The Malayan Communist Party as Recorded in the Comintern Files

Yong wrote that the MCP was founded between early to mid-April (referred to earlier). But he also
said that “After the inauguration conference of the MCP had ended, he [Ch’en Shao-chang]
followed on to chair the first representative conference of the MGLU in the latter part of April
1930” (emphasis added). 26 This clearly suggests that the MGLU’s inauguration conference began
immediately after the inauguration conference of the MCP ended on the same day. Thus, here Yong
seemed to have claimed that the MCP had been founded in the latter part of April.
What may be deduced from the above discussion? The contemporary Party records clearly and
decisively showed that 8 leaders were arrested on 29 April and the Inaugural Congress was held
either prior to 1 May or on 21 May. Very likely, therefore, the Congress was scheduled to be held
in late April but it was postponed to 21 May for reasons of security. As both conferences of the
MCP and the MGLU were sequentially held on the same day, its date could be 22- 23 April for the
MCP and 23 April for the MGLU (see Belogurova’s argument below). Such prominent leaders as
Lei and Wu Ching, who were to be arrested on 29 April, might have been merely tentatively
elected as CC members. Unusual description of the CC of the MCP’s letter dated 1 June; “not
including members of the CC” might probably suggest that many of them were not present at this
Inaugural Conference because they had been arrested earlier on 29 April (emphasis added).
Neither The Straits Times nor The Singapore Free Press referred to the party-posts of the arrested
MCP leaders. It might possibly mean that the MCP had not elected such top leaders as secretary
and head of organization yet at that time. Hence, the congress of April might be a provisional or
preparatory one. Besides that, the “Notice!” was dated 1 May 1930. It might mean that the tentative
CC of the MCP had already drafted the “Notice” before 1 May.
As shown above, Yong has suggested that the first representatives’ conference of the MGLU was
held in the latter part of April 1930, after the inaugural conference of the MCP. 27 But the letter sent
to the “English Komparty” distinguished between two conferences – a “Conf.” on 21 May, and a
“Party conference” held before the MGLU conference. Hence, would not “Conf.” (with a capital C)
mean the Inaugural Congress and “Party conference” (with the small c) a meeting of the Party CC?
Otherwise, would the conference held in late April have been the Third Representatives’ Congress
while the one held on 21 May was the First Representatives’ Congress of the MCP?
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