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PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE

Reference —

111111C.0.882/12

PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE, LONDON

ALLY WITHOUT PERMISSION OF THE BF REPRODUCED PHOTOGRAPHIC-|

COPYRIGHT PHOTOGRAPH-NOT TO

0.92300/32 [No. 33].

56

No. 24.

FEDERATED MALAY STATES.

THE HIGH COMMISSIONER to THE SECRETARY OF STATE.

(No: 107.) SIR,

(Received 28th March. 1932.)

Government House, Singapore, 29th February, 1932. In compliance with your wish to be consulted before each step is taken to implement the decentralization policy in the Federated Malay States, I submit herewith for your consideration the drafts of 11 federal Enactments, prepared by the Legal Adviser and scheduled in the attached list. I shall be glad to be informed by telegram whether you approve of the introduction of these draft Enactments into Federal Council. I have no reason to expect that objection will be taken locally to any of them.

I have, &c.,

C. CLEMENTI,

Enclosure in No. 24.

SCHEDULE OF DRAFT ENACTMENTS.

High Commissioner

1.

The Registration of Schools (Amendment) Enactment, 1932.

2.

The Agricultural Pests Enactment, 1932.

3. The Mental Disorders (Amendment) Enactment, 1932.

4. The Midwives (Amendment) Enactment, 1932.

5.

The Vaccination (Amendment) Enactment, 1932.

6

The Quarantine (Amendment) Enactment, 1932.

7. The Registration of Dentists (Amendment) Enactment, 1932.

The Vagrants and Decrepit Persons (Amendment) Enactment, 1932

The Labour Code (Amendment) Enactment, 1932.

8.

9.

10

The Sale of Food and Drugs Enactment, 1932.

11

The Forest Enactment, 1932.

C. 92300/32 [No. 32].

SIR,

No. 25.

FEDERATED MALAY STATES.

THE HIGH COMMISSIONER to THE SECRETARY OF STATE.

(Received 4th April, 1932.)

(Secret.)

Government House, Singapore, 7th March, 1932.

In your cypher telegram No. 38 of the 4th March, 1932,† you state that Sir L. Guillemard in his day made certain proposals for decentralization which were considered in detail on their merits and so far as approved were carried out, but that my proposals for further measures of decentralization mark a new departure in regard to which no authority has been given to me other than that contained in Lord Passfield's Confi- dential despatch of 5th June, 1931. With great respect I submit that this statement needs modification.

2. The most important of my proposals, and the one which is vital to the whole policy of decentralization, is the eventual abolition of the post of the Chief Secretary to Government, Federated Malay States. But this proposal is in no sense a new departure. On the 22nd March, 1925, at a conference with the four Rulers and the four Residents of the Federated Malay States, Sir L. Guillemard, speaking with the authority of the Secretary of State for the Colonies, said: "I feel that you will agree with me that the portion of the Treaty of Federation which must be eventually repealed is the portion which gets up between Your Highnesses' Residents and the High Com- missioner an intermediary who has wide executive powers and is the Residents' senior I am further authorized to say that, if I have correctly expressed Your Highnesses' wishes, the Secretary of State is prepared to endorse them." The four

officer.

57

my Secret

Rulers and the four Residents all concurred. (See paragraphs 23-24 of despatch, dated 18th February, 1932.*) Subsequently, after visiting England and conferring in person with the then Secretary of State, Sir L. Guillemard spoke on the 14th December, 1925, in an address to Federal Council as follows: "I am convinced that the only effective decentralization in the Federated Malay States and the only cure for the dissatisfaction of their Rulers lie in such gradual devolution of the Chief Secre- tary's powers to State Councils, Residents and, if necessary, to Federal Heads of Departments as will in effect amount to abolition of the office of Chief Secretary as at present constituted.” (See paragraph 25 of my Secret despatch, dated 18th February, 1932.) It is clear, therefore, that so long ago as in 1925 hopes were held out to the Rulers by the High Commissioner, acting with the authority of the Secretary of State, that the post of Chief Secretary to Government, Federated Malay States, would even- tually be abolished. But this proposal, although approved and publicly announced, was not then carried out. Lord Passfield, however, during my visit to England last year decided not to extend Mr. Cochrane's term of office as Chief Secretary to Government and not to fill the vacancy substantively, but to make acting arrangements for discharge of the duties of the post, in order to facilitate its eventual abolition. Accordingly, as I informed Lord Passfield in a letter, dated the 20th August, 1931,† I invited Mr. Caldecott to meet me at Government House, Singapore, and discussed the whole decen- tralization policy fully and freely with him. I found him to be in complete sympathy with it, and I thereupon offered him the appointment of acting Chief Secretary upon the understanding that he would, in that capacity, take all the steps necessary for the eventual abolition of his office. He accepted my offer and entered upon his duties with the knowledge that the post in which he now acts will disappear when the decentraliza- tion policy comes into full effect.

in

3. The second in importance of my proposals is the strengthening of State Councils; but this also is no new departure. So long ago as the 20th June, 1922, Sir George (then Mr.) Maxwell, speaking as Chief Secretary in the Federal Council, said that decentralization was "a thing much to be desired, and especially much to be desired respect of greater powers being given to the State Councils." (See paragraph 14 of my Secret despatch, dated 18th February, 1932.*) In an address to Federal Council on the 23rd January, 1923, Sir L. Guillemard said: "It will, I hope, be possible to arrange that the estimates for next year relating to certain services, the District Offices and the Sanitary Boards, for instance, shall be passed by the State Councils. In several other ways it should be possible to lay upon the State Councils the burden and respon- sibility of work which is now performed by the Federal Government. With this increase in the function and powers of the State Councils, it is for Their Highnesses the Rulers, who have full power in this matter, to consider whether it may be desirable to increase the membership of the State Councils.' dated 18th February, 1932.) The Sultan of Perak, when he visited the Colonial Office (See paragraph 16 of my Secret despatch, on the 7th August, 1924, was promised sympathetic consideration of his proposal in the matter of the legislative authority of the Perak State Council." 19-20 of my Secret despatch, dated 18th February, 1932.) Speaking to the four Rulers (See paragraphs and the four Residents at the conference of the 22nd March, 1925, to which I have referred, Sir L. Guillemard said that under the decentralization policy the bulk of the duties of the Chief Secretary will be performed by the Ruler in his State Council or

E

by the Resident." (See paragraph 23 of my Secret despatch, dated 18th February, 1932.) Again, in his address to Federal Council on the 14th December, 1925, he said: "To the policy of devolution to the Rulers, State Councils, and Residents the Govern- ment is already committed "; and he added: "I think it may prove desirable that one of the qualifications for membership of Federal Council should be a seat on one of the State Councils.” The reform of State Councils was not carried out in Sir L. Guillemard's time; but it has now been undertaken by Their Highnesses the Rulers. I have reported fully on the reconstitution of State Councils in my despatch Confidential (2) of the 17th December. 1931, and I would refer also to the 8th paragraph of my Confidential despatch of the 8th February, 1932. A further despatch on this subject is now being prepared.

4. The only other direction in which steps have already been taken to implement the decentralization policy is in the reorganization of certain departments on a Malayan basis. Even this is in principle no new departure. There are already a number of joint Straits Settlements and Federated Malay States departments, e.g., labour, education, agriculture, co-operation, forestry, statistics. To these have now been added the

* No. 23.

+ C. 82395/31 [No. 12]; not printed.

+ No. 36.

§ No. 20.

488

* Not reprinted.

+ No. 19.

‡ No. 5.