Location
Brunei
Result Bruneian & Commonwealth of Nations victory
Belligerents
Commanders and leaders
Units involved
Ensign of the Royal Air Force.svg  Royal Air Force
Naval Ensign of the United Kingdom.svg Royal Navy
Flag of the British Army.svg  British Army 		Flag of the PRB.svg TNKU
Strength
2,000–6,000 4,000
Casualties and losses
6 dead, unknown civilian casualties 40 dead (3,400 captured)

The Brunei revolt (Malay : Pemberontakan Brunei) or the Brunei rebellion of 1962 was a December 1962 insurrection in the British protectorate of Brunei by opponents of its monarchy and its proposed inclusion in the Federation of Malaysia who wanted to establish a republic. The insurgents were members of the TNKU (North Kalimantan National Army), a militia supplied by Indonesia and linked to the left-wing Brunei People's Party (BPP), which favoured a North Borneo Federation. The TNKU began co-ordinated attacks on the oil town of Seria (targeting the Royal Dutch Shell oil installations), on police stations, and on government facilities around the protectorate. The revolt began to break down within hours, having failed to achieve key objectives such as the capture of Brunei Town and Sultan Omar Ali Saifuddien III. [1] The revolt influenced the Sultan's 1963 decision not to join Malaysia. It is seen as one of the first stages of the Indonesia–Malaysia confrontation.

Contents

Background

The northern part of the island of Borneo was composed of three British territories: the colonies of Sarawak and North Borneo (to be renamed Sabah) and the protectorate of the Sultanate of Brunei. Brunei became a British protectorate in 1888, had an area of about 2,226 square miles (5,800 km2) and some 85,000 people. Just over half of the people were Malays, a quarter were Chinese, and the rest were Dayaks, the indigenous people of Borneo. Oil was discovered in 1929 near Seria and the Brunei Shell Petroleum Company concession provided the Sultanate with a huge income. The capital, then called Brunei Town, was on a river some 10 miles (20 km) from the coast.

In 1959, the Sultan, Sir Omar Ali Saifuddin III, established a legislature with half its members nominated and half elected. Elections were held in September 1962 and all of the contested seats were won by the Brunei People's Party.

Between 1959 and 1962, the United Kingdom, Malaya, Singapore, North Borneo and Sarawak were involved in negotiations to form a new Malaysian Federation. However, the Philippines and particularly Indonesia opposed any move toward unification of North Borneo and Sarawak with the new federation. This external opposition toward unification strengthened by widespread anti-Federation sentiment within Sarawak and Brunei itself. The Brunei People's Party was in favour of joining Malaysia on condition of the unification of the three crown colonies of northern Borneo (total about 1.5 million people, half Dayak) with their own sultan. It was thought that the resultant sultanate would be strong enough to resist domination by Malaya or Singapore, Malay administrators or Chinese merchants. [2] Local opposition and sentiments against the Malaysian Federation plan have often been under-represented in historical writings on the Brunei rebellion and the subsequent Indonesia-Malaysia confrontation. In fact, political forces in Sarawak had long anticipated their own national independence as promised (but later aborted) by the last White Rajah of Sarawak, Charles Vyner Brooke, in 1941.

The North Kalimantan (or Kalimantan Utara) proposal was seen as a post-decolonisation alternative by local opposition against the Malaysian Federation plan. Local opposition throughout the Borneo territories was primarily based on economic, political, historical and cultural differences between the Borneo states and the Malayan peninsula, and an unwillingness to be subjected to peninsular political domination.

However, before the Brunei People's Party electoral success, a military wing had emerged, the North Kalimantan National Army saw itself as an anti-colonialist liberation party. Its sympathies lay with Indonesia which was seen as having better 'liberationist' credentials than Malaya and Singapore. Its 34-year-old leader A.M. Azahari had lived in Indonesia and was in touch with Indonesian intelligence agents. He had recruited several officers who had been trained in clandestine warfare in Indonesia. By late 1962, they could muster about 4000 men, a few modern weapons and about 1000 shotguns. [2]

Prelude

Hints of brewing trouble came in early November 1962 when the Resident for the 5th Division of Sarawak, Richard Morris (an Australian), who was based in Limbang (sandwiched between the two parts of Brunei) received information. Special Branch police from Kuching visited Limbang but only found some illegal uniforms with TNKU badges. Later in November, Morris heard that an insurrection was planned for Brunei, but not before 19 December. Claude Fenner, the Inspector General of the Malayan Police flew to Sarawak to investigate but found no evidence. However, the Chief of Staff in the British Far East Headquarters in Singapore did review and update the contingency plan, PALE ALE, for Brunei. However, the risk was assessed as low and the British Far East Land, Sea and Air Commanders-in-Chief were away from Singapore as was the operational commander of land forces, Major General Walter Walker. [3]

On 6 December, Morris heard the rebellion would start on the 8th. The next day similar information reached John Fisher, the resident of the 4th Division of Sarawak, who was based in Miri some 20 miles (30 km) west of Brunei. As a result, police were put on full alert through Brunei, North Borneo and Sarawak, and Police Field Force reinforcements were flown from Kuching to Miri. [4]

Battle

First ten days

The rebellion broke out at 2:00 am on 8 December. Signals from Brunei to British Far East Headquarters reported rebel attacks on police stations, the Sultan's Istana (Istana Darul Hana), the Chief Minister's house (Rumah Jerambak) and the power station, and that another rebel force was approaching the capital by water. Far East Headquarters ordered ALE YELLOW, which placed a force of two Gurkha infantry companies on 48 hours notice to move. [4]

Most of the attacks in Brunei town were repulsed although the electricity supply was cut off. At this stage it was not known that rebels had attacked police stations throughout Brunei, in the 5th Division of Sarawak and on the western edge of North Borneo. Miri was still in government hands but Limbang had been taken by the rebels. The situation was most serious in Seria where the rebels had captured the police station and were dominating the oilfields. [4]

Nine hours after ALE YELLOW, ALE RED was ordered and two companies of 1st Battalion, 2nd Gurkha Rifles, of 99th Infantry Brigade, moved to the RAF airfields at Changi and Seletar in Singapore to fly to Labuan Island in Brunei Bay. The Gurkhas' embarkation went slowly because the RAF was unprepared and following normal peacetime procedures. The troops were in a Bristol Britannia of No. 99 Squadron and three Blackburn Beverleys from the No. 32 Squadron, and the latter were diverted in flight from Labuan to Brunei Airfield when it was learned that this was not in rebel hands. [5]

The Beverleys landed at about 10:00 pm and the Gurkhas advanced into Brunei. They fought a series of actions, suffering six casualties, two fatal. A small group of Gurkhas led by Captain Digby Willoughby rescued the Sultan and took him to police headquarters. An advance to Seria met strong opposition and returned to Brunei to counter a rebel threat to its centre and the airfield. [6]

On 9 December, John Fisher called on the Dayak tribes for help by sending a boat with the traditional Red Feather of War up the Baram River. Tom Harrisson, the Curator of the Sarawak Museum in Kuching and leader of resistance to the Japanese in the Second World War also arrived in Brunei. He summoned the Kelabits from the highlands around Bario in the 5th Division, the centre of his wartime resistance. Hundreds of Dayaks responded, and formed into companies led by British civilians all commanded by Harrisson. This force reached some 2,000 strong, and with excellent knowledge of the tracks through the interior (there were no roads), helped contain the rebels and cut off their escape route to Indonesia. [6]

Meanwhile, reinforcements flowed into Labuan. The 2nd Gurkhas were brought up to battalion strength. On 10 December, the Far East 'spearhead battalion', the Queen's Own Highlanders began arriving in Brunei. Brigadier Arthur Patterson, commander 99th Gurkha Infantry Brigade arrived to take overall command from Brigadier Pat Glennie, normally the Brigadier General Staff at Far East HQ. Both reported to Lieutenant General Sir Nigel Poett, the Far East Land Forces Commander in Singapore. Seria and Limbang remained in rebel hands. Further reinforcements arrived in the following days. [7] These enabled Seria and Limbang to be recaptured.

By 17 December, the rebellion had been held and broken. Some 40 rebels were dead and 3,400 captured. The remainder had fled and were assumed to be trying to reach Indonesia. Of the leaders, Azahari was in the Philippines and Yassin Affandi was with the fugitives.

Seria

The road route to Seria was judged too vulnerable to ambush and there were no naval resources for a move by sea. Reconnaissance by an Army Air Corps Beaver revealed rebel flags over the Shell complex, and the 6 miles (10 km) of coast seemed in rebel hands. However, there appeared to be a potential landing site for light aircraft west of Seria and east of the town – the runway at Anduki Airfield had been cleared by a small group of western civilians who had managed to escape the rebels. One escapee, Hugh McDonald, a Shell contractor and WWII veteran, made contact with Singapore installations to confirm a safe landing. [8] On 10 December, a company of the Queen's Own Highlanders boarded five Twin Pioneers and a Beverley at Brunei. The Twin Pioneers landed west of Seria and the Beverley at Anduki. A police station 2 miles (3 km) from the western landing was recaptured and so was the Telecommunications Centre after a brief fight. Anduki airfield was quickly recaptured. However, the main Seria police station, with 48 hostages, most Shell expatriates, was not secured until the 12th. [8]

Anduki Airfield is today a grass airstrip with a concrete ramp used almost exclusively by Brunei Shell Petroleum aircraft and helicopters servicing Brunei's extensive offshore petroleum production installations. The Sultan of Brunei and members of the royal family sometimes use it in their helicopters when they wish to visit Seria, especially on State occasions. Regarded as strategically important because of its proximity to the oil town of Seria, its history in the Brunei Revolt and the paucity of other Brunei airstrips usable by fixed-wing military aircraft, Anduki and the adjacent highway to Bandar Seri Begawan is one of the first areas to be secured by Gurkha and Brunei Army troops when they deploy on contemporary war exercises.

Executions at Temburong

On 8 December 1962, from two till five in the morning, shots could be heard near police stations all over Brunei. According to news received from Temburong, the District Officer Pengiran Haji Besar bin Pengiran Haji Kula and a few others from Brunei security forces and a number of civilians were executed for refusing to join in the rebellion.

By five in the morning, TNKU controlled Pekan Besar. News came that a number of civil servants at Brunei Town had managed to escape capture. Around an hour later at downtown, the Deputy Chief Minister Pengiran Ali was granted an audience by the Sultan. After the meeting, the Sultan made a radio declaration condemning TNKU, the armed wing of the Brunei People's Party, for treason.

Assault on Limbang

In Limbang, rebels attacked the local police station, killing five local policemen. The rebels then obtained the surrender of British official R.H. Morris, his wife, four other Europeans and an American Peace Corps worker, and took the remaining police officers hostage. On the first night of their captivity, they were crowded into the police cells, the second night they were moved to the local hospital where they overheard the rebels planning their hangings the following day.

Eighty-nine Marines of 42 Commando had arrived in Brunei on 11 December, led by Captain Jeremy Moore (who later commanded the British Forces during the Falklands War). After acquiring two landing craft, the Marines were transported to Limbang by Royal Navy crews led by Captain Jeremy Black (who later commanded HMS Invincible (R05) during the Falklands War) and staged their arrival at dawn, 13 December. The landing craft had manually operated ramps which took too long to lower and the senior officer took the decision that the Marines would vault over the sides or over the ramps under covering fire from Vickers machine guns mounted on the bridges. One landing craft's bridge was raked with Bren gun fire, disabling the crew, and the craft rammed into the river bank and quay.

The only map they had was 10 years old at the time.[ citation needed ] The Marines lost the element of surprise due to the loud noise of their boats, but succeeded nevertheless in suppressing the rebels' machine guns and landed.

The attackers started their search for the hostages who, on hearing shots, began singing the American song "She'll Be Coming 'Round the Mountain", allowing the first rescue party to quickly locate them. The first rescue party was attacked and two of the three Marines were killed. A second rescue party fought off the rebels from around the hospital and freed the hostages. About 200 rebels, who had little if any military training and a paltry assortment of weapons (about a dozen Bren light machine guns and Lee–Enfield rifles, but mainly shotguns, muskets and daggers), tried to resist, but were beaten back.

Five Marines were killed and eight wounded in the attack. British sources do not list rebel losses in this incident, but Clodfelter estimates losses in the Brunei Rebellion as 40 rebels and six Marines.

There is a memorial to all the dead in Limbang. The leader of the Limbang rebels was caught and tried and received an eleven-year prison sentence. He lives (2007) on the outskirts of Limbang. [9] [ page needed ]

Mopping up

HMS Tiger unloads supplies and gear for naval troops in Brunei A 34694 HMS TIGER off loading stores and equipment for Naval forces in Brunei.jpg
HMS Tiger unloads supplies and gear for naval troops in Brunei

By 17 December 42 Commando was complete in Brunei and 1st Green Jackets (43rd and 52nd) had landed from the cruiser HMS Tiger (C20) in Miri. 40 Commando aboard the commando carrier HMS Albion (R07) was diverted from Miri to Kuching. On 14 December, most of the unit reinforced the artillery battery sent there as infantry on 12 December to pre-empt trouble from the Chinese of the Clandestine Communist Organisation (CCO) who were openly sympathetic to the Brunei rebels. The last company of 40 Commando landed near Seria. HMS Albion also provided helicopters from the embarked Naval Air Commando squadrons. [10]

Major General Walter Walker took over as COMBRITBOR and Director of Operations (DOBOPS) on 19 December with command of all land, sea and air forces assigned to Borneo and reporting directly to the Commander-in-Chief Far East Forces, Admiral Sir David Luce. Three weeks after the rebellion started, 99th Gurkha Infantry Brigade had 5 infantry battalions and HQ 3rd Command Brigade was in Kuching. This force was supported by the Brunei Malay Regiment, the Sarawak Rangers, police of the three territories including paramilitary Police Field Force, and Harrisson's force of now 4,000 Dayaks. Suitable coastal patrol naval vessels were lacking (the Royal Navy didn't have any) so minesweepers were used. The RAF had medium and short range transport aircraft. In January, the Queen's Own Highlanders and 1/2 Gurkhas were replaced by the King's Own Yorkshire Light Infantry and 1/7 Gurkhas and special forces troops had also arrived.

Mopping up operations, by this time including a commando artillery battery with their guns, continued until May 1963. On 18 May, a patrol of 1/7 Gurkhas were guided by an informer to a camp in the mangrove. They flushed a party of rebels towards an ambush. Ten rebels were killed or captured. They were the remnants of TNKU headquarters and one of the wounded, shot in the hip, was Yassin Affendi. [11]

However, on 12 April, the police station at Tebedu in the 1st Division of Sarawak was attacked and captured. The attackers had come from Kalimantan. This marked the beginning of confrontation. [12]

Aftermath

The rebellion also played a role in the Sultan of Brunei's subsequent decision for Brunei to not join the Federation of Malaysia. [13]

Order of Battle

The following units, or significant elements of them, deployed to Borneo in response to the rebellion before May 1963:

Notes

  1. ↑ Jackson, p. 122.
  2. 1 2 Pocock, p. 129.
  3. ↑ Pocock, p. 129–130.
  4. 1 2 3 Pocock, p. 131.
  5. ↑ Pocock, pp. 131–132.
  6. 1 2 Pocock, p. 133.
  7. ↑ Pocock, p. 133–134.
  8. 1 2 Pocock, p. 134.
  9. ↑ Paul & Spirit.
  10. ↑ Pocock, p. 139.
  11. ↑ Pocock, p. 152.
  12. ↑ Pocock, p. 153.
  13. ↑ Leifer, Michael (1978). "Decolonisation and International Status: The Experience of Brunei". International Affairs. 54 (2): 243. doi:10.2307/2615649. JSTOR   2615649.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sarawak</span> State in East Malaysia

Sarawak is a state of Malaysia. The largest among the 13 states, with an area almost equal to that of Peninsular Malaysia, Sarawak is located in East Malaysia in northwest Borneo, and is bordered by the Malaysian state of Sabah to the northeast, Kalimantan to the south, and Brunei in the north. The state capital, Kuching, is the largest city in Sarawak, the economic centre of the state, and the seat of the Sarawak state government. Other cities and towns in Sarawak include Miri, Sibu, and Bintulu. As of the 2020 Malaysia census, the population of Sarawak was 2.453 million. Sarawak has an equatorial climate with tropical rainforests and abundant animal and plant species. It has several prominent cave systems at Gunung Mulu National Park. Rajang River is the longest river in Malaysia; Bakun Dam, one of the largest dams in Southeast Asia, is located on one of its tributaries, the Balui River. Mount Murud is the highest point in the state. Sarawak is the only state of Malaysia with a Christian majority.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Indonesia–Malaysia confrontation</span> 1963–1966 military conflict

The Indonesia–Malaysia confrontation or Borneo confrontation was an armed conflict from 1963 to 1966 that stemmed from Indonesia's opposition to the creation of the state of Malaysia from the Federation of Malaya. After Indonesian president Sukarno was deposed in 1966, the dispute ended peacefully.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Operation Claret</span> Series of raids during the Indonesia–Malaysia confrontation

Claret was the code name given to operations conducted from about July 1964 until July 1966 from East Malaysia across the border in Indonesian Kalimantan during the Indonesia–Malaysia confrontation. They were instigated by the Director of Borneo Operations (DOBOPS) Major General Walter Walker with the agreement of the British and Malaysian governments. Their purpose was to seize the initiative and put the Indonesians on the defensive instead of allowing Indonesian forces to be safely based in Kalimantan and attack when and where they chose. However, it was important not to cause the Indonesians to lose face and possibly escalate the conflict, or to enable Indonesia to present evidence of 'imperialist aggression', so Claret operations were highly classified and never publicised, although it seems that some British journalists were aware of what transpired. British casualties on Claret operations were publicly reported as being in East Malaysia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Limbang</span> Town and district capital in Sarawak, Malaysia

Limbang is a border town and the capital of Limbang District in the Limbang Division of northern Sarawak, East Malaysia, on the island of Borneo. This district area is 3,978.10 square kilometres, and population was 56,900. It is located on the banks of the Limbang River, between the two halves of Brunei.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Iban people</span> Ethnic group from Borneo

The Ibans or Sea Dayaks are an Austronesian ethnic group indigenous to northwestern Borneo. The Ibans are also known as Sea Dayaks and the title Dayak was given by the British and the Dutch to various ethnic groups in Borneo island.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">North Kalimantan Communist Party</span> Political party in Malaysia

The North Kalimantan Communist Party was a Maoist communist party based in the Malaysian state of Sarawak in northern Borneo. It was formally founded on 19 September 1971. Before that, the group had been operating under the name Sarawak People's Guerrillas. The chairman of the NKCP was Wen Ming Chyuan and the party enjoyed close links with the People's Republic of China. The NKCP's membership was predominantly ethnically Chinese. The two military formations of the NKCP were the Sarawak People's Guerilla Force (SPGF) or Pasukan Gerilya Rakyat Sarawak (PGRS), and the North Kalimantan People's Army (NKPA) or the Pasukan Rakyat Kalimantan Utara (PARAKU). The NKCP participated in the Sarawak Communist Insurgency (1962–1990). On 17 October 1990, the North Kalimantan Communist Party signed a peace agreement with the Sarawak state government, formally ending the Sarawak Communist Insurgency.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">North Borneo Federation</span> Former proposed political entity

The North Borneo Federation, also known as North Kalimantan, was a proposed political entity which would have comprised the British colonies of Sarawak, British North Borneo and the protectorate of Brunei.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A. M. Azahari</span> Bruneian politician (1928–2002)

Sheikh Ahmad M. Azahari bin Sheikh Mahmud, better known as A. M. Azahari, was a Bruneian politician, businessman and nationalist of Arab descent who fought against Dutch colonialism in the Dutch East Indies, the chairman of the Parti Rakyat Brunei from 1947 to 1962, and the Prime Minister of the North Borneo Federation in 1962.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brunei People's Party</span> Banned political party in Brunei

Brunei People's Party (BPR), also known as Parti Rakyat Brunei (PRB), is a banned political party in Brunei. The party was established as a left-wing party in 1956 and aimed to bring Brunei into full independence from the United Kingdom. The party called for a constitution that would unite Brunei, North Borneo, and Sarawak under a fully democratic government, the Unitary State of North Kalimantan or Negara Kesatuan Kalimantan Utara (NKKU). However, in 1958 the British publicised their own ideas and rejected the Borneo union ambitions of the PRB, seeking instead for a gradual democratic transformation. The PRB's reactions to both the plan for a Federation of Malaysia and the Constitution of Brunei led to a mutiny in the first part of December 1962.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Borneo (1941–1942)</span> WWII battle between Japanese and Dutch and British forces

The Battle of Borneo was a successful campaign by Japanese Imperial forces for control of Borneo island and concentrated mainly on the subjugation of the Raj of Sarawak, Brunei, North Borneo, and the western part of Kalimantan that was part of the Dutch East Indies. The Japanese main unit for this mission was the 35th Infantry Brigade led by Major General Kiyotake Kawaguchi.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Raj of Sarawak</span> 1841–1946 kingdom on northern Borneo

The Raj of Sarawak, Kingdom of Sarawak or State of Sarawak, was a kingdom founded in 1841 in northwestern Borneo and was in a treaty of protection with the United Kingdom from 1888. It was formed from a series of land concessions acquired by the Englishman James Brooke from the Sultan of Brunei. Sarawak was recognised as a sovereign state by the United States in 1850, and by the United Kingdom in 1864. The territory of the kingdom is now the Malaysian state of Sarawak.

The Diocese of Kuching is a diocese of the Anglican Church of the Province of South East Asia that covers Sarawak and Brunei. Founded in 1962, the see was originally established as the Bishopric of Sarawak linked to the Diocese of Labuan in 1855. The current bishop is the Right Rev'd Danald Jute, 14th Lord Bishop of the Diocese of Kuching and Brunei, who was consecrated on 13 August 2017. His seat is at St. Thomas' Cathedral, Kuching.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of Sarawak</span>

The History of Sarawak can be traced as far as 40,000 years ago to the paleolithic period where the earliest evidence of human settlement is found in the Niah caves. A series of Chinese ceramics dated from the 8th to 13th century AD was uncovered at the archeological site of Santubong. The coastal regions of Sarawak came under the influence of the Bruneian Empire in the 16th century. In 1839, James Brooke, a British explorer, first arrived in Sarawak. Sarawak was later governed by the Brooke family between 1841 and 1946. During World War II, it was occupied by the Japanese for three years. After the war, the last White Rajah, Charles Vyner Brooke, ceded Sarawak to Britain, and in 1946 it became a British Crown Colony. On 22 July 1963, Sarawak was granted self-government by the British. Following this, it became one of the founding members of the Federation of Malaysia, established on 16 September 1963. However, the federation was opposed by Indonesia, and this led to the three-year Indonesia–Malaysia confrontation. From 1960 to 1990, Sarawak experienced a communist insurgency.

The Raid on Limbang was a military engagement between British Royal Marine commandos and insurgents of the North Kalimantan National Army, on 12 December 1962. After an amphibious assault on the town of Limbang in Sarawak, Borneo, the commandos managed to rescue the hostages being held there by the TNKU.

Sarawak's population is very diverse, comprising many races and ethnic groups. Sarawak has more than 40 sub-ethnic groups, each with its own distinct language, culture and lifestyle. This makes Sarawak demography very distinct and unique compared to its Peninsular counterpart. However, it largely mirrors to other territories in Borneo – Sabah, Brunei and Kalimantan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Communist insurgency in Sarawak</span> Communist insurgency in Malaysia

The communist insurgency in Sarawak was an insurgency in Malaysia from 1962 to 1990, and involved the North Kalimantan Communist Party (NKCP) and the Malaysian Government. It was one of the two communist insurgencies to challenge the former British colony of Malaysia during the Cold War. As with the earlier Malayan Emergency (1948–1960), the communist insurgents in Sarawak were predominantly ethnic Chinese, who opposed British rule over Sarawak and later opposed the merger of the state into the newly created Federation of Malaysia. The insurgency was triggered by the 1962 Brunei revolt, which had been instigated by the left-wing Brunei People's Party in opposition to the proposed formation of Malaysia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Combat operations in 1963 during the Indonesia–Malaysia confrontation</span>

In April 1963, the first recorded infiltration and attack occurred in Borneo as part of the wider Indonesia–Malaysia confrontation. An infiltration force training at Nangabadan was split in two and prepared for its first operation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Combat operations in 1964 during the Indonesia–Malaysia confrontation</span>

In 1964, command arrangements changed. 99 Gurkha Infantry Brigade HQ returned from Singapore and replaced 3 Commando Brigade HQ in Kuching. 3rd Malaysian Infantry Brigade HQ arrived to take over East Brigade in Tawau, and 51 Gurkha Infantry Brigade HQ arrived from UK to command the Central Brigade area with the 4th Division of Sarawak added to it. Its headquarters was in Brunei, and there were no roads to any of its battalions. In DOBOPS, all HQ elements were concentrated in one HQ complex on Labuan. At least one of the British batteries stationed in Malaysia was always deployed in Borneo with its 105 mm guns.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Combat operations in 1965 during the Indonesia–Malaysia confrontation</span>

The Indonesia–Malaysia confrontation began in early 1963 following Indonesia's opposition to the creation of Malaysia. In December 1964, a build-up of Indonesian forces on the Kalimantan border saw the British government commit significant forces from the UK-based Army Strategic Command and Australia and New Zealand deployed roulement combat forces from West Malaysia to Borneo in 1965–66.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yassin Affandi</span> Bruneian politician

Muhammad Yasin bin Abdul Rahman, also known as Yassin Affandi, was a Bruneian politician who served as the president of the National Development Party from 2005 to 2010. He worked with A.M. Azahari during the Brunei revolt of 1962, when they called for the unification of Brunei, Sarawak, and North Borneo (Sabah) under a single administration. Together with other rebels, they directed against Brunei's proposed inclusion in the Federation of Malaysia.

References

Further reading

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.