The British left the Sultans in place to ease relations with locals as they put together one of there most successful multi racial colonies. This would have worked well if the Sultans remembered the interest of their subjects. Johore was not so lucky when it came to that. So slip on your smoking jacket, fill your pipe, take your first sip of your adult beverage, and sit back in your most comfortable chair. Welcome to todays offering from The Philatelist.
This stamp is definitely modeled on British Empire stamp issues with Sultan Ismail looking on where Queen Elizabeth would be. The difference is most British believe Queen Elizabeth was working for them. Is this Chinese rice farmer expected to believe that Sultan Ismail is looking out for him. You really can’t expect him to be that stupid. The picture is even just repurposed from a Kedah issue from 1957 with Sultans changed out.
Todays stamp is issue A8, a four cent issue from the Sultanate of Johore in 1960 while the area was subordinate to the British colony of the Federated Malayan states. It was part of an eleven stamp issue in various denominations. According to the Scott Catalog, the stamp is worth 25 cents whether used or unused.
1960 was an exciting time in Johore with a new Sultan Ismail. Except that he was really nothing new. Ismail’s father Ibrahim had been Sultan since 1895 but lived as a European playboy. Starting in the late 1930s, Ismail had acted as Regent on his father’s behalf in Johore while Ibrahim married a string of European women, got caught cheating when he painted one of his thoroughbred horses to get better gambling odds, spend too much time in the red light districts of Vienna and chasing cabaret dancers. He did return once to Johore just in time to collaborate with the Japanese occupation. Seems the British couldn’t rely on him any more than the Malayans. Surely after his fathers death, Ismail could be his own man and an improvement?
1960 was a complicated time in Malaya. Independence was coming despite the Sultan of Johore writing an op-ed hoping for Strait Settlements forever. The independence groups were divided. Some wanted union with Indonesia and some were more militant Muslims who desired closer connections with the Middle East. Meanwhile thanks to the British, there were large numbers of Indians and especially Chinese. Just after the war, the British forced the Sultans to accept a new constitution that gave the Chinese and Indians citizenship. With the divisions among Malayans, they proved able to buy off the Sultans the way the British had. The Sultans thus still represent their areas and cost a lot, but are really at the fringe of political power.
Ismail proved to be ineffectual as his power decreased with independence. That in itself was an improvement. He was immediately faced with trouble from his first born son Iskandar. Ismail removed him as heir after having two policemen chained up in dog kennels for days after annoying him. Even after being removed there were several road rage incidents involving assaults by Iskandar. He then shot and killed a man for standing too close to his helicopter. Ismail was around to hush things up and issue pardons.
By 1981 Sultan Ismail was elderly and fell into a coma before death. When he went into a coma is up for debate as suddenly Iskandar appeared with documents restoring him as heir presumptive. Ismail never came out of the fatal coma to validate Iskandar’s documents but he still became Sultan. In 1987, a caddy laughed when Sultan Iskandar missed a putt. The Sultan then beat him to death right there on the golf course. As Sultan, he had immunity from criminal prosecution. The Malaysian government used the incident and others to strip the Sultans of their criminal immunity.
Rice production it will surprise nobody was not one of Malaya nor Malaysia’s strengths. It is the third largest crop but is not run efficiently with up to date techniques. This might have been guessed from the stamp. Malaya had to import about one third of it’s rice consumption, That was true in 1960 and still true today.
Well my drink is empty and I will pour another to toast the simple rice farmer. To the extent that Malaysia has gotten ahead it is built upon the labor of people like him. Come again tomorrow for another story that can be learned from stamp collecting.