State of Singapore (Malaysia) in the context of "Communism"

Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, is an island country and city-state in Southeast Asia. Its territory comprises one main island, 63 satellite islands and islets, and one outlying islet. The country is about one degree of latitude (137 kilometres or 85 miles) north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, bordering the Strait of Malacca to the west, the Singapore Strait to the south along with the Riau Islands in Indonesia, the South China Sea to the east and the Straits of Johor along with the State of Johor in Malaysia to the north.

In its early history, Singapore was a maritime emporium known as Temasek; subsequently, it was a major constituent of several successive thalassocratic empires. Its contemporary era began in 1819, when Stamford Raffles established Singapore as an entrepôt trading post of the British Empire. In 1867, Singapore came under direct British control as part of the Straits Settlements. During World War II, Singapore was occupied by Japan in 1942 and returned to Britain as a Crown colony following Japan's surrender in 1945. Singapore gained self-governance in 1959 and in 1963 became part of the new federation of Malaysia, alongside Malaya, North Borneo and Sarawak. Ideological differences led to Singapore's expulsion from the federation two years later; it became an independent sovereign country in 1965. After early years of turbulence and despite lacking natural resources and a hinterland, the nation rapidly developed to become one of the Four Asian Tigers.

The 1964 race riots in Singapore were a series of communal disturbances and racial conflicts between the Malay and Chinese communities in Singapore. They occurred just months after Singapore's merger with Malaysia on 16 September 1963 and were regarded as the most serious and prolonged racial violence in the nation's post-war history. Although 1964 was marked by general racial tension, the term specifically refers to two major outbreaks on 21 July and 2 September, particularly the former, which was more severe and resulted in 23 deaths and 454 injuries.

The riots had significant political consequences and raised concerns about Malaysia's racial stability following Singapore's inclusion. Around this period, secret negotiations were initiated between the Malaysian federal government and the Singaporean state government on the possibility of separation. The events were later regarded as pivotal in leading to the independence of Singapore in 1965, shaping its national policies of multiracialism and multiculturalism. It also provided continued justification for laws such as the Internal Security Act (ISA) to monitor and curb potential incitement of racial or religious hostility.