Customer Reviews

The Japanese Occupation of Malaya: A Social and Economic History

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I'm not sure for whom this book is intended as it obviously will atract relatively few purchasers. It is the story of the Japanese occupation of Malaya from 1942 to 1945 from a political and economic viewpoint and its impact on the Malayan population. Military historians will find this work only of minimal value, and historians concerned with the development of Far Eastern nations will probably skip over much of the information contained within as being of only moderate value since Malaysia did not fully receive its independence until 1963.

The Japanese occupation was initially brutal and repressive, but administration was carried out generally by communal organizations and pre-war administrative structures. About 60% of the population was Malay, 30% Chinese and the remainder Indian, mostly Tamil. Most of the population collaborated with the Japanese, generally out of necessity, and the Japanese occupation was seen as a time simply for survival. The Japanese were often inept and introduced measures that alienated the population, and as the natural resources far exceeded Japan's use for those resources, the termination of trade that Malaya had been dependent upon before the war caused severe economic difficulties. Although the Japanese ocupying forces were able to maintain order, Malaya was not self-sufficient and suffered increasing shortages of food and basic goods. The problem of self-sufficiency was intractable, and high unemployment, inflation, and a raging black market resulted. By 1945, the situation for the Malaya population was grim.

This work is based on relatively sparce source materials, first because the British destroyed most records when evacuating in 1941 and 1942, secondly the Japanese destroyed many records immediately following their surrender in August, 1945, and thirdly the British destroyed much of what was left after the War Damage Commission was through with the records in 1953. Alas, such is often the dilemma facing historians. Nonetheless, the author has performed excellent work is reconstructing the period from what was left. Much of the information was obtained through published memoirs and interviews.

I found this work to be more interesting than I had expected in that it gave me an appreciation of the occupation as seen by the Malayans. There are many maps, tables, and technical discussions, and an initial light read (or scan) is probably appropriate to decide on what to study. As such this book is a useful resource, There was evidence of a moral decline during the occupation in which making money (for survival) was paramount, and often loyalty did not extend before the family or community. The history of the occupation became "taught" (and modified) after the occupation for various reasons until the population's remembrance of the occupation became conflicted and confused. This work attempts to sort all that out.

In short I recommend this book to serious students of World War II in Asia, particularly to those interested in the people of Malaya and Southeast Asia. Americans in general are not familiar with that area and its history, and this book sheds some very definitive light on the subject.