Hearts and Minds
16 B
The Malayan Emergency was overwhelmingly perpetrated by young Chinese ideologues; indeed this was a weakness in that the Malay population was not persuaded to join the anti-Imperialist revolutionary struggle.
It was a brutal and vicious struggle, but I agree at a lower intensity than Iraq, however, it prevailed because of efficient civil administration and the development of an effective intelligence organisation. The term 'Hearts and Minds' developed by Gen Briggs during the campaign was a key element. Those of the Min Yuen (Mass Executive) who gave up supporting the insurgents were rewarded - land, schools, etc. This tapped into cultural norms of the Chinese population and compounded defections.....but, the campaign took 12 years to come to an end. Excesses by British troops reversed the progress; indeed the unnecessary slaughter of Chinese villagers in 1949 by our kilted bretheren caused the flow of intelligence to dry up for many years in that state. The PRO, by the way, still retains the files on the investigation.
I think that most posters can understand, though not condone, actions that take place in the heat of battle, but as M609 has observed, the GWOT is largely about public opinion. The British and Malay government were sucessful in Malaya because they did not act in the way the communist leaders had predicted. It may be trite, but it is also true - the hardest battle is to win the peace...
CC, Baling, Malaysia