Tunku Abdul Rahman Putra Al-Haj full story

Biography

Tunku was born on February 8, 1903 in Alor Setar, the capital of the state of Kedah. He is the seventh prince of Sultan Abdul Hamid Shah, the twenty-fifth Sultan of Kedah, and Che Manjalara. Said to be a robust and bright boy with a particular fondness for sports, Tunku received his early education at the Debsurin School, Bangkok and Penang Free School. On a Kedah Government scholarship, he went on to study at St. Catherine’s College, Cambridge University, where he received his Bachelor of Arts in law and history in 1925. A first-hand experience in racial discrimination with the college’s administration was said to have intensified his conviction in fighting for equality and ignited his desire in making his homeland an independent nation, free of British colonialism. His leadership flair also unfolded in England. Realising the Malay students there were not represented by any organisation, he established the Kesatuan Melayu Great Britain (Malay Association of Great Britain) and became its first secretary. After returning home, he joined the Kedah Civil Service as a cadet in the Legal Advisor’s Office, and then as a district officer in several Kedah districts. He proved unpopular among some British officials thanks to his outspokenness and tendency to introduce reforms in his quest to improve the living standards of the people. He left for England again to study and sit for his Bar examinations. His attempt at completing his law studies at the Inner Temple in England in 1938 came to a halt due the outbreak of the Second World War. Tunku returned to Malaya and only resumed his studies eight years later. He finally qualified as a barrister in 1949. The political awareness he gained while making friends with people from various nations in England did not go to waste, when he was made chairman of the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) soon after his return. On August 26, 1951, Tunku became the UMNO President succeeding Dato’ Onn Jaafar. He travelled all over the country meeting people from all walks of life to promote unity, especially racial unity. His efforts in overcoming the country’s political problems by way of cooperation among the various ethnic groups saw the birth of the Alliance Party in 1955.In 1956, he led a mission to London for a discussion with the British government on the independence for Malaya. The meeting resulted in the signing of the Independence Treaty at Lancaster House in London on February 8, 1956, that led to the independence of Malaya on 31st August, 1957. Tunku then became the first Prime Minister of Malaya, and led the Alliance to victory in the 1959, 1964, and 1969 general elections. In 1961, Tunku proposed the idea of “Malaysia”, consisting of Malaya, Singapore, Sabah, Sarawak, and Brunei. Two years and a few referendums later, on 16th September 1963, Malaysia was born, made up of Malaya, Sabah, Sarawak, and Singapore. Due to political differences, Singapore seceded from Malaysia in 1965. Tunku Abdul Rahman was the Prime Minister of the Federation of Malay States (Malaya) from 1957 to 1963, and of Malaysia from 1963 to 1970. He loved football and horse racing. Under his initiative, “Pesta Bola Merdeka” was born in 1957 which led to his appointment as the first President of Asian Football Confederation (AFC). “Whatever the sport, I was a very keen sportsman. I have always been an outdoors man, a lover of all the wild things in life,” he said. Tunku was married three times. With his first wife, Meriam Chong, Tunku was granted two children: Tunku Khadijah and Tunku Ahmad Nerang. Meriam Chong, however, died of a malarial infection not long after giving birth to Tunku Nerang. Tunku later married to his former landlady, Violet Coulson, who he met when he was studying in London. Tunku’s marriage with Violet, however, did not receive his family’s blessing, and the marriage ended in divorce around two years later. In 1939, Tunku married Tun Sharifah Rodziah, the younger sister of Syed Omar Barakbah, Tunku’s college friend when he was studying in London. Tunku and Tun Sharifah did not have a child together, but they adopted three children: Faridah, Sulaiman, and Mariam.