The Special Operations Executive in Malaya: World War II and the Path to Independence

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Rebecca Kenneison (University of Essex, UK)

The Special Operations Executive in Malaya

World War II and the Path to Independence

Rebecca Kenneison (University of Essex, UK)

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English

Bloomsbury Academic
23 January 2025

Asian history; National liberation & independence, post-colonialism; Second World War; Espionage & secret services

During World War II, agents of the Special Operations Executive (SOE) infiltrated Japanese-occupied Malaya. There they worked with Malayan guerrilla groups, including the communist-sponsored Malayan Peoples Anti-Japanese Army (MPAJA), regarded as the precursor of the communist insurgent army of the Malayan Emergency. This book traces the development of SOE’s Malayan operations, and analyses the interactions between SOE and the various guerrilla groups. It explores the reasons for and the extent of Malay disillusionment with Japanese rule, and demonstrates how guerrilla service acted as a training ground for some later Malay leaders of the independent nation. However, the reports written about the MPAJA by SOE operatives just after the war failed to draw out the likely future threat posed by the communists to the returning colonial administration. Rebecca Kenneison shows that the British possessed a wealth of local information, but failed to convert it into active intelligence in the period prior to the Malayan Emergency. In doing so she provides new insights into the impact of SOE on Malayan politics, the nature of Malayan communism’s challenge to colonial rule, and British post-war intelligence in Malaya.

By: Rebecca Kenneison (University of Essex UK)
Imprint: Bloomsbury Academic
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Dimensions: Height: 234mm, Width: 156mm,
ISBN: 9781350539433
ISBN 10: 1350539430
Pages: 270
Publication Date: 23 January 2025
Audience: College/higher education , Professional and scholarly , Primary , Undergraduate
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active

Rebecca Kenneison is Associate Fellow in History at the University of Essex. She holds a PhD from the University of Essex and is the author of Playing for Malaya: A Eurasian Family in the Pacific War (2012).

Reviews for The Special Operations Executive in Malaya: World War II and the Path to Independence

Kenneison’s book represents an important and welcome contribution to the history of wartime and post-war Malaya … [It] should be required reading for any student of wartime Malaya or the Malayan Emergency. * Journal of the Malaysian Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society * [A] timely and vital addition … Based on her meticulous archival research, Kenneison presents a nuanced understanding of the Special Operations Executive’s operations and the intricate relationships among the local resistance forces that the agency supported … Overall, this is a well-written book with solid archival research, accessible language, and fascinating details. * Journal of British Studies *