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The First Federal Elections - Security Of The Ballot Boxes - Part 1
The first Federal elections in Malaya were held in July 1955 to determine the new rulers of the Federation of Malaya after Merdeka (Independence). This was a milestone in the history of the country which led to the people becoming independent from the British on 31 August 1957. Of course the responsibility for the safety of the ballot boxes was given to the Malayan Police Force – a difficult task at the time as with many isolated villages with limited access and not forgetting that apart from natural hazards, the Communist Terrorists were still active, particularly in the Northern States.
The photographs shown here and on Part 2 of this entry, taken by Police Lieutenant Tom Turnbull, show just how difficult this task was:
The Police escort party from Batu Gajah first travelled to Kampong Gajah where they were divided into three sections: a section in each of two boats and one in a Land Rover. On the left is a picture of the Police Escort assigned to deliver and collect the ballot boxes to Pasir Salak and Kampong Gajah, by boat, along the Sungai (River) Perak.
While there were difficulties for those who traveled by boat (see Part 2), the road was not the best either and the Land Rover crews were lucky to get the vehicles through. The picture on the right shows one incident - the damage the Police Land Rover left behind it at Kampong Gajah. The vehicle was lucky to cross the bridge with its ballot boxes intact and would not have done so without a mighty effort from the villagers.
To see The First Federal Elections - Security of the Ballot Boxes - Part 2, click here
To read more about Tom Turnbull, click here.