the life of a female communist

8/2/2019 The Life of a Female Communist

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CTL202 Oral History Essay Assignment – Tutor: Dr Karl Hack

HAN MAY YUN MAGDELENE (BAEd0307),Magdelene <[email protected]>

I give permission for this work to be digitally stored and make available for eduactional and research purposes. (17-10-03)

THE LIFE OF A FEMALE COMMUNIST

For the purpose of this oral history assignment, I had the opportunity to

close the generation gap I had with my grandmother, Madam Foo, through the

interview and getting to know a different phase of her life, which not many of

cousins get to know of. I could see that she wants to leave all those sorrowful

memories behind her and enjoy the “fruit of her labour”, which she has now. She

related her experiences as a communist during and after the Japanese

Occupation, in a mixture of Mandarin and very little Hainanese, knowing my

deficiency in speaking and understanding my very own dialect. The interviews

were carried out over two sessions. The first session lasted almost 4 hours and

the follow-up was done in an hour. There were intervals in each session due to

the strong emotions evoked during the interviews. She broke down a number of

times, recalling the hardships she had gone through.

The Japanese Occupation in Singapore lasted for 3 years and 8 months,

which she recalls vividly. That period remains etched in her memory; the

brutalities, the suffering, the loss of freedom, the food shortages and the hardship

brought about by the Japanese. Her account of her anti-Japanese involvement is

somewhat similar to the historical accounts of the Japanese Occupation by

Elizabeth Choy, Chin Peng and many other ‘fighters’ who lived to tell the their

tales. However, unlike Chin Peng’s account of his communist involvement as a

1

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leader, Madam Foo’s account presented one of a life as a messenger of the

movement. Instead of one who gives order and decides on the movement’s

activities, she is one who received and carried out instructions from the decision-

makers.

Anti-Japanese Feelings

Her strong anti-Japanese feelings are not only contained within that period

but can be traced back to when the Japanese in China killed her brother. “To

understand the Japanese policy towards the Chinese population in Malaya and

Singapore, one must go back to the Nanyang Chinese anti-Japanese sentiment

which had been prevalent since the 1930s when Japan declared war on China.”1

Their soldiers “advanced into China in July 1937 for her vast reserves of coal and

iron, and her lucrative markets”.2 As Madam Foo recalls the times of the

Japanese Occupation, she remembers one of chaos and been on the run

constantly. Wars, brought about by the Japanese, were fought everywhere she

went.

Madam Foo was in her 20s during the Japanese Occupation. She left

China, with her mother, to come to Singapore to look for her father, who was

working as a cook, when war broke out in China.

The Junk Boat Ordeal

1 Griffiths, J. & Loh, S., eds. (1996) The Japanese Occupation 1942-1945: A Pictorial Record of Singapore

During the War. p. 10

2 Maj. Yap, S. Y., Bose, R. & Pang, A. (1992) Fortress Singapore: The Battlefield Guide. p.8

2




What she recalled most vividly about the pre-Occupation phase of her life

was that her elder brother was killed in the war in China and her ordeal of the

junk boat ride she and her mother took to Singapore. The days spent on the junk

boat was a difficult one for them. Under the poor condition of the boat, there was

no food or water supplies on board the cramped boat, which they went on for one

month. They had to rely on fishing and seawater for survival. When they arrived

near the coast of Singapore, movement was restricted to the night, with the fear

of being noticed, as Singapore does not permit illegal immigrants to enter. They

ran on shore in the night and went in the midst of the jungle, filled with tigers, as

she recalled. Not long after their arrival, Japanese came into Singapore and once

again, war broke out. Her mother found herself a job as a housemaid for an

English family and as she was uneducated and had friends from the anti-

Japanese communist movement, she became a part of them.

Introduced into the communist movement

Been uneducated and had friends that belonged to the anti-Japanese

Communist movement, she became a messenger, pasting posters and giving out

leaflets to stir up anti-Japanese feelings among the locals. It is unclear whether

her decision to join the anti-Japanese movements was due to peer influence or

the death of her brother when she related her reason for her participation:

I was never interested in studying and at that time, my friends were

all part of communist movement so they got me to join them.

Her reasons might be probably one of the many reasons the peasants and

workers joined the anti-Japanese Movements during the peak period of 1942 –

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1945. However, for leaders like Chin Peng, who were exposed to Chinese

literature on nationalism and communism as well as talks about anti-Japanese

struggle. These leaders are convinced of the changes that communism can bring

about but I do wonder if it ever daunts on the followers what their real reasons

were.

Her account of some of the communist activities she engaged in at that

time is parallel to most of the historical accounts in the same period in most of

the published literature. The places that she went as a Communist member were

indeed those few prominent Communist bases, mentioned in many books. There

were some information about her communist activities that she remained silent

about; the communist movement she belonged to, how she managed to keep a

low profile after the war and what happened to the other members in her

movement.

A Communist messenger during the Japanese Occupation

“The Pacific War erupted after repeated incursion on China by the

Japanese troops and following that, Japan conquered Malaya and Singapore.”3

During the 3 years and 8 months Occupation, the Japanese committed many

atrocities, making life miserable for the people. This gave rise to resentment and

hatred, which led to many people “walking into the jungles to join the anti-

Japanese army”4

3 Hara Fujio, “The Japanese Occupation of Malaya and the Chinese Community”, in Kratoska, P. H., ed.

(1995) Malaya and Singapore during the Japanese Occupation. Singapore : The National University of

Singapore. p.56

4 Tie Yi & Zhong Cheng “An Account of the Anti-Japanese War Fought by the British Government and

MPAJA” , in Foong, H. C. (ed.), The Price of Peace :True Acc ounts of the Japanese Occupation. Singapore

4




Communist activities are “centrally connected with the events surrounding

the World War II. The military actions follow the principles of guerilla warfare with

its army built largely with peasant recruits and finding its natural habitat in the

rural areas.”5 She remembers her role as a messenger for the movement,

moving from places to places to dispatch letters or messages to and fro the

different communist bases and carrying out ground work like distributing leaflets

and pasting posters to stir up anti-Japanese feelings.

I was in Malaya (Pangkor Island, Kuala Lumpur, Taiping, and

Sarawak. Johore, Kedah, mostly in the jungle and was on the run

from the Japanese … I was constantly on the run, never stayed in

one place for long.

Other than been a messenger, she worked in rubber, pineapple

plantations as well as rice fields. In some historical literature, it was noted that

many of these communist members took up odd jobs as “undercovers and to lay

ground work for the movement,” but it is unclear whether she was undercover or

working was for the sake of survival and there might be a likelihood that it was for

both reasons.

The communist bases in Malaya

Their bases were usually situated amidst the jungles and plantations in

areas like Pangkor Island, Sarawak, Kedah and Taiping as recorded in most

: Asiapac Books Pte Ltd, p.58

5 Scalapino, R. A., ed. (1969) The Communist Revolution in Asia: Tactics, Goals and Achievements (2nd

ed.) Englewood Cliffs, N. J. : Prentice Hall p. 23

5




historical text. Their members operated mainly from dense forests or jungles,

with steep mountain paths and swamps, across Malaya. Many of these bases

were “mountain ranges covered with dense jungles, which was ideal for hit-and-

run guerilla warfare resorted to by the communist against the Japanese during

wartime.”6 Pangkor Island was constantly mentioned during her recollection of

her communist involvement. She talked about how self-sufficient the base was,

with many members staying in the jungles:

The headquarter was in Pangkor Island, in a rubber plantation. It

belonged to people from the Fuzhou clan. It is in the jungle… We,

the communist, are a big group. We have many members and

friends. We spotted one of the Japanese spy who ‘bao gao’

(reported or pointed me out) at Pangkor Island. She was

outnumbered. We caught hold of her and we killed her.

I read and found out that Pangkor Island was indeed “one of the secret

congregating venues of the Anti-Japanese Movement and it was where Force

136 operated from”7

Anti-Japanese Movements in Malaya

However, it is not certain whether she was a part of Force 136 or the CMP, which

Chin Peng was actively involved as there were a number of anti-Japanese

6

Yoji Akashi, “The Anti-Japanese Movement in Perak During the Japanese Occupation, 1941-1945” inKratoska, P. H., ed. (1995) Malaya and Singapore during the Japanese Occupation. p.83


MPAJA”, p.58

6




movements at that time and she did not want to disclose any details of the

movement she was in. This could be due to the incident where she was betrayed

by a Japanese spy and she spoke about how ones identity as a communist

member should be kept at wraps at all times because one does not know who

the spies are.

… we can’t stay at one place for long because there might be spies

among us that report our movements to the Japanese and then

they will come to surround you and catch you.

The Japanese informer

She spoke about the female Japanese informer who identified her as a

communist member to the Japanese and how she felt at that time. Alone on a

mission to deliver messages and documents from Sarawak to Pangkor Island,

she sat in a boat with “suspicious-looking” people. She also recalled how her

quick wits saved her life as she narrated how she abandoned the gun and

documents she had with her into the sea.

I was moving towards Pangkor Island from Sarawak, on board a

sampan and together with me were five other people… They had a

suspicious look on their faces … I was scared that my cover might

have been exposed. The ride was bumpy… I took this opportunity

and removed ‘wen jian’ (the documents) and the gun I had on my

body and submerged it into the water.

When asked about the gun she had, Madam Foo recalled how she was taught to

use it by her fellow comrades and how small and compact it was that she carried

7




it wherever she went. However, through Chin Peng’s account, it was that none of

them had a personal pistol, “which was what [they] wanted at the time”.8 The

other varieties of guns are namely the Tommy guns, Bren guns and the .303

rifles. Despite the differences, there was a common consensus about the

portability of a pistol. “Pistols were small, comparatively light and easy to operate.

To small-framed Asians they offered ready protection and enhanced

confidence.”8 It might be due to the gender differentiation and the basis of the

work allocated that the series of guns distributed to each individual was different.

As Madam Foo was a female comrade and due to the nature of her role as a

messenger, she might have given the priority of been issued a pistol.

During the Japanese Occupation, “the Japanese had imposed strict rules

on people’s movement, so it was an uphill task for people to obtain the necessary

papers to move around.”9 There was a question about how she was able to move

around as freely as what was mentioned in the interview. Checking with the

sources, it was known that many of these communist members obtain their travel

documents through undercover work at plantations, fisheries and fields. The

many odd-jobs Madam Foo had taken up as she traveled to the different bases

could be undercover work or it might even be forged travel documents, though no

sources have mentioned the possibility.

The Japanese interrogation process

8 Chin Peng, My Side of History Singapore: Media Masters Pte Ltd, p. 738

9 Tham Sien Yen “Fighting Behind Enemy Lines” in Foong, H. C. (ed.), The Price of Peace :True Accounts

of the Japanese Occupation. Singapore : Asiapac Books Pte Ltd, p.58

8




Her role carries high risk of being caught, having to travel frequently to

and from different communist bases. If she was found out to be a part of the anti-

Japanese movement, she would have been taken away and given the various

inhumane tortures like the “water or fire treatments”. These brutal treatments or

forms of tortures carried out by the Japanese were extensively recorded in many

historical literatures pertaining to issues on the Japanese Occupation. From

historical records of the traumatic interrogation process experienced by Elizabeth

Choy, it was known that “she was electrocuted, had water pumped continuously

into her body, beaten up and stripped to the waist during interrogation”

10

The

other sources added that water treatment had victims pumped full with water,

with soldiers jumping repeatedly on the person’s water-filled belly. 11 However,

Madam Foo did not see or encounter any of these treatments after she was

captured but had only heard about it from her fellow members. The closest she

had been treated badly by the Japanese was when they did a body search for

documents on her.

They did a body search, ‘ta men ba wo de yi fu mei you’ (they tore

my clothes bare) to check for Communist related documents or

guns but found nothing.

She was then taken away by the Japanese after been pointed out by the

female spy, who was one of the people on board the same boat as her. She


MPAJA”, p.58

11Maj. Yap, S. Y., Bose, R. & Pang, A., p.27

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resisted and pleaded her ‘innocence’ as no anti-Japanese documents or

evidences were found on her but she was taken away.

What puzzled me was that she was not given any “treatment” or any form

of torture from the Japanese after she was arrested and she managed to be

freed on the very next day, after several persistent letters from the rich Chinese

merchants were sent to the Japanese. Did these rich Chinese merchants have

such influence to be able to free people out of prisons? These people could be

the communist sympathisers, mentioned by Chin Peng in his account. These

people gave monetary support as well as other essentials to the guerilla fighters,

living in the jungles. She did not want to talk about what happened to her during

her captive and just spoke about how this fellow member, who later became her

husband, went around persuading the rich and influential people in Pangkor

Island to bail her out.

After her release, they fled to Perak, and stayed there with the other

communist members till the Japanese surrender. “Before the Second World War,

Perak was a major tin and rubber producing and exporting state; it attracted tens

of thousand of immigrant labourers from China [and] a majority of the Chinese in

Perak were men whose national identity and loyalty were with China”12 This could

have led to the success of mass recruitment for members to the anti-Japanese

movement in Perak.

Post Pacific War – British’s effort to eliminate communism in Malaya

12Akashi, “The Anti-Japanese Movement in Perak During the Japanese Occupation, 1941-1945”, p.83

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It was only after the 3 years and 8 months of Japanese Occupation that

they returned to Pangkor Island but this time, the British were on plans of

eliminating communist power. “The British were determined to reinstall her

colonial supremacy in Malaya” 13 and they had little choice but to deal with the

communist movement, who they had once shared a “common enemy”, the

Japanese, during the Occupation. Chin Peng felt they had been used by the

British and there was no real bond or allied connection between them though

they were both fighting against the Japanese. Madam Foo, however, only felt

that it was due to the fact that communist activities are unlawful, saying:

They are anti-communist, all these people

The British were rounding up the communist parties and their members to create

law and order. This drove Madam Foo and her husband to leave Pangkor Island

for China after they got married and had their first child to seek safety.

Leaving the movement

She returned to Singapore once again but this time, with her children, as

her husband had came over to work as a fisherman. After the war, both husband

and wife had given up their communist work and decided to lead normal lives for

the sake of the children. They wanted to give the best to their children, especially

a safe environment to live in and not one that had constant fear. She recalled the

hardship of bringing up her nine children, playing the role of a mother and having

to work. 0 She wanted the best for her children and stuck to a strict diet of

porridge and soy sauce so that her children could have the meat and fish.

13 Chin Peng, My Side of History, p. 11

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However, life got better as they saw ‘the fruit of their labour’. Madam Foo strongly

believes that when one is willing to give one’s best and work hard, anything is

achievable.

Conclusion

“The occupation of Singapore by the Japanese Army between the 15 th day of

February, 1942 and the 18th day of August, 1945 was a dark and tragic epoch.” 14

Her account of her life before, during and after the war reveals her strong

determination, will power to persevere hardship and her unwavering spirit in

difficult times. This serves as an invaluable lesson for me, her granddaughter, to

learn and to remember that the present comfort and stability should not be taken

for granted. Though her experiences of the Japanese Occupation were almost 60

years ago, her memory of the pain and suffering remains and even her deep-

seated resentment for the Japanese remains till this very day, as she ended the

interview with these angry words:

They killed my brother and I will never forgive them for that.

14 Pan Shou, “Epitaph: Memorial to the Civilian Victims of the Japanese Occupation” in Griffiths, J. &Loh, S., eds. (1996) The Japanese Occupation 1942-1945: A Pictorial Record of Singapore Duringthe War, p. 185

12




Bibliography

Scalapino, R. A., ed. (1969) The Communist Revolution in Asia: Tactics,Goals and Achievements (2nd ed.) Englewood Cliffs, N. J.: Prentice Hall

Kratoska, P. H., ed. (1995) Malaya and Singapore during the JapaneseOccupation. Singapore: The National University of Singapore

Foong Choon Hon, ed. (1995) The Price of Peace: True Accounts of theJapanese Occupation. Singapore: Asaipac Books Pte. Ltd.

Griffiths, J. & Loh, S., eds. (1996) The Japanese Occupation 1942-1945: A Pictorial Record of Singapore During the War. Singapore: National Archives of Singapore

Maj. Yap, S. Y., Bose, R. & Pang, A. (1992) Fortress Singapore: The

Battlefield Guide. Singapore: Times Book International

Chin Peng (2003) My Side of History. Singapore: Media Masters Pte. Ltd.

Han, M. Y. M. (2003) Transcript for the oral interview essay

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APPENDIX:

TRANSCRIPT FOR THE ORAL INTERVIEW PROJECT

PROFILE OF THE INTERVIEWEE

Name of Interviewee: Mdm Foo M. E.

Language Spoken: Mandarin and Hainanese

Duration of interview: Session 1 (11-09-03) – 4 hours

Session 2 (27.09-03) – 1 hour

Venue: Her home in Serangoon Gardens

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Q1: How old were you during the Japanese Occupation?

A: I was about 21 or 22 years old and unmarried at the beginning of theoccupation. I only got married after the occupation, upon my return toSingapore.

Q2: How many family members did you have at that time?

A: My brother was killed by the Japanese so there was only my mother,father, pregnant sister-in-law and myself. My mother and I left for Singapore, leaving my sister-in-law behind as she was pregnant and mightnot have been able to take the ‘pang chuan’ (junk boat) ride there. As thewar was going in China, we left China and came to Malaya on boat. The

sea journey took one month.

Q3: What made you and your mother decided to come to Singapore?

My father was in Singapore. He wrote letters back home, telling us aboutthe life in Singapore and wanted us to go to look for him. He was workingas a cook in the British army and he stayed at Tanglin area, around thearmy camp areas.

Q4: What was you diet like on board the boat during the journey?

A: We made a hook and did some fishing. It was horrible, sometimes therewill be fish and on some days, there wasn’t any at all. We would use water to boil the fish for consumption. We used coconut husk as our woks andbowls to ‘ta hi lai jia’ (Hainanese - boil the fish) and some logs to start afire. Sometimes, ‘hea yio tio wo’ (Hainanese - the husk would catch fire)and the fish still uncooked, we would still had to eat it. ‘Jim siam’(Hainanese – Poor thing) The time spent on the junk boat was tough. Itwas junk boat, you know, the kind that operates with a sail. It only moveswhen there is wind. We spent one month at sea, drifting from one side toanother and back again.

Q5: So where did you and your family land?

A: We landed at the causeway, near Singapore, as they do not allow illegalimmigrants. We walked from there to Singapore but only in the nightbecause that way, we would not get noticed. We had to ‘dau jio’(Hainanese – run up) as far and as fast as we could as the British willcatch us, the illegal immigrants. There were many ‘lau ho heoi lu tua lai’

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(Hainanese - tigers hiding in the jungle) then. We could hear their growlingfrom amidst the thick jungle but they won’t bite. After landing here, mymother got herself a job as housemaid for an English family at Tanglinarea.

Q6: How about you? What were you working as then?

A: Not long after I arrived in Singapore, ‘Ji bun you lai pa Sing-a-po’(Hainanese- Japanese attacked Singapore). I was ‘bo bat du’ (Hainanese

– uneducated) lah and had never been to school. ‘du tou yuo bu zi daowei. Du wei you bu zi dao tou’ (Chinese saying that as one studies fromthe start would have forgotten the ending and as one studies from theending would have forgotten the beginning, meaning illiterate and havingno talents in studies)

I was never interested in studying and at that time, my friends were all

part of communist movement so they got me to join them. They are peoplefrom the Fuzhou province, people from my homeland. I was appointed asa messenger, moving around Sarawak, Kedah, Taiping, Pangkor Islandand Singapore, ‘da biao huei’ (pasting the posters) issued to me as I wentalong. As for myself, I moved around putting up anti-Japanese poster anddistributing pamphlets to stir up anti-Japanese feelings. I moved slowlytowards Malaya from here. Aiyoh ... I went to many places, been to mostplaces.

Q7: Tell me about your experience of the Japanese Occupation.

A: I had many experiences. I was a part of the ‘gong chang dang’(Communist Party), as a messenger for many years. ‘wo na wen jian zouguo lai zuo guo qu’ (I take documents here and there) for the party. I wasissued a gun so I had a gun with me most of the time. If it was not for thegun as a form of protection, I would have been dead by now.

I was in Malaya (Pangkor Island, Kuala Lumpur, Taiping, Serawak.Johore, Kedah, mostly in the jungle and was on the run from the Japaneseas they were trying to identify all the anti-Japanese and communistmembers. As the Japanese troops proceeded downwards to Malaya, Iescaped to Singapore. I was constantly on the run, never stayed in oneplace for long.

Q8: Where did you learn to operate a gun?

A: My friends taught me how to use the gun. The gun goes ‘tok, tok, tok, tok”.It is a short one and I will tuck it in my pants at the waist here. If any

16




Japanese were to come into sight, I can catch and shoot them. It is for protection.

Q9: Are the guns only meant to be a protection against the Japanese?How about the British?

A: It is only used to shoot the Japanese not the British. It was a Japaneseperiod.

Q10: So what did you do to survive other than been part of the CommunistParty? Did you work?

A: I did a lot of odd jobs, from working in a rubber plantation, rice farms to

‘wang lai dua’ (pineapple plantations). As long as there is an opening for jobs, I will go and try it out.

Q11: Where did you stay as I can see you did not stay at one place for long?

A: The communist party has many members and they are everywhere. Aslike I’m speaking to you now, I won’t know who whether you are one of usand the same goes for you, you won’t know whether I am a communist.

Q12: So where did you and the rest of communists stay?

A: We just stay anywhere. It did not matter. The headquarter was in Pangkor Island, in a rubber plantation. It belonged to people from the Fuzhou clan.It is in the jungle. It was a hide-out for us as we were wanted by theJapanese. However, we can’t stay at one place for long because theremight be spies among us that report our movements to the Japanese andthen they will come to surround you and catch you. That was why wemoved around.

Q13: What will happen to those who are taken away by the Japanese?

A: The Japanese will carry out tortures, in the form ‘guan dui’ (Hainanese -water-treatment), ‘dian di’ (Hainanese - electric treatment to death) or even ‘tang si’ (use the iron to burn your body to your death).

Q14: Were there any spies living among you people at that time since youmentioned spies?

17




A: Yes, I was moving towards Pangkor Island from Sarawak, on board asampang and together with me were five other people. I was all alone.They had a suspicious look on their faces and I sensed something waswrong. I was scared that my cover might have been exposed. The ride

was bumpy and the wave went ‘bong, bong, bong’. I took this opportunityand removed ‘wen jian’ (the documents) and the gun I had on my bodyand submerged it into the water. The water level was high so they did notnotice what I did. ‘mo liao you mo bo deo’ (Hainanese – can see but yetcannot see) The sound of the wave was loud so when I dropped my thingsinto the sea, it cannot be heard. ‘wo de ji hua heng huo’ (My idea was verygood)

Q15: What happened after you got off the boat?

A: When I arrived at Pangkor Island, there was a group of Japanese soldier.

The ‘han-jian’ (the spies) had already identified me as been part of thecommunist and that I was a messenger. They did a body search, ‘ta menba wo de yi fu mei you’ (they tore my clothes bare) to check for Communist related documents or guns but found nothing. The Japanesestill insisted on taking me away for further questioning. I pleaded andresisted, giving them the reasons that I went to Sarawak to visit my mumand that there was no evidence to prove that I was a communist. I keptshouting ‘Ni yuan wang wo’ (You frame me. I am innocent) “If you want tostab me, you need evidence!” “If you want to burn me, you needevidence!” as they took me away.

Q16: How did you manage to get out from Japanese’s hands?

A: My late husband was a member of the Communist too. That was how wemet. He knew a lot of ‘lau-ban’ (bosses or influential people) at Pangkor Island. He went to see these people and sought their assistance to writeletters to the Japanese to bail me out. He told the rich and influential that Iwas his lover and I was innocent. The very next day, I was released. A lotof people came to justify my innocence and after my release, my husbandled me to escape that very night, from Pangkor Island to Perak.

Q17: So why did you only escape there and not further?

A: I had friends staying there and you know, when I arrived at the ‘duei miangang’, I was first again recognized by the Japanese spies and my friendstold me that they are out to get me. We, the communist, are a big group.We have many members and friends. We spotted one of the Japanesespy who ‘bao gao’ (reported or pointed me out) at Pangkor Island. Shewas outnumbered. We caught hold of her and we killed her.

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Q18: You mean you and your friends killed the female spy?

A: Yes, we killed her, the real female spy. We caught her and killed her. After that, We stayed there at Perak with our communist family, for 3 years and

8 months, until the Japanese surrended. It was only when the situationhad eased at Pangkor Island that I returned back there. Not long after myreturn, I married my communist comrade, who is my husband and we hada baby girl. We thought life will be peaceful after ‘Ji bun dao hang’ (theJapanese surrender) but we were once again wanted, this time by theBritish. They are anti-communist, all these people. I had no choice but toleave Pangkor Island for Penang and from there, I returned to ‘zhong kok’(Hainanese – China)

Q19: How did you and your husband return to China? Is it the same type

of junk boat you took when you first came to Malaya?

A: No, this boat is different and it took only one week for me and husband toreturn to China, together with my daughter.

Q20: How was life for you to be constantly on the run?

A: Life was tough and chaotic. Everywhere I went, there is bound to be war and killings. My first child was born in Malaya and my second child was‘zhong kok seng’ (Hainanese - born in China)

Q21: How did you feel, having to live life under such toughcircumstances?

A: Life was hard and ‘wa jim sian’ (Hainanese – I very poor thing). I trulysuffered, before, during and even after the war. I had nine children in all. Itwas tough, trying to make ends meet. I did not have much sleep or foodfor myself as my priority was my children. If anyone of them falls sick, I willbe worried. I will stay up day and night to make sure they get well. Ireturned to Singapore, we had no money and not much clothes with us.To make ends meet, I had to do odd jobs, like pig-rearing and collectinglaundry to wash.

Q22: What made you return back to this part of Malaya again?

A: We cannot return to Pangkor Island because we are wanted and if wereturn, we will be caught. Not long after we returned back to China, wehad our second daughter. After the birth of my second daughter, myhusband came to Singapore in search of a job. He found a job as a

19




fisherman, catching fishing near the ‘duei mian gang’. Then I came over toSingapore with two daughters.

Q23: How was life upon your return to Singapore?

A: My husband and I worked very hard. He was a fisherman and had to stayat sea for days so we had very little chance to see each other. Life washard. ‘wa nang ta nang jia li na jia ze dui’ (Hainanese - My children and Ihad only one meal a day). We would cook some porridge and mincedmeat, which would cost us three cents. Both of us were busy trying to earnas much money as we could to give our children a better life.

When we had saved enough money, I rented a small piece of land to rear my own pigs and a room. I bought two piglets, for a few dollars. Once theygrew big, I would sell them away. So that is the way I made my profits andmoney. We were very thrifty and once we had enough money, we bought

an attap house at Hougang area for $500, together with a friend of ours.There were two rooms so each family would occupy one room. ‘wu lib a, jiang mi jin doei’ (Hainanese - Got a small yard in front of the house, grewa lot of things there). There were ‘ liu lian wui’ (Hainanese - durianplantations) nearby.

Q24: Were you and your husband still a part of the Communist when youreturned to Singapore?

A: No, we were no longer communist. We don’t want to work for themalready.

Q25: How long did you all stay at Hougang area?

A: We did not stay there for long as my husband was constantly atloggerheads with the man of the other family. We shifted after a year to‘ang sa li’ (Hainanese -Serangoon Gardens). It was not like what it is now.Serangoon Gardens then was filled with ‘siua ba’ (Hainanese – junglesand plantations). I continued to rear pigs for a living and it is here wheremy third and subsequent children are born.

As life was hard and there was not enough food, my babies were verysmall. I did not have time to rest. Everyday, I was busy at the farm andlooking after my children, ferrying them to and from school. I had porridgeand soy sauce as my staple food and left all the meat for my children. Themeat they eat came from the ducks and chickens I reared on the farm.Soon, my husband and I were known as the main supplier of pigs, ducksand chickens of Serangoon Gardens. My profits increased and we could

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earn as much as a thousand dollars a day, which at that time was alot of money.

Q26: What else did you do with the money you earn other than spendingon getting more animals for your farm?

My husband and I ‘bo bad dai ji, bad han ji nya’ (Hainanese – do not knowhow to spend money, only know how to earn money; were not thespendthrift sort of people), we would save all the money we had. We arevery hardworking people.

That reminds me of the time during the change of currency or dollar notesin Singapore. After the Japanese Occupation, the Japanese currencyceased to be of use, in a fit of anger and vengeance, I set all theJapanese notes I had on fire. If I had kept them till today, I think it mightworth a lot.

Q27: Do you mean after the Japanese Occupation, the Japanese noteswere useless and cannot be used anymore?

No. They can still be used but as I was very angry with the Japanese, I settheir currency on fire. They killed my brother and I will never forgive themfor that.

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the life of a female communist

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