Rebellion in Brunei by Harun Majid

Remember, remember... The 8th of December by Prince Mohamed Bolkiah

Rebellion in Brunei, its full title continues with 'The 1962 Revolt, Imperialism, Confrontation and Oil', is an academic study by the renowned Bruneian historian Harun Majid. It's filled with an analysis of events leading up to the rebellion, the rebellion itself, and events which follow. It puts the whole story in context of the political and economic situation of the time, focusing on the range of influences surrounding the then Sultan and his people. Interesting personal accounts of people and certainly of the author himself are also included, such as the incident of the RTB worker who was accidentally shot dead by a military personnel for being out during the emergency curfew. Another was of the British family who were held captive in their own house by the insurgents who were apparently very friendly, almost like guests even!

I was quite surprised to read about how the revolt was practically over before it took place. I've always assumed there was a chance it could have succeeded, but this appears not to be the case. Majid talks about the lack of preparation (and confidence for that matter) of the perpetraitors, the lack of leadership on the parts of the Party leaders (who conveniently were out of the country), the internal weakness of the military wing of the Party itself and a host of other problems. Overall the book was not only enjoyable in the sense that it tells us about things we don't know at the time, it also dismisses many wrong assumptions we might had have about the people involved in the rebellion.

On the other hand, similar themes and issues about the 1962 rebellion are tackled in the second book, albeit in a different fashion. Prince Mohamed Bolkiah's Remember, Remember...the 8th of December is as well a useful account of the rebellion through the Prince's perspective. The approach of Remember, Remember is journalistic, resembling a written documentary, with lots of pictures and excerpts which would appeal to a wider audience. We get a glimpse of his own thoughts and views at the time alongside the historical narrative, and he certainly dicusses a wide range of controversies surrounding the rebellion on 8th December 1962.

As I mentiond earlier, both books cover similar themes regarding the rebellion, including inevitable failure, cause and consequence, change and continuity and others. Prince Mohamed places strong emphasis on the dangers of fierce ideology such as the nationalistic feeling the Bruneians had during the 60's, and certainly around the region as well. He ends his book on a positive note and encourages further co-operation to take place within the South East Asian region to ensure peace and stability amongst the ASEAN communities.

I remember of a further 2 books which talk about the rebellion, titles both of which escape me now, written in Malay. The 1962 rebellion, uprising, revolt, conflict or whatever you may call it was certainly a curious incident. It's a tale of political struggle, ideology, incompetence and mistakes which surrounds all the actors, Bruneian and Non-Bruneian alike. These two books provide useful details that anyone interested in history should look at.