13 May incident
The 13 May incident was a period of violent racial conflict that erupted in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, on 13 May 1969, following that year's general election. The clashes primarily involved the Malay and Chinese communities and were caused by political and ethnic tensions after opposition parties such as the Democratic Action Party and Gerakan made substantial electoral gains in the election, challenging the ruling Alliance Party's dominance.
In response, the king, on the government's advice, declared a state of emergency, suspended parliament, and entrusted civilian administration to the National Operations Council under Deputy Prime Minister Tun Abdul Razak. While official sources cited 196 fatalities, other sources suggest the toll was much higher—from nearly 600 to over a thousand. Thousands were injured or displaced, and curfews were enforced to restore order.
The event was significant in Malaysian politics, as it forced the first prime minister, Tunku Abdul Rahman, to step down from office and hand power to Abdul Razak Hussein. It was also a pivotal moment that reshaped Malaysia's socioeconomic policies, as Abdul Razak's government shifted their domestic policies to favour Malays with the implementation of the New Economic Policy, and the United Malays National Organisation restructured the political system to advance Malay dominance through affirmative action in accordance with the ideology of Ketuanan Melayu.
The incident has remained a sensitive and, at times, taboo topic in Malaysian society, with open discussion often avoided by prevailing political sensitivities. Ethnic relations between the Malay and Chinese communities have stabilised since the incident but remain fragile, occasionally strained by political rhetoric and socioeconomic disparities.
Precursors
Ethnic divide
On 31 August 1957, Malaya gained its independence from colonial rule. The country, however, suffered from a sharp division of wealth between the Chinese, who dominated most urban areas and were perceived to be in control of a large portion of the nation's economy, and the Malays, who were generally poorer and lived in more rural areas. The special privileged position of Malay political power, however, is guaranteed under Article 153 of the constitution, written during Malayan independence.There were heated debates between Malay groups wanting radical measures to institutionalise Malay supremacy, while Chinese groups called for their "racial" interest to be protected, and non-Malay opposition party members arguing for a 'Malaysian Malaysia" rather than Malay privilege. In 1963, amid a background of racial tension, Malaysia was formed as a federation that incorporated Malaya, Singapore, North Borneo, and Sarawak.
There had been several incidents of racial conflict between Malays and Chinese before the 1969 riots. For example, in Penang, hostility between the races turned into violence during the centenary celebration of George Town in 1957, which resulted in several days of fighting and several deaths, and there were further disturbances in 1959 and 1964 as well as a riot in 1967, which originated as a protest against currency devaluation but turned into racial killings. In Singapore, antagonism between the races led to the 1964 race riots, which contributed to the separation of Singapore from Malaysia on 9 August 1965.
1969 national election
In the 1969 general election, the governing coalition of the Alliance Party faced a strong challenge from opposition parties, in particular the two newly formed and mainly Chinese parties, the Democratic Action Party and Parti Gerakan. The election was preceded by outbreaks of racial incidents that contributed to a tense atmosphere. A Malay political worker was killed by a Chinese gang in Penang, while a Chinese Labour Party activist was shot and killed in a clash with police in Kuala Lumpur. Radical opponents called for a boycott of the election and threatened violence, but the funeral procession of the shot activist, which drew large crowds of more than ten thousand and was held before election day, passed largely peacefully despite a number of disruptive incidents.The general election was held on 10 May 1969, without any incidents. The result showed that the Alliance had won less than half of the popular vote, a large setback for the ruling coalition. On the national level, the Alliance had gained a majority of seats in parliament, albeit a significantly reduced one. The number of seats won by the Chinese component of the Alliance, the Malaysian Chinese Association, had been reduced by half. On the state level, the Alliance had only gained the majority in Selangor by co-operating with the sole independent candidate as the opposition had tied with the Alliance for control of the Selangor state legislature. The Alliance lost control of Kelantan and Perak, and the opposition Gerakan won control of the state government in Penang.
Post-election celebrations
On the nights of 11 and 12 May, the DAP and Gerakan celebrated their success in the election, with permission being sought by Tan Chee Khoon from the police. In particular, a large Gerakan procession welcomed the Gerakan leader, V. David. Opposition parades passed through Malay communities such as Kampung Baru and were alleged to be highly provocative, with non-Malays taunting Malays while bearing slogans such as "Semua Melayu kasi habis" and "Kuala Lumpur sekarang Cina punya". Some opposition supporters were said to have driven past the residence of the Selangor chief minister and demanded that he abandon the house in favour of a Chinese person.Celebrations by opposition parties were seen as an attack on Malay political power. Although the election results still favoured the Malays despite losses, the Malay newspaper Utusan Melayu suggested in an editorial that the results had jeopardised the future of Malay rule and that prompt action was required to shore it up. On 12 May, members of UMNO Youth indicated to Selangor's Menteri Besar, Harun Idris, that they wanted to hold a victory parade. UMNO then announced a procession that would start from Idris's residence. Tunku Abdul Rahman would later call the retaliatory parade "inevitable, as otherwise the party members would be demoralised after the show of strength by the Opposition and the insults that had been thrown at them". Malays were brought from the rural areas into Kuala Lumpur, which was then a predominantly Chinese city. Thousands of Malays, some of them armed, arrived to join the parade.
Rioting
Early events
The UMNO procession was planned for 7:30 pm on 13 May. That morning, Malays began to gather at the residence of Harun Idris on Jalan Raja Muda, on the edge of Kampung Baru, although some were already there as early as Sunday evening. They came from various parts of the state, such as Morib and Banting, and some were said to have came from parts of Perak. According to the National Operations Council's official report, at around 6:30 pm, fistfights broke out in Setapak between a group of Malays from Gombak travelling to the rally and Chinese bystanders who taunted them, and this escalated into bottle- and stone-throwing. News of the fighting then reached the gathering crowd in Jalan Raja Muda, and shortly before 6:30 pm, many Malays broke off from the rallying point at Idris's house and headed through adjoining Chinese sections. The Malays, armed with parangs and kris, burned cars and shops, killed, and looted in the Chinese areas. According to Time, at least eight Chinese people were killed in the initial attack. Once violence broke out, it spread rapidly and uncontrollably throughout the city within 45 minutes, to Jalan Campbell, Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman, Kampung Datuk Keramat, Kampung Pandan, Cheras, and Kampung Kerinchi.Retaliations and armed response
According to John Slimming, who wrote an account of the riot in 1969, the Chinese were taken by surprise and did not retaliate for more than an hour. The NOC's official report, however, suggested that Chinese secret society elements had prepared for trouble and were in action when the violence started in Kampung Baru. On Batu Road, Chinese and Indian shopkeepers began to form themselves into an improvised defence force, while a Malay mob attempting to storm the Chow Kit Road area was met with armed secret society gang members and ran. The Chinese attacked Malays who were found in Chinese areas, and Malay patrons in cinemas were singled out and killed. The Chinese also attempted to burn down the UMNO headquarters on Batu Road and besieged the Salak South police station. The Sungai Besi police station was attacked, by mobs of unknown ethnicity, according to a report in The Straits Times.Early in the evening, the rioters were met by police, who used tear gas in an attempt to control them. A 24-hour curfew for Kuala Lumpur was imposed at 7:00 pm. Later, between 8:30 and 9:00 pm, a shoot-to-kill order was given by Inspector General of Police Mohamed Salleh bin Ismael. This was followed by another shoot-to-kill order from the Chief of Armed Forces, General Tunku Osman Jiwa. The army was deployed, and they entered the areas affected by rioting at around 10:00 pm. Many people who were unaware of the curfew order were shot. Some were also shot while standing in their own doorways and gardens. Foreign correspondents reported seeing members of the Royal Malay Regiment firing into Chinese shophouses for no apparent reason.
By 5:00 am the next morning, the authorities at Kuala Lumpur Hospital reported that there were about 80 dead at the facility. Members of the hospital staff also reported that the initial casualties between 7:00 and 8:30 pm had all been Chinese suffering from parang slashes and stab wounds, but that between 8:30 and 10:30 pm, the victims were equally divided between Chinese and Malays. However, after about 10:30 pm, the casualties were almost all Chinese, with nearly all of them suffering from gunshot wounds.