The Withdrawal of The Amnesty Offer
Following the talks, the Tunku decided to withdraw the offer of an amnesty on 8 February 1956, five months after if had been offered. He stated that he would be unwilling to meet the Communists again unless they indicated before hand their desire to see him with a view to making "a complete surrender". He said that the Communists had made it clear to him that their ideology and that of himself and his party could not exist side by side. Therefore, the war must be intensified until one or the other gave in. "I have every confidence that the people of Malaya will give their fullest support and co-operation to the action I have taken."
Despite the failure of the Baling talk, the MCP made further efforts to resume peace talks with the Malayan Government but to no avail. A few weeks after the Baling talks, Tan Siew Sin received a letter from Chen Tien, requesting a resumption of peace talks and the repeal of the emergency regulations. The request was immediately rejected by the Chief Minister and instead, discussions began in the new Emergency Operations Council to intensify the "People's War" against the guerrillas. In July 1957, a few weeks before independence, the MCP made a further request for peace talks to take place. The MCP suggested the following conditions for a negotiated peace; its members would be given privileges enjoyed by ordinary citizens and there would be a guarantee that political as well as armed members of the MCP would not be punished. The Tunku, however, did not respond to the MCP's proposal.
On 31 August 1957 Malaya achieved her Independence with Tunku Abdul Rahman as the Prime Minister. With the achievement of independence, there was a marked increase in the MCPs peace proposals and in November 1957, after a direct proposal from Chin Peng, Tunku Abdul Rahman agreed to a preliminary meeting. The border town of Kroh was chosen as a site for possible talks. However, Chin Peng, did not accept the principle of surrender and as a result, the talks failed to take place. After that, the MCP strength began to decline. The Malayan Government increased its military activities to suppress the MCP and by 1960 they were forced to retire over the border because of their dwindling strength. Finally, on 31 July 1960, the Malayan Government declared the ending of the twelve-year emergency. There continued to be minor incidents, but the communists were no longer a threat. They had lost their reason for insurrection as Malaya had achieved independence.
Read more about this topic: Baling Talks
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