The Independence of Malaya Party ( ms, Parti Kemerdekaan Malaya) was a political party in
British-ruled
Malaya that stood for political
independence
Independence is a condition of a person, nation, country, or state in which residents and population, or some portion thereof, exercise self-government, and usually sovereignty, over its territory. The opposite of independence is the stat ...
. Founded by
Onn Ja'afar after he left UMNO in 1951, it opposed the
UMNO
The United Malays National Organisation ( Malay: ; Jawi: ; abbreviated UMNO () or less commonly PEKEMBAR), is a nationalist right-wing political party in Malaysia. As the oldest continuous national political party within Malaysia (since its ...
policy of
Malay supremacy
''Ketuanan Melayu'' (Jawi script: كتوانن ملايو; "Malay Overlordship") is a political concept that emphasises Malay preeminence in present-day Malaysia. The Malays of Malaysia have claimed a special position and exceptional right ...
.
The party was open to all races of Malaya, but received support mainly from ethnic
Indians. The IMP headquarters were in what is now the landmark
Sultan Abdul Samad Building.
The IMP contested in the 1952 Kuala Lumpur Municipal Elections in alliance with the
Malayan Indian Congress under Dato' Onn and other non-communal organisations. However the 1952 elections proved the MIC's attempt to preach and practise non-communalism would not prevail in Malayan politics when communalism was the winning factor.
The IMP won its only seat in the 1952 municipal elections via
Devaki Krishnan. Thus she became the first woman in the country to be elected to public office. In her 1952 election manifesto, she stated, "I will interest myself particularly in the lot of the women of Kuala Lumpur and in extending the programme of social work already carried out by the municipality."
After noticing that support for the party was unfavourable, Onn dissolved the party in 1953 and formed the
Parti Negara
The Parti Negara ( also spelled Party Negara) was a Malay-based political party which was formed by former leaders of the Independence of Malaya Party (IMP) in 1953, and formally launched in February 1954. It was founded by Dato Sir Onn Jaafa ...
.
Party logo
See also
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Politics of Malaysia
Politics of Malaysia takes place in the framework of a federal representative democratic constitutional monarchy, in which the Yang di-Pertuan Agong is head of state and the Prime Minister of Malaysia is the head of government. Executive p ...
*
List of political parties in Malaysia
This is a list of political parties in Malaysia, including existing and historical ones.
Legislation
Under the current legislation, all political parties (termed "Political Associations") must be registered under the Societies Act.
Election e ...
*
Parti Negara
The Parti Negara ( also spelled Party Negara) was a Malay-based political party which was formed by former leaders of the Independence of Malaya Party (IMP) in 1953, and formally launched in February 1954. It was founded by Dato Sir Onn Jaafa ...
References
1951 establishments in Malaya
1953 disestablishments in Malaya
Political parties established in 1951
Political parties disestablished in 1953
Defunct political parties in Malaysia
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