Selected Bibliography

Interviews for this study were conducted between 1997-2000. Many of the individuals listed below remain on active service and are key persons in Malaysia= s police, intelligence and special forces communities. Thus, contributors to the study were extended limited confidentiality in return for their cooperation. By agreement with the participants their respective comments are incorporated generally into the text but no particular information is attributed directly to any one person. However, the listing includes background information and in most instances a brief synopsis of individual contributions is offered to familiarize the reader with the colorful characters involved.

Abdullah, Shamsudden. A counterintelligence specialist and Deputy Superintendent of Police. DSP Shamsudden interviewed the authorC in a case of turn about is fair playC at Royal Malaysia Police headquarters as part of an extensive examination process prior to official cooperation with his research. This serene veteran of Commando 69 has a persona that suits his place of employment atop a tranquil hillock, amidst the hustle and bustle of Kuala Lumpur, named Bukit Aman. DSP Shamsudden is a Muslim Malaysian of Chinese extraction who smoothly navigates Malaysia= s multiethnic environment. His sometimes turbulent world revolves around a restful venue known locally as the A hill of peace@ and is a good place to become acquainted with Malaysia= s law enforcement people.

Alsagoff, Syed Zainal Abideen. Among the first Malay Malaysians to assume control of the Senoi Praaq and a career soldier. Syed Zainal also presided over the division of this force upon its absorption into the Royal Malaysia Police and conversion into two distinct Police Field Force battalions. Subsequent to this key moment in Senoi Praaq evolution he assumed command of then Battalion 20 (now 3) based in Bidor, Perak and held this position through 1990. His contributions to this study are made that much more interesting by his early collaboration with R.O.D. Noone and crystal clear recollections of time spent in Vietnam as a member of the British Advisory Mission

Anak, Sambut Che. Temiar and a career Jabatan Hal Ehwal Orang Asli (JHEOA) officer active in the department from inception during the Emergency and also one of the Persatuan Orang Asli Semenanjung Malaysia (POASM) few original members. This individual is a key asset who straddles action channels at the junction of these two primary Orang Asli oriented agencies. He is intimately involved in POASM budget processes and serves in the JHEOA medical services department. The issue of finance aside, timely medical services delivery among the Orang Asli made Government of Malaysia= s aid program work and helped induce their defection from the Asal movement. So, we see through an artful selection of opportunities the handy work of a real political operative quick to recognize bullet proof functions.

Bolton, Dr. J. Malcolm. The original JHEOA medical services officer, intimate of R.O.D. Noone, Mohammed Ruslan Bin Abdullah Iskander and Iskandar Carey and sine qua non of the Orang Asli medical aid program. Thus, a key player in the struggle against the Malayan Races Liberation Army ( MRLA) and ultimately perhaps more responsible than any other person for Malayan Communist Party ( MCP) failure to maintain control over the Orang Asli through the Asal organization. A terror in his own right this eccentric and enigmatic individual is known to have emptied entire Orang Asli villages through the mere rumor of his approach. Dr. Bolton= s blood lust in the quest for Orang Asli venous plasma samples whereby Malaria (to which the Orang Asli have some immunity) might be fought rivaled the more sanguine appetites of his Senoi Praaq colleagues. Today he comes and goes throughout Malaysia= s interior and continues for all intents and purposes to live among her tribal peoples.

Halim, Dato. Present Commander of the General Operations Force (GOF)= s Battalion 3 located in Bidor, Perak. Clearly a very well-connected individual in Malaysian police circles and drawn from the very best talent available to the Malaysian government. Commander Halim gave the author a precise run down on present Senoi Praaq activities and a general overview of the organization. This included a detailed description of GOM strategy and tactics against MRLA remnants operating out of southern Thailand through the late 1980s. Several of Commander Halim= s senior officers were also present for these meetings and thus the fabled A presence of command@ so sought after in military establishments was clearly in evidence.

Jawhar, Mohamed Bin Hassan. Director General of ISIS Malaysia in Kuala Lumpur. The Institute for Strategic and International Studies (ISIS) is the Malaysian equivalent of the Rand Corporation. This think tank is the repository for Malaysian government thinking about regional security matters and a key source of GOM= s foreign policy impetus. Dato Hassan, a veteran Malaysian national security counsel member and an astute observer of world politics, spent time with the author and helped to orient his thinking about regional security matters.

Jimoi, Mat Bin. A Jakun and textbook example of the affirmative action-like benefits which acrue to the Senoi Praaq for rank and file members. Corporal Jimoi spoke about his life in the Senoi Praaq and shared information about the opportunities afforded to him and his family as a direct consequence of his service. In sum, a generation of Orang Asli entrepreneurs emerged over the past few years in many heretofore undeveloped parts of Malaysia as a direct consequence of Orang Asli participation in the Senoi Praaq. Upon severance retiring members of the Senoi Praaq typically return home at a relatively early age armed with a generous benefits package and a variety of skills. This provides them with the drive and ability to start up a variety of business ventures and helps the many remote Orang Asli villages which supply recruits to the Senoi Praaq to be better developed than they might otherwise have been without GOM sponsored infusions of talent and capital.

Jiwa, Mohamad. Director of the new JHEOA museum for the Orang Asli in Gombak at which there is an excellent exhibit devoted to the Senoi Praaq. The author was allowed to see the restricted materials in the collection not normally available to the public. Director Jiwa formerly controlled all firearms in the possession of the JHEOA and oversaw weapons and jungle survival training for new department members. In this respect the Senoi Praaq maintains strong ties with JHEOA and in fact cooperates closely with it in the interior. Symbiotic bonds between the two organizations and a genuine dependence upon one another for support builds strong personal relationships which administrative reorganizations across time do little to change.

Jones, Michael (Mike). An ex-regular Special Air Service (SAS) officer who served in Malaya during the Emergency and in Sarawak during Confrontasi with Indonesia. Upon leaving the British Army he spent twenty years as a security consultant in Hong Kong and southeast Asia, traveling widely in many areas in the region (inclusive of eight years in Thailand and its border areas). He maintains an interest in the Orang Asli and the Senoi Praaq developed during his early days in Malaya and is at present completing a study of Richard Noone and the influence exercised by this individual during a number of ? Asian@ conflicts, 1948-1974. Mr. Jones= contributions to this project were most helpful in screening out a number of erroneous pseudo facts.

Khamis, Haji Ahmad Bin. A career Senoi Praaq/JHEOA operative who served as Mohammed Ruslan Bin Abdullah Iskander= s right hand at the Senoi Praaq and in other distinguished positions. A very careful individual who later became Director of Operations at the JHEOA and also served as the department= s state director in Pahang. Haji Ahmed managed the Senoi Praaq air supply operation in Taiping, oversaw troop movements between competing obligations and is generally credited with maximizing Senoi Praaq performance in the field. The unit simply could not have survived without his input into day to day operations given the tremendous demands placed upon the organization during its progressive expansion over the years. Naturally, his comments and observations about the logistics behind Senoi Praaq operations provided invaluable insight into Senoi Praaq operational processes. Thus, not only was he indispensable to the organization but he was also of invaluable assistance in this research. His kindness towards the author helps guarantee the Senoi Praaq its proper recognition in Malaysia= s history.

Leary, John D. A former member of the British Special Air Services (SAS) who cut his teeth in Malaya and author of a recent book, Violence and the Dream People, debunking the notion of some American anthropologists that the Orang Asli are by nature a peaceful people. Having lived the life, he and J. M. Gullick are unique among western authors writing about Malaya and/or the Orang Asli with the possible exceptions of a few other men like Spencer Chapman, R.O.D. Noone, J. P. Cross and Herbert Andrew. Leary provided a great deal of insight into the more macabre aspects of the Orang Asli psyche, not to mention their capacity for violence. Leary is very much a realist and his assessment of the Orang Asli is possessed by great lucidity.

Ley, Charles H. By far the most successful squadron commander every to have served in the Senoi Praaq. Mr. Ley journeyed to Malaya in February 1952 as a rubber planter in Kuantan and acquired extensive local knowledge prior to joining the unit. He also accompanied R.O.D. Noone to Vietnam, fought on Borneo and eventually commanded the Sabah Border Scouts. Mr. Ley then took over R.O.D. Noone= s SEATO appointment in Thailand, for a period of three years, upon the later= s 1973 death in Bangkok. Subsequently he became Counselor for Hongkong Affairs in the British Embassy, Bangkok over a six year period dealing with illicit narcotic warfare. As such Mr. Ley was the U.K. and Hong Kong representative to the Foreign Anti Narcotic Committee (FNAC). The author is great full to Mr. Ley for sharing some of his experiences and trouble shooting the manuscript.

Lee, Chew Jang. A Senoi (Semoq Beri sub group) with a Chinese name and career employee at the JHEOA. This individual= s family members suffered immeasurably during the Emergency yet they were fortunate to have had a positive experience with loyalist Chinese. Hence, the adoption in better times of multiple Chinese names as a gesture of their appreciation. He spoke with the author at some length about the extent to which the Emergency ravaged the various Orang Asli population groups. Information about his exposure to this rather extensive, sad and all too recent human tragedy helped to keep the research in perspective; otherwise, the author= s penchant for adventuresome, sometimes heraldic, pomp would tend to overshadow local sensitivities induced by the fighting, obscure the overall picture and deprive readers of an objective grasp of those dark days.

Mathews, Phillip. Associate Director of ISIS Malaysia. A congenial fellow who made the author welcome at ISIS who is best described as the consummate public relations specialist. Director Mathews gave generously of his time, put the resources of ISIS at the author= s disposal and personally made arrangements to facilitate his research.

Mustapha, Jamshah Bin. A liaison officer at the Royal Malaysia Police. Jamshah worked tirelessly and put in a lot of time to ensure that meetings in Kuala Lumpur and in field camps with various Senoi Praaq and other police personalities went smoothly and were productive.

Navaratnam, A. Founder of the Vat 69 and known within the Malaysian special forces community as Nava. Author of the soon to be published history of the Vat 69, The Spear and the Kerambit. Information provided by this intense and charming individual enabled this author to contrast the Senoi Praaq and the Vat 69 with other Malaysian paramilitary forces and thus to better understand their respective roles relative to the conventional military establishment.

Noor, Mohamed B. Abdullah. A Semai referred to with some amusement and for good reason as 007 by Senoi Praaq fighters. ASP Noor matriculated into the Senoi Praaq as 07 and is in fact the last living member of the initial ten Orang Asli recruited by the SAS. He was also active in the Asal movement, prior to his capture by Charles Lee along the Cameron Highlands road, and is the quintessential guerilla fighter. A bouncy and energetic legend among the Senoi Praaq renowned in later years for his ability to summon helicopters out of thin air. ASP Noor recently retired as a Police Gerakan Am (PGA) battalion commander with the rank of Assistant Superintendent of Police and holds the highest rank achieved by any Orang Asli in the PGA.

Ruslan, Mohammed Bin Abdullah Iskandar. Born Edmund Colin Ritson Dewsnup, British expatriate, adventurer and last Anglo commander of the Senoi Praaq. A charming yet impassive host who personifies the classic and impersonal Chinese warlord of yore. Indeed a great irony given his own well-earned and painful dislike for some of the more obstinate Han peoples to be found in Malaysia. One of the few brave men sent by Great Britain to fight communism in Malaya who survived the many ordeals imposed by the Emergency upon those who fought all its battles. No other British subject is known to have experienced the entire duration of the war and lived long enough thereafter to tell the tale. Men like this made the British Empire great, arrested Malayan communism in its tracks, and ultimately through their stalwart sacrifices helped to stem the tide against the Red threat in Southeast Asia.

Saban, Udah. A Semai Sergeant Major assigned to the Bidor camp. Sergeant Saban shared his insights into the art of successful blowgun use and elaborated upon the Orang Asli belief in magic. Charms and incantations are part of an ancient form of Orang Asli magic through which injury and or accident may be warded off. Charms per se are often reinforced by a secret mantra of two words and insure the wearer is immune to gunfire. The logic behind these charms is circular in that they only work if one= s faith in the underlying magic is strong enough to guarantee effectivity. From Udah= s demeanor one can easily perceive how the Senoi Praaq rank and file clearly have faith in their Sergeants, if not protective talismans.

Saharudin, Arbi Bin. Director for the JHEOA office of Security Affairs in Gombak and part of a second Orang Asli levy recruited into the original Senoi Praaq. Director Saharudin is thus among the first 30 Orang Asli to join the unit and did so in early 1957 at the age of 14. He became the unit= s youngest member and first saw action in August of that same year. This date coincided with Malaya= s independence from Great Britain but the country was by no means secure. The many MRLA fighters who remained in the deep jungle actively sought out the Senoi Praaq and made several concerted attempts to annihilate the fledgling unit. Daily contacts with MRLA guerillas occurred and Director Saharudin considers himself fortunate indeed to have survived. Nonetheless he went on to serve two extended tours with the unit and make a career out of jungle fighting prior to joining the JHEOA. This individual captured the author= s imagination and provided the initial encouragement for a book focusing on the Senoi Praaq. Arbi Sharudin is Semai.

Thambpillay, R. Retired Superintendent of Police, active in community service in the Ipoh area of Perak State, an author of God= s Little Acre, a commemorative book published on the 50^th anniversary of the Malayan Emergency. He saw extensive action in twelve major jungle operations in the Betong Salient. Supt. Thambpillay conveyed to the author his deep appreciation and understanding of the depth of the suffering the fighting brought not only to the Orang Asli but also to the Malaysian and Commonwealth nationals involved in the fighting. After the excitement of victory fades the sadness of human tragedy remains.

Yusof, Udah Bin. A Jakun and presently the Tok Batin at a large Orang Asli settlement beyond Gombak. A rare individual in the league of Mohamed Bin Noor and Arbi Bin Saharudin with extensive combat experience during both the Emergency and the Konfrontasi. A large man for an Orang Asli (much like his older brotherC Ba Tanga, R.O.D. Noone= s fearsome bodyguard) who shared grass roots information about the Senoi Praaq. Most definitely someone that it would not be a good idea to meet in the dark.

Arkib Negara, Kuala Lumpur

John Fitzgerald Kennedy Library, Boston, Massachusetts

National Archives and Records Administration, College Park, Maryland

Public Record Office, Kew

Royal Malaysia Police, Kuala Lumpur

Royal Malaysia Police, U.S. State Department and U.S. Department of Defense

Andrew, Herbert. Who Won the Malayan Emergency? Singapore: Graham Brash, 1995.

Bergot, Erwin. Les Heros Oublies. Paris: Bernard Grasset, 1975.

Bernard, Edward. Going Home. Philadelphia: Dorrance & Company, 1973.

Bodard, Lucien. La Guerre D= indochine: L= aventure. Paris: Gallimard, 1967.

Chapman, Spencer F. The Jungle Is Neutral. London: Catto and Windus, 1947.