Biography reveals Tan Cheng Lock's early push for a unified Malayan identity

In “One Country, One People: The Life and Legacy of Tun Tan Cheng Lock,” co-author Toh recounts how Tan leveraged his rising stature with the British to press for policy changes toward Malayan subjects. A 1920 lunch with Governor Laurence Guillemard saw Tan urge the “sons of the soil” - Malays, Eurasians, Indians and Chinese - to take a more active role in their country, leading to his 1923 appointment to the Straits Settlements legislative council.

From that platform he championed Malayans’ entry into the civil service and, three years later, outlined a vision of a self-governing British Malaya with a federal parliament. In 1926 he called for a “true Malayan spirit,” arguing that all residents should identify first as Malayans rather than by ethnicity, a stance that contrasted with rising Malay and Chinese nationalism. Although his message resonated with English-educated elites, it struggled to reach the Laukehs and Sinkehs, who viewed Malaya as a temporary workplace.

The push for inclusive citizenship in 1951, supported by figures like Onn Jaafar, aligned with Tan’s belief that granting Malayan citizenship would detach Chinese immigrants from Chinese politics. UTAR Press released the biography for RM130, donating proceeds to the Tun Tan Siew Sin Student Loan Fund at TARUMT.