Careful Planning
Forming Malaysia did not happen overnight. It took many careful steps to make sure everyone agreed. First, the people of Sabah and Sarawak were asked for their views. The Cobbold Commission, led by Lord Cobbold in 1962, travelled around and listened to the people. It found that most of them agreed to join the new country.
Asking the People
In Singapore, a referendum (a special vote) in 1962 showed that most people wanted to join Malaysia. To protect their rights, Sabah wrote a list of requests called the 20-point memorandum, and Sarawak wrote an 18-point memorandum. The Inter-Governmental Committee then studied these lists and worked out fair safeguards for the two states.
Signing the Agreement
After everyone agreed, the leaders met in London to sign the Malaysia Agreement. The United Nations also checked that the people of Sabah and Sarawak truly wanted to join.
Remember
- The Malaysia Agreement was signed in London on 9 July 1963.
- Malaysia was officially formed on 16 September 1963.