Malaya: Precarious Peace

Lush rubber plantations and rich rice fields stretch mile after placid mile across rural Malaya. In the bustling cities, where a new school or factory opens almost daily, the economy booms along quietly. Last week, as the Federation of Malaya celebrated the fourth anniversary of independence, the tranquillity was briefly broken by countrywide lantern processions, garden parties and a parade of 24,000 schoolchildren at Kuala Lumpur's cavernous Merdeka (Independence) Stadium. Said Malaya's pragmatic Prime Minister Tengku Abdul Rahman, 58: "We can look back on these past four years of freedom with...

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