Abbreviation Alliance Dissolved 1 July 1973 | Founded 1952 Succeeded by Barisan Nasional | |
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Founder Tunku Abdul Rahman
Tan Cheng Lock
V.T. Sambanthan Legalised 30 October 1957 (as fully registered) | ||
The Alliance Party (Malay: Parti Perikatan) was a political coalition in Malaysia. The Alliance Party, whose membership comprised United Malays National Organisation (UMNO), Malaysian Chinese Association (MCA) and Malaysian Indian Congress (MIC), was formally registered as a political organisation on 30 October 1957. It was the ruling coalition until it became the Barisan National in 1973.
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History
The Alliance Party started off as an ad hoc and temporary electoral arrangement between the local branches of UMNO and MCA to contest the Kuala Lumpur municipal election in 1952. The UMNO-MCA candidates won in 9 of the 12 seats contested, and their success led a firmer association between the two parties. The alliance was then joined by MIC in 1954.
In 1955, in the first general election for the Federal Legislative Council in what was then the British protectorate of the Federation of Malaya, the UMNO-MCA-MIC Alliance successfully gained the great majority of seats available for contest, winning 51 of the 52 seats contested. It formally registered as a political organisation on 30 October 1957.
The Alliance played an important role in negotiating the transition from British rule to independence, and facilitating the preparation of its constitution. In the General Election held in 1959, after the Malaya had gained independence on 31 August 1957, the Alliance won 74 of the 104 seats contested.
The Alliance is also credited with securing the formation of the Federation of Malaysia on 16 September 1963. After Malaysia came into being, the Alliance Party of the Malay peninsula became closely associated with other alliance parties in Sabah and Sarawak.
In the 1969 general election, although the Alliance Party won the most seats, it garnered less than half the popular vote due to strong challenges from the opposition parties, in particular the newly formed Democratic Action Party and Gerakan. The unease and anxiety after the election led to the May 13 riots, and the declaration of a state of emergency. After the Malaysian Parliament reconvened in 1971, negotiations began with former opposition parties such as Gerakan and People's Progressive Party, both of which joined the Alliance in 1972, quickly followed by Pan-Malaysian Islamic Party. In 1973, the Alliance Party, was formally replaced by Barisan Nasional, a coalition of 9 parties, and the Barisan Nasional was registered in June 1974 to contest the 1974 general election.