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Labour Front

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Labour Front
Malay nameBarisan Buroh
Chinese name勞工陣綫
Láogōng Zhènxiàn
Tamil nameதொழும் முன்னணி
Toḻum muṉṉaṇi
English nameLabour Front
Founder
Founded21 August 1954; 70 years ago (1954-08-21)
Dissolved28 February 1960; 65 years ago (1960-02-28)
Split fromLabour Party
Ideology
Political positionCentre-left to left-wing

The Labour Front (abbreviation: LF), was a political party in Singapore that operated from 1955 to 1960. It won the 1955 legislative assembly election, and lasted for one term as the ruling coalition.[1]

History

[edit]

LF was founded in 25 August 1954, as an alliance between the Singapore Labour Party (SLP) and the Singapore Socialist Party (SSP), the latter was itself an offshoot from SLP. LF was created to contest the 1955 legislative election by David Marshall, Singapore's first chief minister and Lim Yew Hock, Singapore's second chief minister.[2][3] A centre-left grouping, LF won 10 out of 25 elected seats in the legislative council and formed the first elected government of Singapore, which at that time was a British crown colony.[1]

In April 1956, Marshall led an all-party delegation to London for talks with the British, in the first of what would later be known as the Merdeka talks.[4][5] The talks resulted in a deadlock as both sides refused to compromise on the security arrangements.[6] Marshall's administration failed to gain approval from Britain for self-government; in taking responsibility for the failure, Marshall resigned in 1956;[7][8][9] and soon went on to form the Workers' Party. Critics believed that the British were not convinced of Marshall's ability to govern Singapore well and deal with the rising threat of insurgency carried out in the name of communism.[citation needed] Marshall was succeeded by his deputy, Lim.[1]

The LF-Alliance government had faced various challenges in the nascent years of local governance.[10][11] Apart from the threat of the underground communist movement, Singapore faced problems in public order, poor economy, poor housing and sanitation, low living standards and government corruption. The then-opposition People's Action Party (PAP), led by Lee Kuan Yew, grilled the Labour Front government several times on these issues in the council sessions.[citation needed] Nevertheless, the SLF-Alliance government were able to implement a slew of measures that improved workers' welfare, such as ratifying the labour code, and establishing the Central Provident Fund, Meet-the-People Sessions and Legal Aid Bureau. It was also credited with inculcating nationalistic sentiments into the populace, in lieu of colonial subservience, and resolving various constitutional challenges such as citizenship, Chinese education, and language. Through the Merdeka talks, Marshall had also set the framework to direct future negotiations towards realizing self-government.[12]

In 1957 and 1958, two all-party delegations led by Lim eventually negotiated Singapore's status to be a self-governing state.[13] In 1959, the majority of LF led by Lim, left the core party to merge with the Liberal Socialists to form the Singapore People's Alliance (SPA).[14] In the 1959 elections, the PAP won 43 of 51 seats in the parliament, with a popular vote of 53%, having campaigned on an anti-colonial platform with an ambition to initiate reforms to improve the economy and living standards of the people, as well as eradicate corruption in the government. The SPA lost power and was reduced to only a handful of seats in opposition, while the residual LF was reduced to a very small fraction of the original party and was eventually dissolved in 1960.[15]

Election results

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Legislative Assembly

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Election Leader Votes % Swing Seats1 Nominated Position Result
Up for
Contest 		Contested Total +/–
Seats Won Lost
1955 David Marshall 42,300 27.06% — 25 17 10 7
10 / 25
 Increase10
2 / 4
 Increase 1st Coalition Gov't2
1959 Francis Thomas 3,414 0.65% Decrease26.4% 51 3 0 3
0 / 51
 Decrease10 — Decrease 7th No seats
  1. ^ 1955 election: 25 of the 32 seats are directly-elected, 4 are nominated and 3 are ex-officio. 1959 election: All 51 seats are directly-elected.
  2. ^ Coalition government was formed with LF's 10 elected and 2 nominated members (12 seats), UMNO (1 seat), MCA (1 seat), and ex-officio (3 seats).

Seats Contested

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Election Constituency contested Contested Vote % Swing
1955 Bukit Panjang, Bukit Timah, Cairnhill, Changi, Farrer Park, Geylang, Havelock, Kampong Kapor, Katong, Pasir Panjang, Queenstown, Rochore, Seletar, Stamford, Tanglin, Telok Ayer, Whampoa
38.94% 		-
1959 Jalan Besar, Serangoon Gardens, Thomson 11.72% Decrease27.2%

City Council

[edit]
Election Votes % Seats
Up for
Contest 		Contested Total +/–
Seats Won Lost
1957 25,711 15.90% 32 16 4 12
4 / 32
 Increase4
1958 3,566 43.47% 1 1 0 1
4 / 32
 Steady

Prominent Members

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(L–R) David Marshall, Lim Yew Hock, and Francis Thomas, the three founders of Labour Front.

References

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  1. ^ a b c Chia, Joshua YF. "Labour Front". National Library Board.
  2. ^ Yeo, K.W. (1973). Political development in Singapore, 1945–55. Singapore University Press. p. 114.
  3. ^ "New Labour Front formed in colony". The Straits Times. 22 August 1954.
  4. ^ Chan, Heng Chee. A Sensation of Independence: A Political Biography of David Marshall (2008 ed.). Singapore: Marshall Cavendish.
  5. ^ All-Party Mission to London, Report on Singapore All-Party Mission to London, April/May 1956 (Report). National Library of Singapore: Govt. Print. Off. 1945. RCLOS 342.5957 SIN.
  6. ^ Miller, Harry (17 May 1956). "Drama of the Last Hours". The Straits Times.
  7. ^ Miller, Harry (21 May 1956). "Marshall to Resign on June 6". The Straits Times.
  8. ^ Miller, Harry (6 June 1956). "The Marshall Diary". The Straits Times.
  9. ^ Lee, Meiyu. "Merdeka talks". National Library Board.
  10. ^ Lim, Tin Seng. "1955 Legislative Assembly general election". National Library Board.
  11. ^ Singapore Legislative Assembly, Governor's Address vol. 1 of Debates: Official Report (Report). National Library of Singapore: Govt. Print. Off. 22 April 1955. RCLOS 328.5957 SIN.
  12. ^ Low, J. (1 February 2004). "Kept in position: The Labour Front-Alliance Government of Chief Minister David Marshall in Singapore, April 1955 - June 1956". Journal of Southeast Asian Studies. 35 (1). Cambridge University Press: 41–64. doi:10.1017/S0022463404000037.
  13. ^ Turnbull, C.M. (2009). A history of modern Singapore, 1819-2005. NUS Press. pp. 264–266. ISBN 978-9971-69-430-2.
  14. ^ "Mr Lim leads new party". The Straits Times. 11 November 1958.
  15. ^ "End of the Front". The Straits Times. 1 March 1960.
  16. ^ "Singapore Legislative Assembly General Election 1955 > Cairnhill". www.singapore-elections.com. Archived from the original on 5 November 2020. Retrieved 27 June 2020.
  17. ^ a b c d e "Council of Ministers of Singapore, 1955 - BookSG - National Library Board, Singapore". eresources.nlb.gov.sg. Retrieved 27 June 2020.
  18. ^ a b c d e "Mr. David Marshall at the opening session of the Merdeka Talks in London in 1956 - BookSG - National Library Board, Singapore". eresources.nlb.gov.sg. Retrieved 27 June 2020.
  19. ^ "Singapore Legislative Council General Election 1951". www.singapore-elections.com. Archived from the original on 27 July 2020. Retrieved 27 June 2020.
  20. ^ "Singapore Legislative Assembly General Election 1955 > Havelock". www.singapore-elections.com. Archived from the original on 8 November 2020. Retrieved 27 June 2020.
  21. ^ "A Labour Front (LF) electoral leaflet about Lim Yew Hock". www.roots.sg. Archived from the original on 27 June 2020. Retrieved 27 June 2020.
  22. ^ "Singapore Legislative Assembly General Election 1959 > Cairnhill". www.singapore-elections.com. Archived from the original on 31 January 2020. Retrieved 27 June 2020.
  23. ^ "Our School". standrewssec.moe.edu.sg. Retrieved 27 June 2020.
  24. ^ Librarian, Rojak (7 July 2016). "Rojak Librarian: Francis Thomas (All Saints Memorial)". Rojak Librarian. Retrieved 27 June 2020.
  25. ^ "PRESIDENT OF LABOUR FRONT FRANCIS THOMAS (RIGHT) AT A …". www.nas.gov.sg. Retrieved 27 June 2020.
  26. ^ "My grandfather's road...really". www.asiaone.com. Retrieved 27 June 2020.
  27. ^ "The Politics of Defeat". Ethos Books. Retrieved 27 June 2020.
  28. ^ "Memoirs of a Migrant". Ethos Books. Retrieved 27 June 2020.
  29. ^ "Singapore Legislative Assembly General Election 1955 > Katong". www.singapore-elections.com. Archived from the original on 5 November 2020. Retrieved 27 June 2020.
  30. ^ Pereira, Alexius A.; Braga-blake, Myrna; Ebert-oehlers, Ann (21 December 2016). Singapore Eurasians: Memories, Hopes And Dreams. World Scientific. ISBN 978-981-310-961-2.
  31. ^ "Singapore Legislative Assembly General Election 1955 > Whampoa". www.singapore-elections.com. Archived from the original on 31 January 2020. Retrieved 27 June 2020.
  32. ^ "Portrait of Mr. Chew Swee Kee, Minister for Education - BookSG - National Library Board, Singapore". eresources.nlb.gov.sg. Retrieved 27 June 2020.
  33. ^ "Singapore Legislative Assembly General Election 1955 > Stamford". www.singapore-elections.com. Archived from the original on 31 January 2020. Retrieved 27 June 2020.
  34. ^ "Portrait of Mr. J.M. Jumabhoy, President of the Singapore Indian Chamber of Commerce - BookSG - National Library Board, Singapore". eresources.nlb.gov.sg. Retrieved 27 June 2020.
  35. ^ "Portrait of Mr. J.M. Jumabhoy, Minister for Commerce and Industry - BookSG - National Library Board, Singapore". eresources.nlb.gov.sg. Retrieved 27 June 2020.
  36. ^ "Singapore Legislative Assembly General Election 1955 > Farrer Park". www.singapore-elections.com. Archived from the original on 7 November 2020. Retrieved 27 June 2020.
  37. ^ "Singapore Legislative Assembly General Election 1955 > Geylang". www.singapore-elections.com. Archived from the original on 31 January 2020. Retrieved 27 June 2020.
  38. ^ "MAK PAK SHEE, MEMBER OF THE FIRST LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY …". www.nas.gov.sg. Retrieved 27 June 2020.
  39. ^ "Singapore Legislative Assembly General Election 1955 > Kampong Kapor". www.singapore-elections.com. Archived from the original on 8 November 2020. Retrieved 27 June 2020.
  40. ^ a b c "For some reason, a large proportion of S'pore's ministers & opposition leaders have been Teochews". mothership.sg. Retrieved 27 June 2020.
  41. ^ a b c Tan, Charlene Gia Lim (26 July 2018). An Introduction To The Culture And History Of The Teochews In Singapore. World Scientific. ISBN 978-981-323-937-1.
  42. ^ "Singapore Legislative Assembly General Election 1955 > Rochore". www.singapore-elections.com. Archived from the original on 8 November 2020. Retrieved 27 June 2020.
  43. ^ "Singapore Legislative Assembly General Election 1955 > Queenstown". www.singapore-elections.com. Archived from the original on 31 January 2020. Retrieved 27 June 2020.
  44. ^ "Lee Choon Eng, Member of Legislative Assembly under Rendel …". www.nas.gov.sg. Retrieved 27 June 2020.
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