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David Marshall (Singaporean politician)
Chief Minister of Singapore from 1955 to 1956 From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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David Saul Marshall (né Mashal; 12 March 1908 – 12 December 1995) was a Singaporean barrister and statesman who served as the inaugural Chief Minister of Singapore from 1955 to 1956 and the Singapore Ambassador to France from 1978 to 1993. He resigned after just over a year at the helm after his delegation to London regarding negotiations for complete home rule and eventual independence of Singapore was initially rejected by the British. However, Marshall was nevertheless instrumental in forging the idea of sovereignty as well as in subsequent negotiations that led to its eventual self-governance from the United Kingdom in 1959.
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While Marshall had a privileged upbringing, he was a left-wing nationalist who sought the self-determination of the former British Crown colony—having founded the Labour Front and the Workers' Party. From 1963 onward, he renounced partisan politics and became an independent politician for the rest of his life. Singapore eventually gained its complete independence in 1965 as a sovereign country – his foremost political goal coming to fruition.
In 1978, Marshall became a diplomat and was Singapore's inaugural ambassador to various countries, including France, Portugal, Spain, and Switzerland. During this time he defended Singapore's interests abroad, despite his old political opponent and fellow barrister Lee Kuan Yew (under the People's Action Party) having long led the government as prime minister. Nevertheless, he publicly maintained constructive criticism of some domestic policies with which he disagreed. Marshall retired in 1993, and died two years later in 1995, at the age of 87.
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Early life
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Background and ancestry
Marshall was born on Selegie Road in British colonial Singapore as David Saul Mashal on 12 March 1908, the second child of seven to Baghdadi Jewish parents Saul Nassim and Flora Ezekiel Mashal (née Guston).[1] His father, Saul, arrived in Singapore in 1900 from Baghdad after being insipired by the Jewish Manasseh Meyer's own trips to Singapore. He had initially left his wife, Flora, in Baghdad when he moved to Singapore, setting up a business at Change Alley; Saul typically sold things from the Middle East and India.[2] Saul was a Sephardic Jew of Spanish descent from Mesopotamia.[3]
His business did well financially, and he soon brought his wife over to Singapore. She was from a sadik family that was from Isfahan, Iran. Upon her arrival, they began their family; their firstborn, Rachel, would die young from a fever. Marshall was their second child, followed by his siblings George, Rose, Samuel, Meyer, and Reginald. In 1920, Marshall's family name, which was originally Mashal, was anglicised to Marshall on the advice of a family doctor; Saul's brother's family had already changed their's to Marshall as well, which was another reason why they changed to Marshall.[4]
Marshall's father was described as a "tall, well-built man [who] was an unusual combination of business dynamism and a reticence." Additionally, Saul spoke English, Turkish, and Arabic. In later years, Saul and Flora would separate; Saul died in 1953 in Sydney, Australia, while Flora died in 1948 in Israel.[5]
Early life, upbringing, and education
Marshall spent his early years moving frequently, depending on his father's fluctuating wealth. He was said to have moved from Selegie Road to Wilkie Road, then to houses in Katong, Marine Parade, Sea Avenue, and Chapel Road.[6] In 1914, Marshall went with his mother, his brother George, and Chinese amah Ah See Kah to visit his mother's family and a doctor in Baghdad. However, this was during World War I, and the Turks placed them under house detention, especially after discovering that they had British passports. Marshall would be interned at six-years-old, but was able to attend kindergarten classes in Baghdad where he learnt Hebrew and Arabic. He and his family would return to Singapore in March 1917 following the British liberation of Baghdad.[7]
His parents were "ultra-orthodox Jews", and Marshall was given a strict Jewish upbringing, frequently going to the synagogue and practicing the Sabbath. He learnt the Old Testament in Hebrew at the Maghain Aboth Synagogue and had his bar mitzvah when he was thirteen. His parents instilling judaism into him from a young age would shape his beliefs for the future. However, after an incident where he was expelled from Saint Joseph's Institution for skipping class due to Yom Kippur, Marshall would begin questioning and rebelling from his parent's beliefs.[8] Upon his return to Singapore from Baghdad, Marshall would attend kindergarten at the Convent of the Holy Infant Jesus at Victoria Street, where he would face anti-semitism.[9]
After his time at the kindergarten, he studied at Saint Joseph's Institution in 1918 and was expelled just a year later. His mother would then convince Saint Andrew's Secondary School's principal to enrol him with them, which he began attending until reaching Standard VII. Afterwards, Marshall would be transferred to Raffles Institution in 1923 for their science facilities which Saint Andrew's did not have.[10] He suffered from various illnesses as a teenager, including malaria and tuberculosis; he was treated for his malaria in Jakarta at fourteen and tuberculosis in Switzerland at sixteen.[11] His initial goal was to obtain a Queen's Scholarship for a medical degree, for which he studied for fourteen hours a day over six months in 1925. However, the day before he was to sit for his examinations, Marshall fainted and was thus unable to take them. He was subsequently sent to Switzerland to recover from his "lung complaint", during which he spent his time taking French classes over the nine months he was there.[12]
Upon his return to Singapore, Marshall began working at a stockbroker's firm in 1926, but he fell sick with tuberculosis and had to be sent to Switzerland again, where he studied German and French. He would recover eight months later, travelling to Renaix, Belgium, to study textile manufacturing. Around this time, Marshall would develop anti-colonial sentiments towards the British in Singapore. In 1927, when he returned back to Singapore from Europe, he would deliver a speech at the YMCA titled "Who Is Responsible for this Cesspool?", in response to a The Straits Times report that a British parliamentarian had described Singapore as a "pestilential and immoral cesspool". This led to Marshall being banned from public speaking by the Department of Education.[13][14]
Marshall would travel overseas again before returning in 1930, during the Great Depression. He had unsuccessfully held down a job as a textile representative before joining N. V. Straits Java Trading Company, where he liquidated departments of the company. Following a salary cut due to the Depression, Marshall left N. V. Straits and worked as a salesman for Sternberg and Company. At Sternberg, he was an assistant for their passenger department and made S$150.00, additionally holding French classes at YMCA for some extra money; Marshall wanted to pursue an overseas education. After making enough money, Marshall decided to study law in London, attending the University of London in September 1934; he had originally wanted to study medicine, but it was costly and would have been a six-year course. To get his law degree and join the Bar at the same time, Marshall decided to register himself with Middle Temple and take his Bachelor of Laws at the University of London externally.[15]
He would pass the Bar's finals, eighteen months after his arrival, with honours. Afterwards, Marshall wanted to return to Singapore to practice law, but he had to participate in eighteen month's worth of dinners (now known as qualifying sessions) with Middle Temple before he could be admitted with them. He met with Middle Temple's Under-Treasurer of the Inn to get exempted from the eighteen months, partly because he was poor and wanted to join the workforce, but was ultimately given an exemption of only six months. After a year with Middle Temple, Marshall returned to Singapore in February 1937, where he officially registered as an advocate and solicitor; he worked as a waiter while in London.[16]
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Law career and war service (1937–1950)
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Upon his return to Singapore in February 1937, he was called to the bar in February 1938. Marshall then joined law firm Rodyk & Davidson with a monthly salary of S$500.00. However, he soon discovered that the chief clerk of Rodyk & Davison was being paid S$400.00 more than him, facing prejudice for being a local and thus receiving less than the chief clerk. Marshall subsequently applied to join Aitken & Ong Siang, a law firm co-founded by Sir Song Ong Siang, a prominent member of the Chinese community. With the help of his father, Marshall was eventually accepted by Song to join Aitken & Ong Siang in a special arrangement; he would be paid no salary and would pay for his own desk space, office supplies, and secretarial services. Despite this, in his first month, Marshall would make S$700.00.[17] From 1938 to 1939, he was involved in a few minor cases for Aitken & Ong Siang.[18] To make himself further known in the local scene, he began taking criminal cases at the low cost of S$75.00, eventually charging up to S$300.00 per case once he had become more well-known.[19]
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In October 1938, sensing that the Japanese might soon attack Southeast Asia, Marshall decided to volunteer with the British's Singapore Volunteer Corps (SVC), which was a branch of the larger Straits Settlements Volunteer Force (SSVF). The SVC had multiple companies, and Marshall was assigned to the "D" Company, a company composed mostly of Eurasians. This made him upset, as he was being grouped with the Eurasians despite being a Jew, and he complained to the commanding officer. Marshall was subsequently moved to the "B" Company, a European company that included Czechs, Yugoslavs, and Poles, but did not stop facing issues within the SVC. With "B" Company, Marshall found that he was receiving a lower salary as compared to his fellow European colleagues, earning S$0.50 daily, which was the "Asian" salary as opposed to the "European" salary, which was S$1.04 daily. After complaining to the commandant about this discrimination, he was confined to his barracks, but found that he was paid S$0.55 more daily.[20]
During his training with the SVC, Marshall found that their schedule interfered heavily with his law career, and he was unable to continue his business with Aitken & Ong Siang; he had once gone away for two months to train in Telok Paku. He then applied to join Allen & Gledhill as an assistant as their schedule was more convenient for him, and he was hired with a monthly salary of S$750.00, the highest at the time for a non-European. As he continued to train with "B" Company, Marshall would make acquaintances with William Goode, then a minor official, and they would train weekly with "B" Company at Beach Road. Following the possibility of the war affecting Singapore, by 1941, Marshall had sent his family to Perth, Australia, to avoid it, with only his mother staying in Singapore.[21]
World War II and prisoner-of-war
In December 1941, Marshall was mobilised following the Japanese's bombing of Singapore. When he saw the first bombs from his camp in Geylang Serai, he and many others assumed that the sirens going off were a part of practice, as the street lights were still on. During that time, Singapore's support for the British was still high, but was diminished after learning that the Prince of Wales and Repulse had been sunk. Marshall's role at "B" Company was a runner, as he was said to have made noise like a "baby elephant" and would run through active bombing. On 15 February 1942, the day of the British's surrender to the Japanese, he had received the news that the British were surrendering and relayed it to the outlying sections. After the official surrender at 8:30 pm that day, Marshall, as part of the SSVF, was with a southern garrison that included the 1st and 2nd Malayan Infantry Brigades.[22]
On 17 February, he was marched from Pierce Road to Changi Prison as a prisoner-of-war (POW). They travelled in groups of eight to prevent any revolting, but were made to carry their equipment on the way there. While heading to Changi, Marshall ran out of energy and could not proceed further. His commanding officer then took his equipment and left without him, leaving him by the roadside while using a jeep to head the rest of the way to Changi. Marshall eventually made it after an Australian vehicle picked him up. At Changi, the POWs such as him frequently suffered from a lack of food, water, shelter, and blankets; after only a few months there, Marshall dropped from 172 pounds (78 kg) to 118 pounds (54 kg). His food was typically rice with boll weevils.[23]
After fifteen months at Changi, Marshall was transferred to a camp at Serangoon Road Race Course, which only had around 3,000 POWs, as compared to Changi's 30,000. He spent his time labouring by cutting grass for the Japaneses' horses. In August 1942, the Japanese began distributing POWs to camps in Japan and Taiwan with "proper amenities", while others were sent to Burma and Siam to work on the Death Railway. In May 1943, Marshall was part of 2,000 POWs drafted to Japan. It took three weeks to reach Honshu by boat, with stops at Saigon and Taiwan, and when they reached they were told that their's was the first with no deaths. Marshall was then sent to Hakodate, Hokkaido, by train to an industrial camp. This camp's conditions were poor, and they were subsequently moved to Yakumo, then to Muroran, and lastly to Nisi-Asibetsu.[24]
At Nisi-Asibetsu, they were to work at the coal mines for the Japanese. However, Marshall had grown too weak by then to mine, so he instead was part of a pick and shovel group. They mainly cleared land for airfields and moved iron delivered from Manchuria using trucks. By 1944, the Japanese were beginning to lose the war, and Marshall learnt of it through a Chinese POW who could read Japanese that told them after he read some Japanese papers in the colonel's office. Following this, he and his camp began receiving food and supplies from Red Cross parcels and American planes. Soon after, Marshall was flown to Okinawa and then to Manila to be debriefed with his fellow POWs. They were to give statements of their conditions during the war, and during his interview he requested repatriation to Perth to visit his family. The American officials agreed, and Marshall was sent to Sydney before taking a train to Perth. By then, he had only weighed 107 pounds (49 kg). He would stay with his family briefly before moving back to Singapore in February 1946.[25]
Reflecting later on his experience as a POW, Marshall commented:[26]
[The Japanese occupation] taught me humility [...] Three and a half years as a prisoner taught me humility [...] I realised [as a Japanese POW] that mankind is capable of cold-hearted cruelty. I can be angry, and I have no doubt I can be cruel for five, ten minutes. But the Japanese cruelty was cold-blooded, permanent, and eternal. Man's inhumanity to man in fact, in real life, made its presence really known to me when I became a prisoner and saw it in action. Of course, I have known cruelty before. But wide-spread, long-term, cold-blooded, permanent cruelty, I've never experienced before, not even from the British Imperialists no matter how arrogant they were. That was a major shock, the feeling that there were human beings who were not on the same wavelength as me at all, who were not even human from my point of view.
Post-World War II and continued law career
Marshall returned to Singapore in February 1946, shortly before the British Military Administration (BMA) ceased on 1 April. He found that his original home had been destroyed and looted during the war. Despite widespread unemployment and struggles under the BMA, he was able to easily rejoin Allen & Gledhill as the legal business was performing well in the aftermath of the war. Right after he joined Allen & Gledhill, his friend Gerald de Cruz recruited him to join the Malayan Democratic Union (MDU), a political party that aimed for internal self-governance and public reforms. De Cruz assumed that Marshall would join without delay, but got rejected as Marshall needed time to rebuild himself after the war.[27]
Despite not being active in politics with the MDU, Marshall began getting involved with the Jewish Singaporean community shortly after the war, setting up a Jewish organisation, the Jewish Welfare Board (JWB), which focused on Jewish interests and issues. Marshall served as its first president on 27 June 1946, being reelected as its president over the next six years. JWB would create an old folk's home at Waterloo Street and a Transient's Committee to aid Jewish immigrants travelling through Singapore. With JWB, Marshall remained unaffiliated with politics; he tend to receive visiting Israeli officials, but would remain non-partisan.[28]
Outside of the JWB, Marshall was involved with other causes. Following the BMA's choice to not recognise the Japanese government's "banana currency", many who had saved up this type of money were practically poor in post-Japanese occupation Singapore. This included many members of the SVC, who were now waiting for the payments from their salaries by the British, as it was interrupted during the Japanese occupation, along with the return of their properties. In March 1946, the British announced that it would pay back members of the British government and army up to £1,500 (equivalent to £78,591 in 2023) per person, for the period of their internment during the war in Malaya. This upset those who had not been interned, mostly consisting of Asians, and the fact that locals were paid less than European POWs, which raised issues on racial discrimination.[29]
Following this, Marshall was a part of a group of POWs who were against this scheme, and they subsequently founded the War Prisoners' (Singapore) Association (WPA) on 24 April 1946, with Marshall serving as the honorary secretary.[30] The WPA included POWs, internees, political prisoners, and civilian prisoners, with their main goals focusing on the compensation of people affected by the war. As the WPA's secretary, Marshall found himself acting as the main spokesperson for them, and he typically commented critically on the colonial government. The demographic makeup of WPA had a majority of Europeans, which caused Marshall to be accused of working for European interests, although most of the Europeans members were poor and the WPA also focused on affected Chinese, Eurasian, and Indian POWs.[31]
In August 1946, the Secretary of State for the Colonies George Hall stated that they would be repudiating civil liability claims made by SVC volunteers. The WPA responded by informing the Governor of Singapore Franklin Gimson in November that the liability claims were still in force as they had not been repealed, and asked Gimson to set up a tribunal. Marshall stated in an interview with The Straits Times that Gimson was talking to the Attorney-General John Davies, but that "we have not heard from the Governor since then [but were] awaiting his promised communication."[32] In March 1947, he sent a letter on behalf of the WPA to the Secretary of State for the Colonies Arthur Creech Jones, writing: "I must be forgiven if I sometimes gather the impression that there is no government in this colony, only a bureaucracy of lazy clerks."[33]
From the late 1940s to early 1950s, Marshall's law career would prove to be successful, and he would become well known as a prominent lawyer.[34] In January 1950, he decided that he wanted to fufil his original plan to study medicine, and went to the University of Sydney in Australia after getting a correspondence from them; at that point, he was a partner with Allen & Gledhill. After reaching Australia, he travelled to Perth first to see his family, where he met a psychiatrist who worked at the Royal Perth Hospital called White.[a] Marshall asked White for advice as he wanted to study psychiatry, and was given some books about the concept of time by him to read. After reading the books, Marshall could not understand the concepts presented in psychiatry, and decided that he was to return to his law career in Singapore instead. He had received a letter by Ramsay Wilson of Battenberg and Talma while in Australia, and returned to Singapore as a junior partner with their firm on 26 January 1950; he had resigned from Allen & Gledhill when he left to Australia.[36]
Notable cases
On 17 April 1950, Marshall defended 10-year-old Indian girl Thanamani, who had been accused of killing a 20-day-old baby Navamani on 24 November 1949; Thanamani was also the youngest female to be charged of murder in Singapore. While living with her foster parents in Jalan Kayu, she allegedly threw a 20-day-old baby down a well, killing her. Marshall was appointed by the court to represent Thanamani, and he met her at the Salvation Army's hostel, where Thanamani was living at the time. Thanamani told Marshall that she had put the Navamani in the well as a way to get an egg from her foster mother, not knowing that it would kill Navamani. During the trial, the jury's verdict was that Thanamani was guilty, but Marshall convinced the judge that Thanamani had no ill intent to kill the baby nor did anyone see her commit the crime. The judge agreed that there was not enough evidence to prove Thanamani guilty and the jury subsequently gave the verdict of not guilty.[37]
On 30 June 1950, the body of 10-year-old Annie Winnie Spencer was found on a beach at Keppel Harbour after she was raped and murdered. 25-year-old Joseph Michael Nonis was subsequently arrested in connection to the murder and confessed to the police that he had done it. During the trial however, where Marshall served as his defendant, Nonis stated that he had been made to confess under pressure and alcohol by Chief Inspector Rayney while being interrogated by him at Rayney's bungalow; the police refuted these claims.[38] Marshall further stated that Rayney had a reputation for creating false confessions out of threats during the Japanese occupation, which was supported by witnesses. Marshall then summoned a psychiatrist, who deduced that, had Nonis' confession been true, it would have been that of a psychopath's.[39] With the confession now deemed not credible, Marshall provided more witnesses that proved that Nonis was at home when Spencer was murdered, which was believed to be on the night of 29 June. With this new evidence, and Marshall disproving the police's evidence, the jury deemed Nonis not guilty. Marshall's success in defending Nonis brought him to prominence, and made him a well-known lawyer in Singapore.[40][41]
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Early political career (1947–1955)
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Early political involvement with the Progressive Party
In the late 1940s, after Marshall had rejected to join the MDU, he decided to join the Singapore Association through his legal connections after a growing interest in the colony's affairs. The Singapore Association was the successor of the Straits Settlements (Singapore) Association, a prominent body in pre-war Singapore; it was known for being involved in talks of the colony's progress. He officially joined the Singapore Association in June 1947, after being elected as a member of its committee following Roland Braddell being elected as its president. His early political standings with the Singapore Association included opposing the implementation of income tax, which would not represent his later views. Financial Secretary W. D. Godsall introduced it to recuperate the losses spent in rehabilitation, to which Marshall opposed as the income tax could be avoided and instead suggested a tax on the colony's remittances. He was also a part of the Singapore Ratepayers' Association, which largely consisted of landlords and Europeans, that focused on reducing light, gas, and water costs.[42]
In the lead up to the 1948 general election, political parties began to be formed to contest in it, including the Singapore Association. As the Association mainly represented European opinions, they formed a party to contest as they were worried that the 1948 general election would elect a majority of Asians into the Legislative Council and thus misrepresent their views. In May 1947, Singapore Association member E. R. Koek suggested the creation of the Progressive Party (PP), a party to represent their liberalist views. After Marshall was elected into their committee in June, Braddell supported Koek's suggestion, and the Singapore Association would form the Singapore Progressive Party with the Straits Chinese British Association on 25 August 1947. PP consisted of lawyers such as C. C. Tan, John Laycock, N. A. Mallal, and A. P. Rajah, who were all founder members; Marshall would join the PP in November 1949, as he felt obliged since he was a member of the Singapore Association and knew most of the lawyers including Laycock.[43][44]
After he briefly left to Australia and returned in January 1950, his continued time with PP would eventually lead to him having conflicting views with its members. In his early time with the party, Marshall was seen as a potential party candidate, and had been asked by Laycock to stand for Municipal Commissioner in 1950 and for the South Ward in 1951; this was supported by Mallal and Tan Soon Kim. Sometime in the early 1950s, after the Legislative Council announced the Rent Control Ordinance, Marshall and other members of the Singapore Ratepayers' Association opposed its introduction, which saw support from other local groups. During the campaigning period of the 1951 general election, the Rent Control Ordinance issue was brought up, and the PP portrayed themselves as supporting the tenants.[45]
However, secretary of the Singapore Tenants' Association P. M. Williams addressed the fact that they supported the Rent Control Ordinance, which suggested that they were actually supporters of the landlords.[46] As Laycock was planned to contest in Katong Constituency against independent G. H. Kiat,[47] who was a member of the Singapore Ratepayers' Association, the PP held a meeting to discuss its campaigning strategy. Marshall was the only dissenter to the party's choice of depicting itself as pro-tenant and using the Rent Control Ordinance against Kiat as part of their campaign; he also felt conflicted with his existing ties to the Singapore Ratepayers' Association.[48]
After stating his stand at the meeting, Marshall's relationship with PP founder Tan would worsen, as he was seen to have supported their opponent. Furthermore, on 1 April, Kiat was accused by Tan that he supported the Singapore Ratepayers' Association's submission of increasing the rent by twenty percent, but Kiat argued that Tan should have been aware that he did not, as Kiat had already told Marshall that he was only following the Ratepayers' choice and not his own, and believed that Marshall had told Tan this. Tan responded by admitting that he had been informed about it from Marshall, but did not believe him. Marshall subsequently responded to the both of them; he criticised Kiat for not believing him and attacked Tan for implying that he would lie to him on Kiat's behalf.[49] The PP would go on to win six of the nine seats in the 1951 general election.[50]
As Marshall continued to be active with the PP in 1951, the party's beliefs would begin to change; in 1948, the PP had made the goal of an elected majority in the Legislature by 1951 to achieve internal self-governance, but by 1952 they withdrew this statement and did not set a new deadline. Marshall had observed that the PP began to develop more pro-British views, while other organisations such as the UMNO in Malaya pressed for self-governance. Tan had written, "Only fools and criminals would want independence for Singapore in less than 10 years", to which Marshall responded with, "I'm not a fool, I'm certainly not a criminal. And I believe we should have independence now. We should learn to bare our shins and break our bones!". He then gave his resignation from the PP in December 1952, which was accepted in February 1953.[51]
While with the PP, Marshall did support the creation of the Central Provident Fund (CPF) in 1951, and suggested it to both the PP's committee and the colonial government – whom he sent a memorandum to, supporting the creation of a fund for employees. Marshall's suggestion was not fully acknowledged by the government, but through the PP's representation in the Legislature, a bill for the CPF would eventually be created and passed. When he questioned the government on why they accepted the bill, as they were generally seen as not listening to local opinions, they told him that the bill was favourable towards banks and the Secretary for the Treasury as it promoted saving among the general population.[52][53]
Labour Front
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Lim Yew Hock (left) and Francis Thomas (right) founded the Singapore Socialist Party with Marshall, which later became the Labour Front.
After he left the PP in February 1953, Marshall divided his time between the JWB, the Rent Control Board, and the Old Rafflesian Association, serving an additional presidential term for the former in April. Due to his status as a respected lawyer, Marshall soon became sought after as a member for political parties, especially since he had just left the PP. As the Rendel Constitution would soon implement more internal self-governance, the upcoming 1955 general election was seen as an avenue for political parties to control Singapore's future. The PP were predicted to be the most likely to win a majority in the upcoming election, but their maintained support was uncertain. Commissioner-General of Southeast Asia Malcolm MacDonald believed that a left-wing non-communist party would be able to maintain its political influence, but the only non-communist party at the time was the Singapore Labour Party (SLP), which was suffering from internal issues between its members; two prominent SLP members – Lim Yew Hock and Francis Thomas – would later separate from the party.[54][55]
Marshall began getting more involved in politics by 1953, when he attended a meeting with friends S. Rajaratnam, Alex Josey, and Han Suyin in August. He felt influenced by Rajaratnam and Han's political discussions, and decided during that year that he wanted to further his political career and interests; Marshall was still considering his political stand.[56] In October, Marshall met with Lim and Thomas, and they decided to form a new political party in part due to the upcoming election and the Rendel Constitution; Marshall knew Lim as a fellow PP member and Thomas through connections with St. Andrew's School and the Rotary Club. Thomas later wrote to Marshall in November, discussing any issues with the party's formation or programmes; it was also tentatively named the Democratic Labour Party.[57]
"[The PAP's goals were] first to get an idea of our possible effectiveness, and second to reduce our effectiveness by keeping discussion open as long as possible so as to waste our time and make us late in getting the necessary work done."
In December, Marshall, Lim, and Thomas would continue to hold meetings regarding to the party, but its official inauguration remained delayed due to plans to merge with another left-wing party. In January 1954, Lee Kuan Yew would meet with figures such as Goh Keng Swee, Toh Chin Chye, K. M. Byrne, and Rajaratnam, to discuss forming a party which would later become the People's Action Party (PAP). Marshall and Thomas would later hold meetings with some of the PAP's members, as they shared similar goals. However, the two parties did not get along well, with Marshall and Thomas' first meeting with Lee, Goh, and Byrne being described as a "bitter taste" by Marshall. The PAP considered them to have possessed "political naivety", while Marshall saw Lee as an over-confident and mysterious person.[58]
After their unsuccessful negotiations with the PAP, they would go on to found the Singapore Socialist Party (SSP) in April 1954. Marshall was seen as a natural leader in the party, but he refused the presidency. Initial support for the SSP was low, so Thomas decided to form an alliance with the SLP to contest in the 1955 general election. He met with SLP members V. P. Mendis and C. H. Koh, and the two parties officially formed the Singapore Labour Front (LF) on 21 August 1954.[59][60] Marshall was made to draft the LF's constitution, and during that time Tan delivered a speech at a PP meeting detailing its stand against internal self-governance. Marshall felt irritated by Tan and the PP's stand, and when later approached by Lim on whether he wanted to lead the LF, Marshall accepted to use it as a platform to contest Tan; Marshall never fully embraced his role as LF's chairman, and neither was he a member of its executive branch.[61]
As the LF's leader, Marshall wanted to elicit the help of MacDonald and the British Labour Party to get a British organising secretary to manage the LF, though this was not agreed on by fellow members. Instead, Marshall planned to travel to London to visit the Transport House, then the headquarters of the British Labour Party, to educate himself on party management and election campaigning. By late 1954, Marshall was seen as a political rival to the PP, and on 3 September he was called on by Governor John Nicoll to advise on the ongoing compulsory conscription riot by Chinese students. On 31 October 1954, Marshall published his political thoughts in The Straits Times with a letter titled "I Believe...",[62] highlighting his anti-colonial views and disdain towards the PP's anti-independence views.[63] His letter was seen as one of the first coherent and important political statements, with The Straits Times' Kenneth Hilbourne "[admiring] the spirit and fire of his delivery" in a review.[64] In fact, Nicoll had met with Marshall privately on 22 October, during which he urged Marshall not to publish it.[65] Furthermore, earlier that same month, the LF announced that Marshall would be contesting in Tan's constituency – Cairnhill Constituency – for the post of Chief Minister in the upcoming 1955 general election.[66][b]
On 2 November, Marshall would make his promised trip to London, boarding MV Asia. He arrived on 13 November, through Colombo, Bombay, and Rome, and lived at 44 Curzon Street. On 16 November, he went to Transport House and met Labour Party politicians Morgan Phillips, Saul Rose, and John Hatch, along with Labour Party members of parliament Kenneth Younger and John Parker. He additionally met with Hilda Selwyn-Clarke. Phillips gave him tours of Labour Party constituencies on weekends, and Marshall spent a total of four months overseas. He returned on 8 February 1955, and during that time the LF had been working on their goals, in which they pledged to remove the Emergency Regulations if they were elected; they also focused on education and the merger with Malaya. However, Marshall disagreed with removing the Regulations due to the recent conscription riot, to which Lim stated that he added it as he believed that they would not be elected in the first place.[68][69]
1955 Singaporean general election
The 1955 general election's Nomination Day was on 28 February,[70] and the LF fielded 17 out of the 79 candidates participating in the election; the other parties included the PP, the PAP, the Democratic Party (DP), the UMNO–Malay Union (MU)–Malayan Chinese Association (MCA) alliance, the Labour Party, and 10 independents. Marshall chose to specifically contest in PP leader Tan's constituency as he wanted to confront his and the PP's views, which was shown in his speeches where he frequently spoke of self-governance and anti-colonialism. Throughout his campaign, his opponents brought up his previous affiliations and views on income tax and land, to which he stated did not reflect his current, more socialist views.[71][72]
Despite not having agreed earlier with the PAP, the PAP and LF had a mutual understanding of not fielding candidates in each other's constituencies. The PAP themselves stated that in constituencies with none of their candidates, the vote should go to the LF.[73] Marshall later stated on the PAP's anti-British and self-governance views that it was "impractical though desirable", with their need for hasty self-governance "going a little too fast".[74] During the campaign period, The Singapore Free Press described Cairnhill Constituency as where "high political issues [were] on trial", with Marshall, PP's Tan, and DP's Tan Khiang Khoo all contesting there. Marshall held several rallies at Empress Place, along with visiting local constituents. He also frequently challenged Tan to debates.[75][76]
The results of the election were announced on 3 April, with the LF winning the most seats with 10. The PP performed poorly, with 18 of their 22 candidates being unsuccessful, including Tan. Although the LF won the majority of seats, Lee Kuan Yew won the largest majority in a constituency. Marshall himself was surprised by the results and he received congratulations from Lee and Tan; the former pledged cooperation with Marshall and his government. He was also, as the LF's leader, named as the first Chief Minister.[77][78] In Cairnhill, Marshall was elected with 3,305 votes as compared to Tan of PP's 2,530 and Tan of DP's 1,111.[79]
Cabinet formation
Following the LF's minor majority of 10 of the 25 seats in the Legislative Assembly, Marshall set up his minority government as the Chief Minister. The evening after their win, the LF met up in Marshall's home to discuss forming a coalition with the other parties; Marshall wanted Abdul Hamid Jumat of the UMNO to be included, as it would display Malay representation in his cabinet. The LF wanted to form a coalition with either the PAP or the UMNO–MU–MCA alliance as their minority government of 10 seats could be easily deterred in the larger 32 total seats of the Assembly. As Marshall continued talks with Abdul, his cabinet began to take shape, but during his meeting with Governor Nicoll on 4 April, he stated that even if he got the UMNO–MU–MCA alliance to join a coalition with them, they would still not obtain a majority in the Assembly. To increase the LF's representation, Marshall requested Nicoll to allow him four LF nominees under the Rendel Constitution, but Nicoll refused as it would show that any minority government could rule. Instead, Nicoll appointed two LF executive committee members, Thomas and R. C. H. Lim, and two non-partisans, G. A. P. Sutherland and Ong Piah Teng, to represent European and Chinese commercial interests, respectively.[80][81]
On 5 April, the LF successfully reached an agreement to form a coalition with the UMNO's Abdul and MCA's Wong Foo Nam, although the MU pulled out. For his first cabinet, Marshall was required to include three colonial officials for the roles of Chief Secretary, Financial Secretary, and Attorney-General, which were given to William Goode, T. M. Hart, and E. J. Davies,[c] respectively. The rest of Marshall's cabinet included Marshall as the Chief Minister and Commerce and Industry Minister, Chew Swee Kee as the Education Minister, Lim as the Labour and Welfare Minister, A. J. Braga as the Health Minister, Thomas as the Communications and Works Minister, Abdul as the Local Government, Lands and Housing Minister, and J. M. Jumabhoy as the Assistant Commerce and Industry Minister. Chew's appointment as Education Minister was seen as unexpected, as he was a first-time politician and Thomas appeared the more likely choice due to his background in education, but Marshall believed that the Education Minister should be Chinese given the recent issues with Chinese schools and students. Marshall also maintained diversity in his cabinet as he wanted multi-racialism and equality to be shown.[83][84] He officially unveiled his cabinet on 7 April at Empress Place, and they were sworn in by Nicoll.[85]
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Chief Ministership (1955–1956)
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In the early days of his Chief Ministership, Marshall did not maintain a good relationship with Nicoll; he considered him to be "discourteous" and "arrogant". Additionally, he frequently went against both Nicoll and the British members of the Legislative Assembly. At the opening of the first Legislative Assembly on 22 April, he protested against them by arriving in a bush jacket, while Thomas wore a safari jacket and sandals. Due to Marshall's behaviour, Nicoll made his aide-de-camp take Marshall's speech written for the Governor for him, instead of taking it himself per tradition.[86][87] In another incident, Nicoll stated that he would use red ink to represent his final decision in documents, and that no one else was to use red. Following Nicoll's admission, Attorney-General Davies added that he himself would use green ink. Marshall, upset with the designation of specific colours that he could or could not use, ignored Davies and thus stated that he would use green, with no one else allowed to use it; from then on, Marshall signed all his official documents in green ink.[88]
Other issues he faced with the British was the lack of accommodation for the Chief Minister or other local ministers, despite their positions in the Assembly. There was a lack of a Chief Minister's office, instead being asked to use the Minister of Commerce's office due to his concurrent role as serving as both. After he warned the British officials that he would use a desk under the "old apple tree" at Empress Place if no proper office was made for him, the officials relented and made space in a room under the stairs of the Assembly House; this required moving Public Relations Officer G. G. Thomson out of the room. There were further incidents where Marshall found himself placed seventh in line to the Governor instead of second during public events, which went against the proper procedure and he would have it rectified. He also wrote letters to the Chief Secretary, demanding them to respect the Asian police officers of the Singapore Guard Regiment on duty at Government House.[89]
Management of strikes and riots
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One of the first things Marshall addressed were the Emergency Regulations, especially since it was an issue that the LF had pledged to acknowledge in the 1955 general elections; the earlier 1954 National Service riots were an anti-colonial response to the British, and were part of the reason why they were still being enforced. After the Marshall government had discussed the issue amongst themselves and inspected the Regulations, they modified them to reduce its powers but extended its period to another three months; the powers removed were the search, seizure of property, and the closure of roads by the police. Marshall chose to introduce the Regulations' extension himself, even though it was an unpopular choice and by right the duty of the Chief Secretary and the colonial authorities. Later, in July 1955, Marshall had planned to remove the Regulations but found himself forced to extend them for another three months as it could have been seen as threatening to the Malayan Government.[90][91]
Furthermore, another civil unrest had occurred in April, the Hock Lee bus riots, and Marshall found himself further conflicted; he respected their right to strike, but also wanted to maintain law and order. Marshall later addressed the Hock Lee strikers on a 1 May rally, stating that the government would allow them the right to strike, but that they had to exercise this right responsibly. He then met with Lee, legal adviser of the Singapore Bus Workers' Union (SBWU) and PAP assemblyman; Fong Swee Suan, the SBWU's secretary-general; and Lim Chin Siong, a SBWU committee member, to form a peaceful agreement to end the Hock Lee riots. As the riots began to escalate with the involvement of Chinese students, Marshall addressed them on 12 May via radio. On 14 May, Marshall met with the SBWU, Hock Lee Amalgamated Bus Company, and the Hock Lee Employees' Union at Assembly House to discuss an end to the riots, announcing later that day that an agreement had been reached between the government and affected parties.[92][93][94]
After managing the Hock Lee bus riots, Marshall focused on the issue of the Chinese students, who were occupying Chinese schools that were closed during the Hock Lee riots, namely Chung Cheng High School's main and Yishun branch and The Chinese High School. The schools' boards were ordered by the government to expel the involved students and provide the names of those involved in the Hock Lee riots, however this only fuelled the conflicts between the students and the authorities, with Chung Cheng High School and The Chinese High School prolonging their sit-ins, with the Nanyang Girls' High School joining in. Marshall felt pressured to respond, especially since the Singapore Factory and Shop Workers' Union stated that they were going to strike in support of the students. He subsequently appointed an All-Party Committee to investigate the students' issues, with his first meeting with the All-Party Committee advising him to reopen the schools, which Marshall did.[95][96]
Marshall's management of the Hock Lee riots and the Chinese school sit-ins were met with criticism; letters were sent to The Straits Times detailing his incompetence as Chief Minister.[97][98] In the weeks following the quelling of the Hock Lee riots, many expected Marshall and his government to exercise punishments on those involved, but many considered their responses to be small. During that period, the Governor and Chief Secretary had urged him to send in troops, but Marshall withheld as he did not believe in police action.[99] Furthermore, in the Chinese school sit-ins, Marshall was seen to have "meekly obeyed"[97] to the Chinese students, despite calls of action to be taken on them such as deportation.[100]
As more strikes broke out across Singapore, with the main unionists being Devan Nair, Lim, and S. Woodhull, Marshall met with them in his office to discuss and prevent a planned general strike on 13 June. Although the meeting was described as cooperative by the unionists, on 11 June Marshall's government arrested five unionists[d] under the Emergency Regulations for being involved in the planning of the general strike.[101] This was met with aggression from the unions, but when 13 June arrived, only an eighth of the planned workers went on strike.[102] On 5 July, Marshall held a final meeting with the unions, where they outlined the issues they faced. This meeting was successful, as both Marshall and the unions reached an agreement over the final disputed points, officially ending the strikes after 66 days.[103][104][105] Finally, on 29 October, Marshall announced that the Emergency Regulations were no longer in use.[106]
Constitutional crisis
Following the management of the riots, Marshall felt that his government was inadequate and lacked efficiency. His ministers were often overworked and he also neglected his second portfolio as Commerce and Industry Minister. Thus, in July 1955, with the arrival of the new Governor Robert Black who replaced Nicoll, Marshall spoke at the ceremonial address his want for the Rendel Constitution to be edited. Marshall stated this to Black in a letter on 11 July, that the Constitution allowed him to create nine new junior ministers, but he was to appoint four first and the rest later. In response, Black allowed him only two junior ministers, leading Marshall to call this issue of "grave constitutional importance", as the Governor did not acknowledge the opinion of the Council of Ministers and displayed the Constitution as allowing the Governor to ignore the Chief Minister's suggestions.[107][108]
After the rejection from the Governor, Marshall threatened to resign from the Chief Ministership due to the issues with the Constitution, mainly Section 32 which stated that "the Governor after consultation with the Chief Minister may from among elected members in the Assembly appoint Assistant Ministers to assist ministers in the discharge of their duties and functions." Marshall believed that this allowed him full control of his cabinet appointments, while Black disagreed, as that view would insist that Singapore was a self-governing state. However, his resignation brought along alarm from Singapore and the British, due to the hasty elections that would have to be held in response to the supposed constitutional crisis. Black then requested that Secretary of State for the Colonies Alan Lennox-Boyd visit Singapore while on his Eastern tour in August, and asked Marshall to postpone his resignation till Lennox-Boyd's arrival.[109][110]
During this period, Marshall held an emergency meeting with the Assembly, where most of them urged him to postpone his resignation. Several Singaporeans unions and unionists also urged him not to resign, with a seven-man delegation representing 110 unions consisting of a cumulative 100,000 members meeting with Marshall to persuade him.[111] The Indian Daily Mail reported that S. Jaganathan, president of the Singapore Trade Union Congress, agreed on the issues with the Constitution, but did not find it worth resigning over.[112] Prime minister of the Gold Coast (then-Ghanaian prime minister) Kwame Nkrumah also told Marshall not to resign, sending a message from Ghana.[113] With this support, Marshall then laid out a three-part motion to the Assembly, detailing that they would end colonial rule, rewrite the Constitution to benefit those elected with the view of self-governance, and that the Governor should act on the advice of the Chief Minister.[109] Marshall's motion saw support from twenty-eight members; G. A. P. Sutherland was the only dissenter, and the colonial officials – Davies, Hart, and Goode – abstained. Following this, Marshall held off on his resignation till the arrival of Lennox-Boyd.[114]
Lennox-Boyd arrived in Singapore on 31 July, where he and Marshall held a few meetings, before he briefly left again to visit London and Borneo, returning once more on 15 August.[115] In the following days, Lennox-Boyd and the Legislative Assembly discussed the issues throughly, with a statement being announced on 18 August that an agreement had been reached. The colonial authorities edited the Governor's powers to be in favour of the elected ministers, with the Governor required to act in the advice or consultation of the Chief Minister. For the issue on self-governance, Marshall was invited to send a delegation to London to discuss the situation. In the press, Marshall stated that he was "very pleased with the outcome",[116] however the opposition assemblymen cast doubts on Lennox-Boyd's unclear wordings and the lack of actual self-governance, instead being asked to head to London.[117]
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Post-Chief Ministership and career (1956–1963)
After resigning, Marshall visited China for two months at the invitation of Zhou Enlai, the Chinese Premier. Contacted by a representative of a group of over 400 Russian Jews who were being refused exit from Shanghai by the Chinese authorities, Marshall spoke with Zhou and managed to have them released.[118]
After returning from China, Marshall stayed on the backbenches before quitting the Labour Front and as a member of the Legislative Assembly in 1957. On 7 November 1957, he founded the Workers' Party of Singapore (WP), which has remained one of the major political parties in Singapore, just after the PAP.
Marshall lost his seat in Cairnhill Single Member Constituency to Lim Yew Hock, the Chief Minister, in the 1959 general election as a WP candidate, but won in Anson Single Member Constituency in the 1961 by-election.[119] He resigned from the Workers' Party in January 1963 after a spat with some members of the party.
After losing his seat again in the 1963 general election as an independent candidate, he decided to return to practice law but would remain active in politics, offering his opinions and viewpoints.
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Diplomatic career (1978–1993)
From 1978 to 1993, at the invitation of Foreign Minister S. Rajaratnam, Marshall served as first Singapore Ambassador to France, concurrently for Portugal, Spain, and Switzerland from 1978 to 1993. As ambassador, Marshall always defended Singapore's interests, despite his differences with Lee Kuan Yew's government. He retired from the diplomatic corps in 1993 after 15 years of service.[120]
Views on Lee Kuan Yew and the PAP
While Marshall consistently praised Lee Kuan Yew and the PAP government for developing Singapore along with its economic prosperity, he also condemned the government for limiting freedom of speech and public freedoms. "We should keep in mind the horrors of [China's] Cultural Revolution, brought about by the cult of subservience to authority and primacy of society over the individual before we point the accusing finger at those who believe that respect for the individual is the basis of human civilisation", he said.[121]
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Personal life
Marshall married Jean Mary Gray in 1961, an Englishwoman. Jean was born on 13 April 1926 in Kent, South East England, and came to Singapore in 1953 to take up a post with the Singapore Red Cross Society as a medical social worker. They had four children and six grandchildren. Marshall died in 1995 of lung cancer. He was 87.
Jean Marshall died in Singapore on 29 March 2021, at age 94.[122][123][124][125]
He was recognised with the following honours:
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Legacy
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Marshall has been considered by some Singaporeans as being one of the founding fathers of Singapore.[121][128][129] A life-size cutout of him is present at the National Museum of Singapore's Singapore History Gallery, along with some of his favourite iconic smoking pipes that were donated to the museum by his wife which accompanied him wherever he went, as well as other items such as his campaign cards.[128][130][131]
He is also well-regarded by lawyers in Singapore. In recognition of his impeccable service, he was appointed as an Honorary Member and Fellow of the Academy of Law in 1992 by the Singapore Academy of Law (SAL), and the David Marshall Professorship in Law was set up in 1995 by the National University of Singapore (NUS).[132] In 2007, the Singapore Management University's School of Law (SMU Law) introduced the David Marshall Prize for the top student in criminal law.[133] In 2017, the Yale-NUS College introduced the David Marshall Scholarship for double degree law students.[134] There is also the David Marshall Scholarship by the School of the Arts, Singapore (SOTA), which are awarded to SOTA students who demonstrate artistic talents and excellent academic standing, as well as maintain excellent conduct and participate actively in school events.[135]
Due to his love of art, Marshall had commissioned and gifted the Botanic Gardens with three bronze statues: Girl on a Swing (1984), Girl on a Bicycle (1987), and Lady on A Hammock (1989) by the British sculptor Sydney Harpley. Through these sculptures, he wanted to inspire the people of Singapore, to smile and feel the excitement and joy of living.[136]
In 2011, the Marshall estate donated a bust of Marshall created by Hungarian sculptor Peter Lambda to the SMU Law's moot court, which is named after Marshall.[137] His widow Jean expressed the hope that the tribute would inspire all law students at SMU to pursue the qualities of passion, diligence, courage and integrity that had distinguished her late husband's remarkable achievements.[138]
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See also
References
Further reading
External links
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