1. QUICK FACTS
• NAME: Tunku Abdul Rahman Putra Al-Haj ibni Almarhum Sultan Abdul Hamid
Halim Shah
• OCCUPATION:Prime Minister
• BIRTH DATE:February 08, 1903
• DEATH DATE:December 06, 1990
• PLACE OF BIRTH: Alor Setar, Malaysia
• PLACE OF DEATH: Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
more about Tunku
BEST KNOWN FOR
Tunku Abdul Rahman was chief minister of the Federation of Malaya (1955–1957),
the first prime minister of an independent Malaya (1957–1963), and the prime
minister of Malaysia (1963–1970).
Synopsis
A Malayan governmental figure since graduating from college, Tunku Abdul Rahman
became his country’s first prime minister and foreign minister after it gained its
independence, continuing in that post when the federation of Malaysia was formed in
1963.
CONTENTS
• Synopsis
• Early Years
• Professional Life
• A Life In Politics
• Malayan Independence

2. Early Years
Tunku Abdul Rahman was born February 8, 1903, in Alor Setar, Kedah, in Malaya, a
country then under British control. He was the twentieth child of Sultan Abdul Hamid
Halim Shah and Che Manjalara, the sultan’s fourth wife. In 1913, he went to study at
Debsurin School in Bangkok, and in 1919, he was awarded a scholarship to further
his studies at Cambridge University. After a lengthy trip from Singapore aboard a
cargo ship, during which he contracted malaria, Tunku disembarked in the village of
Little Stukeley, England. He graduated from Cambridge in 1925 and returned in 1926
for an honors degree in law. He sat for the bar exam in 1930 but failed to complete a
section of the test and therefore did not pass on this first try.
Professional Life
In 1931, Tunku Abdul Rahman received an appointment as a cadet to the Kedah civil
service and was later an assistant district officer in Kulim. In 1933, he passed the
cadet's law exam on his first attempt, and finally, in 1939, he retook the English bar
exam he had failed nine years before and passed. In 1949, he was called to the bar
and was then named deputy public prosecutor in the Malayan Federal Legal
Department, a position he left in 1951 to embark upon a political career.
A Life In Politics
Abdul Rahman became president of the United Malays National Organization
(UMNO) and spearheaded the alliance between the UMNO and the Malayan
Chinese Association (1951) and that of the UMNO and the Malayan Indian Congress
(1955). His Alliance Party won a sweeping majority in the election of 1955, and
Abdul Rahman became the first chief minister of Malaya. In August, he used his first
broadcast as chief minister to declare his determination in seeking independence
from Britain without bloodshed.
Malayan Independence
In January 1956, Abdul Rahman led a mission to London to negotiate for Malayan
independence, in the end securing immediate self-government for Malaya and the
promise of independence by August 1957. That promise was kept, and Abdul
Rahman became independent Malaya’s first prime minister (a post he would retain
when the Federation of Malaysia, which consolidated the countries of Malaya,
Singapore, Sabah, and Sarawak under one umbrella, was formed in 1963). At
midnight on August 30, he stood at the flagpole in Merdeka Square, in Kuala
Lumpur, when the Union Jack was lowered for the last time and the new Federation
flag was raised.
In September 1970, with his power slipping and Singapore gone from the Federation
for five years, Abdul Rahman relinquished his post as prime minister. He died in
1990 at the age of 87.

3. Abdul Rahman Tunku Biography
Known as "the Tunku" in Malaysia, Tunku Abdul Rahman (1903-1990) was the first prime
minister of the Federation of Malaya, and later of Malaysia. He was considered the "father of
the nation."
For decades Malaysians have referred to their country's first prime minister, Tunku Abdul
Rahman, simply as "the Tunku." The title, literally meaning "my lord, " is shared by several
other Malay aristocrats; but it is a clear indication of his stature as "father of the nation" that
only Tunku Abdul Rahman is "the Tunku."
Tunku Abdul Rahman was 54 years old when, on August 31, 1957, he accepted from the
Queen's representative documents which formally granted independence and sovereignty to
the Federation of Malaya. His life up to that point had prepared him well for a position of
national leadership. His father was the Sultan Abdul Hamid Halim Shah, whose reign in Alor
Star, capital of the state of Kedah, spanned a period of 61 years.
Kedah is one of nine Malay states which Great Britain had controlled, along with the "Straits
of Settlements" of Singapore, Malacca, and Penang, since early in the 19th century. In
furtherance of their objective of developing tin mines and rubber plantations, the British
encouraged immigration of laborers from China and India while protecting the indigenous
Malay culture and institutions. This paternalistic policy made it possible for Tunku Abdul
Rahman to study at Cambridge for the better part of 12 years, beginning when he was 16
years old.
While in England the Tunku helped establish and became secretary of the Malay Society of
Great Britain. This experience, and his subsequent tenure with the Kedah state civil service,
foretold his participation in the slowly developing and moderate Malayan nationalist
movement. Upon returning in 1949 from another stay in England, during which he completed
his legal studies, Tunku Abdul Rahman became chairman of the Kedah Branch of the United
Malays National Organization (UMNO), the political party which served as the major vehicle
of anti-colonial sentiment. When the Tunku accepted the national presidency of the UMNO
in 1951 he became the leading exponent of Malayan nationalism.
Communal Tensions a Persistent Problem
Malaya's large Chinese and Indian populations were not assimilated into Malay culture, and
the uneasy relations among Malays, Chinese, and Indians have been a fundamental and
persistent societal problem. The Tunku is credited with devising the formula whereby
political organizations representing the Chinese and Indian communities joined with UMNO
to constitute the Alliance Party. The Alliance, or, as it came to be called after other parties
were invited to join it in the early 1970s, the National Front, was the government party after

4. independence. Its most one-sided electoral victory occurred in 1955 in the first federal
elections, when 51 of 52 elected representatives were Alliance candidates.
In the years leading up to independence the Tunku was involved in government efforts to
suppress a Communist insurgency known as "the emergency." The fact that the Malayan
Communist Party, which abandoned guerrilla tactics in the early 1960s, had a predominantly
Chinese membership aggravated interethnic tensions. In 1969 the simmering communal
conflict boiled over when, in the aftermath of parliamentary elections, bands of armed
Malays and Chinese attacked one another and generally caused considerable property damage
and some loss of life. It was the most severe crisis of the Tunku's tenure as prime minister,
and he described the anguish it caused him in his book May 13: Before and After. Although
neither he nor any other person could engineer racial harmony and prevent violence, Tunku
Abdul Rahman strove for conciliation. As one authoritative account put it, he was "liked and
respected by members of all communities and considered honest, fair, and tolerant."
Foreign Affairs a Major Activity
Once Malaya became independent the British sought to disengage from other colonial
territories in the region. By 1963 it had been determined that this would be achieved through
the concept of Malaysia, which by then was strongly supported by Tunku Abdul Rahman. In
September 1963 Malaya, Singapore, Sarawak, and Sabah were joined together in the new
nation-state of Malaysia. In that form it was short-lived, for the UMNO leadership felt that
Singapore's well-organized political elite was excessively ambitious. In August 1965 the
Tunku informed first Lee Kuan Yew, prime minister of Singapore, and then the Malaysian
Parliament that Singapore was being separated from Malaysia and would become an
independent nation-state.
Neither the separation of Singapore nor the bitterly anti-Malaysia position adopted by
Indonesia's President Sukarno prevented Tunku Abdul Rahman from pursuing a policy of
regional cooperation. Having participated in the establishment of the Association of
Southeast Asia in 1961, the Tunku supported the expansion of the association in 1967 to
include Singapore and Indonesia. The organization thus formed, the Association of Southeast
Asian Nations, joined those two countries with Malaysia, Thailand, the Philippines, and,
later, Brunei in a vigorous and durable regional grouping. In addition, the Tunku's
commitment to constructive participation in the British Commonwealth as well as his active
interest in international Islamic affairs established the basic parameters of Malaysian foreign
policy.
In 1970 Tunku Abdul Rahman relinquished the leadership of UMNO, and with it the position
of prime minister, to his close associate, Tun Abdul Razak. After his retirement the Tunku's
ability to enjoy certain of his favorite forms of recreation, such as golf and travel, was
impaired by physical problems, but he took conspicuous pleasure in time spent with his
family. As the "grand old man" of Malaysian public affairs, he also made occasional public
appearances, such as his speech dedicating the new Malaysian Chinese Association
headquarters building in early 1983. He also wrote a weekly newspaper column under the
title "As I See It" and thus continued to add to his enormous influence on political and social
life in Malaysia.

5. Tunku, who led Malaysia in winning independence from Britain in 1957 and served 13 years
as its first prime minister, died Dec. 6, 1990. He was 87.
Further Reading on Abdul Rahman Tunku
Two biographical accounts provide information on the Tunku's early life and political career.
They are Harry Miller, Prince and Premier (1959), and Willard Hanna, Eight Nation Makers:
Southeast Asia's Charismatic Statesmen (1964). Studies which describe the Malaysian
political scene more generally include Gordon Means, Malaysian Politics (1970), and R. S.
Milne and Diane Mauzy, Malaysia: Tradition, Modernity, and Islam (1985). Pending a
compilation of the Tunku's Star newspaper columns, the best glimpse of the Tunku's personal
style and predispositions is provided by his book May 13-Before and After (1969). His
obituary ran in several newspapers including the Los Angeles Times.
Encyclopedia of World Biography. Copyright 2010 The Gale Group, Inc. All rights
reserved.
Tunku Abdul Rahman
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In Brief
page
PMs of Malaysia - Tunku Abdul Rahman
"Right from the moment when I became Prime Minister, my
aim, my thinking, my planning and as a matter of fact my
whole heart was set on building up a prosperous and happy
Malayan society."
Tunku Abdul Rahman
TUNKU ABDUL RAHMAN PUTRA AL-HAJ
(1957-1970)
Remembered as the "Father of Independence", Malaysia’s first Prime
Minister, Tunku Abdul Rahman, had recognised the vital importance of
fostering cooperation among Malaysia’s various ethnic groups as a way to
overcome political problems. It was also Tunku who envisioned the idea of
Malaysia - a federation of Malaya, Singapore (which later seceded in

6. 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.
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. He
resumed his studies eight years later and came home with his legal
qualifications 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. 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.
Under his leadership, the Alliance won the country's
first general election in July 1955. Tunku was then
appointed the country's Chief Minister and Minister

7. 1965), Sabah and Sarawak which was established in 1963. Tunku is also
recognised for his elevation of Islam to the status of official religion and he
was instrumental in the setting up of the Organisation of Islamic
Conference in 1969, of which he was the first Secretary-General. Perhaps
Tunku Abdul Rahman’s greatest single achievement was in giving
Malaysians a sense of pride and nationhood.
Tunku Abdul Rahman
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Full Biography
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PMs of Malaysia - Tunku Abdul Rahman
TUNKU ABDUL RAHMAN PUTRA AL-HAJ
(1957-1970)
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 fourth 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 firsthand 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 state, free from British colonialism.

8. Tunku, who led Malaysia in winning independence from Britain in 1957 and served 13 years
as its first prime minister, died Dec. 6, 1990. He was 87.
Further Reading on Abdul Rahman Tunku
Two biographical accounts provide information on the Tunku's early life and political career.
They are Harry Miller, Prince and Premier (1959), and Willard Hanna, Eight Nation Makers:
Southeast Asia's Charismatic Statesmen (1964). Studies which describe the Malaysian
political scene more generally include Gordon Means, Malaysian Politics (1970), and R. S.
Milne and Diane Mauzy, Malaysia: Tradition, Modernity, and Islam (1985). Pending a
compilation of the Tunku's Star newspaper columns, the best glimpse of the Tunku's personal
style and predispositions is provided by his book May 13-Before and After (1969). His
obituary ran in several newspapers including the Los Angeles Times.
Encyclopedia of World Biography. Copyright 2010 The Gale Group, Inc. All rights
reserved.
Tunku Abdul Rahman
Email this
In Brief
page
PMs of Malaysia - Tunku Abdul Rahman
"Right from the moment when I became Prime Minister, my
aim, my thinking, my planning and as a matter of fact my
whole heart was set on building up a prosperous and happy
Malayan society."
Tunku Abdul Rahman
TUNKU ABDUL RAHMAN PUTRA AL-HAJ
(1957-1970)
Remembered as the "Father of Independence", Malaysia’s first Prime
Minister, Tunku Abdul Rahman, had recognised the vital importance of
fostering cooperation among Malaysia’s various ethnic groups as a way to
overcome political problems. It was also Tunku who envisioned the idea of
Malaysia - a federation of Malaya, Singapore (which later seceded in