Singapore in Malaysia in the context of "1962 Singaporean integration referendum"

Malaysia is a country in Southeast Asia. A federal constitutional monarchy, it consists of 13 states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two regions: Peninsular Malaysia on the Indochinese Peninsula and East Malaysia on the island of Borneo. Peninsular Malaysia shares land and maritime borders with Thailand, as well as maritime borders with Singapore, Vietnam, and Indonesia; East Malaysia shares land borders with Brunei and Indonesia, and maritime borders with the Philippines and Vietnam. Kuala Lumpur is the country's national capital, largest city, and the seat of the legislative branch of the federal government, while Putrajaya is the federal administrative capital, representing the seat of both the executive branch (the Cabinet, federal ministries, and federal agencies) and the judicial branch of the federal government. With a population of over 34 million, it is the world's 42nd-most populous country.

The country has its origins in the Malay kingdoms, which, from the 18th century on, became subject to the British Empire, along with the British Straits Settlements protectorate. During World War II, British Malaya, along with other nearby British and American colonies, was occupied by the Empire of Japan. Following three years of occupation, Peninsular Malaysia was briefly unified as the Malayan Union in 1946 until 1948 when it was restructured as the Federation of Malaya. The country achieved independence on 31 August 1957. On 16 September 1963, independent Malaya united with the then British crown colonies of North Borneo, Sarawak, and Singapore to become Malaysia. In August 1965, Singapore was expelled from the federation and became a separate, independent country.

Malaya, officially the Federation of Malaya, was a country in Southeast Asia from 1948 to 1963. It succeeded the Malayan Union and, before that, British Malaya. It comprised eleven states – nine Malay states and two of the Straits Settlements, Penang and Malacca. It was established on 1 February 1948.

Initially a self-governing colony of the United Kingdom, Malaya became fully sovereign on 31 August 1957, and on 16 September 1963, Malaya was superseded by Malaysia when it united with Singapore, North Borneo (Sabah) and Sarawak. Singapore was expelled on 9 August 1965, leaving the original states of Malaya along with Sarawak and Sabah – now collectively known as East Malaysia – to form modern-day Malaysia, while the former Federation of Malaya is now referred to as Peninsular Malaysia or West Malaysia.

Malaysia Day (Malay: Hari Malaysia) is a public holiday observed nationwide on 16 September each year since 2010. It marks the anniversary of the signing of the Malaysia Agreement, which came into effect on that date in 1963 and led to the creation of Malaysia. The agreement brought together the Malaya (independent since 1957), North Borneo (later renamed Sabah), Sarawak and Singapore into a single federation. Singapore was later expelled from the federation on 9 August 1965, and Malaysia Day is no longer observed there.

In East Malaysia, many regard Malaysia Day as the country's true "national day", arguing that 31 August commemorates the independence of Malaya, which was a separate political entity to Malaysia.

The history of the modern state of Singapore dates back to its founding in the early 19th century; however, evidence suggests that a significant trading settlement existed on the island in the 14th century. The last ruler of the Kingdom of Singapura, Parameswara, was expelled by the Majapahit or the Siamese before he founded Malacca. Singapore then came under the Malacca Sultanate and subsequently the Johor Sultanate. In 1819, British statesman Stamford Raffles negotiated a treaty whereby Johor would allow the British to locate a trading port on the island, ultimately leading to the establishment of the Crown colony of Singapore in 1867. Important reasons for the rise of Singapore were its nodal position at the tip of the Malay Peninsula flanked by the Pacific and Indian Oceans, the presence of a natural sheltered harbour, as well as its status as a free port.

During World War II, Singapore was invaded and occupied by the Japanese Empire from 1942 to 1945. When the Japanese surrendered, Singapore reverted to British control, with increasing levels of self-government being granted, resulting in Singapore's merger with the Federation of Malaya to form Malaysia in 1963. However, social unrest, racial tensions, and political differences between Singapore's governing People's Action Party (PAP) and Malaysia's Alliance Party resulted in Singapore's expulsion from Malaysia. Singapore became an independent republic on 9 August 1965.

The Independence of Singapore Agreement 1965 was a pivotal agreement concluded between the governments of Malaysia and Singapore on 7 August 1965. It provided the legal and constitutional framework for Singapore's formal secession from Malaysia, wherein it ceased to be a constituent state and assumed the status of an independent and sovereign nation. The terms of the agreement encompassed a Proclamation to be issued by Malaysian Prime Minister Tunku Abdul Rahman, while a separate Proclamation of Singapore was delivered by Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew.

Pursuant to this accord, Singapore was irrevocably and unambiguously separated from Malaysia with effect from 9 August 1965, thereby rendering the Malaysia Agreement inapplicable in so far as it pertained to Singapore. Subsequently, Singapore acceded to membership in the United Nations on 20 September 1965, following a unanimous resolution of the General Assembly. The Singapore Act 1966, enacted by the Parliament of the United Kingdom a year later, gave statutory recognition to the agreement and admitted Singapore into the Commonwealth of Nations with retrospective effect from the date of independence.

The People's Action Party (PAP) is a major conservative political party in Singapore and is the governing contemporary political party represented in the 15th Parliament, followed by the opposition Workers' Party (WP).

The PAP was established in 1954 as a conventional centre-left party. Following its initial electoral success in 1959, Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew sought to reposition the party ideologically toward the centre. In pursuit of this objective, he expelled the party's leftist faction in 1961, during the period of Singapore's merger with Malaysia. Over the course of the 1960s and since then, the PAP continued its ideological shift towards the centre-right. After Singapore's separation from Malaysia and subsequent independence in 1965, the majority of opposition parties, excluding the WP, boycotted the 1968 general election. Consequently, the PAP secured all parliamentary seats in that election. In the ensuing decades, the PAP consolidated its political dominance through successive electoral victories. It consistently formed the executive branch of government and exerted substantial influence over key national institutions, including the country's sole trade union, the National Trade Union Congress (NTUC), which is affiliated with the party, as well as the civil service.

Lee Kuan Yew GCMG CH SPMJ DK (born Harry Lee Kuan Yew; 16 September 1923 – 23 March 2015), often referred to by his initials LKY, was a Singaporean statesman and barrister who was the first prime minister of Singapore from 1959 to 1990. A founding father of the modern Singaporean state, his political leadership transformed post-independence Singapore into a highly developed country and one of the four Asian Tigers.

Born in Singapore during British colonial rule to a family of Chinese descent, Lee studied law in England at Cambridge University and was called to the bar at the Middle Temple in 1950. Shortly after, he returned to Singapore and practised law, founding the law firm Lee & Lee. In 1954, Lee co-founded the People's Action Party (PAP), which won significant support among the working class and trade unions in the lead up to the 1955 general election, securing him a seat in the Tanjong Pagar division and making him the de facto leader of the opposition. In 1959, Lee led the PAP to its first electoral victory, becoming Singapore's first prime minister. Seeking sovereignty from the British Empire, Lee led Singapore to a merger with Malaya along with Sarawak and Sabah, forming Malaysia in 1963. Racial strife and ideological differences later led to Singapore's expulsion from Malaysia and consequent independence in 1965.

The Federal Constitution of Malaysia (Malay: Perlembagaan Persekutuan Malaysia), which came into force in 1957 as the Constitution of the Federation of Malaya and was amended in 1963 to form the Constitution of Malaysia, is the supreme law of Malaysia and contains a total of 183 articles. It is a written legal document influenced by two previous documents, the Federation of Malaya Agreement 1948 and the Independence Constitution of 1957. The Federation was initially called the Federation of Malaya (Malay: Persekutuan Tanah Melayu) and it adopted its present name, Malaysia, when the states of Sabah, Sarawak and Singapore (now independent) became part of the Federation. The Constitution establishes the Federation as a constitutional monarchy, having the Yang di-Pertuan Agong as the Head of State with largely ceremonial roles. It provides for the establishment and organisation of three main branches of the government: the bicameral legislative branch called the Parliament, which consists of the House of Representatives (Dewan Rakyat) and the Senate (Dewan Negara); the executive branch led by the Prime Minister and his Cabinet Ministers and the judicial branch headed by the Federal Court.