SEJARAH PENUBUHAN PARTI GERAKAN RAKYAT MALAYSIA (GERAKAN)

Abstract

This article is a study on the history of the formation of Parti Gerakan Rakyat Malaysia (GERAKAN) in 1968. It consists of a brief discussion on the post-independence political scenario in Peninsular Malaysia for it was within this backdrop that the GERAKAN was formed. At the same time, the article also discusses the political stands and mindsets of the two main founders of the party, namely Dr. Lim Chong Eu and Dr. Tan Chee Khoon, which formed a basis for the establishment of GERAKAN as a genuinely non-communal political party. In so doing, the article concentrates on the early stages of the party, by first examining the involvement of Chong Eu, Chee Khoon and Prof. Syed Hussein al-Attas in forming a single opposition party uniting all opposition parties, and secondly on the leadership style of the party. It then looks into the final stages of the formation of the GERAKAN, detailing its various political activities that were aimed at promoting and publicizing the party as well as the rationale behind the support it managed to garner.