MALAYA: Ruining the Rough

Just beyond the fairways of the Selangor Golf Club in terrorist-troubled Kuala Lumpur lie some of the best-protected residences in Malaya, including the mansion of the Chief Minister of Selangor state and the town palaces of several reigning Sultans.

Last week a foursome at Selangor’s ninth hole was surprised to see a squad of riflemen in the brush beside the fairway, muttered something about their ruining the rough. As the golfers prepared to tee off, there was a burst of rifle fire. The soldiers had come upon a long-sought hideout of the Ampang gang, a Communist military unit which once spread terror and death through Kuala Lumpur. In a brief fight three terrorists were killed. “It’s shockin’,” said a bald-headed British major. “I might have sliced one into the beggars’ camp.”