Singapore paper examines Malaysian divide over Chin Peng

Even in death, Chin Peng remains a deeply divisive figure. Putrajaya remains firm that his remains cannot be brought back to Malaysia, the opposition and MCA have urged the government to show clemency and allow bygones to be bygones.

Two of Malaysia's former Inspectors-General of Police have differing views, with Tun Mohammed Hanif Omar adamant that Chin Peng's remains should not be brought back while Tan Sri Abdul Rahim Mohd Noor has declared that Malaysia would be a "laughing stock" if Putrajaya kept to its "naive" decision.

The Straits Times in Singapore reported that the passing of Chin Peng, whose real name is Ong Boon Hua, has begun a war of words over his role in Malaysian history. Was he a freedom fighter or a mere terrorist who once had a RM250,000 bounty on his head?

His death has not altered the government's stance, with current Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar going to the extent of tweeting that all of the country's entry points would be monitored closely to keep Chin Peng's remains out.

For those who fought against and with Chin Peng, the memories are still as fresh as ever.

Former soldier Juhata Mohd Yusof told the Singapore daily that the emotional scars ran too deep for any talk of forgiveness.

Juhata saw several of his fellow soldiers lose their legs to booby traps set up by the communists in the mid-1980s while they were serving in the jungles near the Thai borders.

The 53-year-old said having spent months in the jungle looking for the communists, he felt that Chin Peng's death merely closes a chapter which cannot be forgotten.

But others do not see why an old man, or rather, his ashes, should be banished from the place of his birth. MCA pointed out that the remains of Muslim terrorists Dr Azahari Husin and Nordin Mohamad Top were brought back to Malaysia to be buried in Malacca and Johor respectively.

Both men had been responsible for a string of bombings in Indonesia between 2002 and 2005, which claimed the lives of hundreds of civilians of various nationalities. Indonesian security forces eventually caught up with the duo and shot them.

Chin Peng's former comrades pleaded with the Malaysian government, reasoning that the violence had happened during a war and there were losses on both sides. A 69-year-old woman, identified only as Quah, said her former colleagues who died were also Malaysians and also had families.

Former guerrillas from the 1950s and '60s have been patronising the Wat That Thong temple in Bangkok to pay their respects to their former leaders. Some arrived from Kuala Lumpur, Perak, Penang and southern Thailand.

Retired Thai general Kitti Ratanachaya, who was one of the major players behind the 1989 peace accord which ended communist hostilities between the CPM and Malaysia, was also seen paying his last respects to Chin Peng.

Outside the funeral hall bordered by wreaths, photos of Chin Peng at various party milestones were flashed on a TV screen. Attendees were given a booklet with a letter by him, titled My Last Wish, in it, where he expressed regret at being unable to return home.

But he also wrote: "My comrades and I had dedicated our lives to a political cause that we believed in and had to pay whatever price there was as a result. Whatever consequences on ourselves, our family and the society, we would accept with serenity." - September 22, 2013.