06 / BEFORE MALAYSIA
What Australian diplomatic records reveal about constitutional negotiations before federation.
North Borneo is the historical name used for Sabah in these records. DFAT publishes the documents in Volume 25: Australia and the Formation of Malaysia, 1961–1966. They record contemporary diplomatic assessments, including reports of British officials’ views.
The comparison below concerns negotiations and constitutional safeguards. A conclusion about economic development would require comparable evidence on income, education, health and infrastructure.
DOCUMENT 10 / 5 SEPTEMBER 1962
A confidential London cablegram relayed Golds’s account of the Lansdowne Mission: Sarawak was expected to be easier to settle, while North Borneo still needed substantial negotiating work.
“a substantial job of work to be done in North Borneo”
Donald Stephens sought written constitutional guarantees on religion; language and education were also unresolved concerns. This records demands for safeguards, rather than a statistical ranking of development.
London · Cablegram 4337 · Confidential · Paragraph 2 · NAA: A1945, 162/4/4
Read the original DFAT recordSide by side
| Territory | Reported negotiating position |
|---|---|
| Sarawak | Fewer difficulties anticipated by the mission. |
| Sabah / North Borneo | More issues still required settlement and firm guarantees. |
These are reported views in a diplomatic cable, not measurements of the worth, ability or rights of either people.
11 AUGUST 1961 / DOCUMENT 1
Menzies’s Secret Cabinet Submission No. 1304 discussed development and political conditions across the Borneo territories. Paragraph 27 reported British concerns about proceeding too quickly; paragraph 31(v) anticipated that the project might take three or four years. This was a forecast, not an agreed timetable.
NAA: A4940, C3389 · Paragraphs 14, 27 and 31(v)
Read the Cabinet submission3 AUGUST 1962 / DOCUMENT 8
A Secret cablegram described proposals for a gradual transfer of executive responsibilities. Details of responsible government, finance and safeguards still needed work through the Inter-Governmental Committee. These were negotiating proposals at that date, rather than a statement of the final arrangements.
NAA: A1209, 1961/794 part 2 · Paragraphs 6–8
Read the August cablegram