British Malaya with strong opposition from the local Malays. The opposition revolved around two issues: loose citizenship requirements and reduction in the Malay rulers' power. Due to the pressure exerted, the Union was replaced with the Federation of Malaya on 31 January 1948. The Federation achieved independence on 31 August 1957. All Malayan states later formed a larger federation called Malaysia on 16 September 1963 together with Singapore, Sarawak and North Borneo. Singapore was expelled from the federation on 9 August 1965. British Malaya The term "British Malaya" () loosely describes a set of states on the Malay Peninsula and the island
Communist insurgency in Malaysia (1968–89) the Malaysian state of Sarawak in the island of Borneo, which had been incorporated into the Federation of Malaysia on 16 September 1963. During the first Malayan Emergency (1948–1960), the MCP launched an unsuccessful insurrection against the Federation of Malaya. The independence of the Federation of Malaya on 31 August 1957 removed the major cause for the communists as the Federation had gained full autonomy from the United Kingdom. The first Malayan Emergency ended on 31 July 1960. Between 1960 and 1968, the MCP underwent a period of streamlining, retraining, and re-indoctrination of the communist ideology. The Malayan Races Liberation