Following the end of the Japanese Occupation in 1945, the British sought to regain political control over Singapore, which was a vital strategic centre to them.

Winning freedom for colonies in Africa and Asia played a part in instilling hope in the progressive left in Singapore, that independence may come one day.

[2] In December 1953, the National Service Ordinance was passed, requiring the registration of all male British subjects and Federal citizens between the ages of 18-20 for part-time military training.

[1] However, due to the resistance put up by the students, the attempt to recruit male youths for National Service took a back seat.

The united front strategy was a political tool employed by the Malayan Communist Party (MCP) with aims of regathering and rebuilding their strength, which was greatly depleted in jungle fighting during the earlier years of the State of Emergency between 1948 and 1960.

The strategy focused on building relations and contacts with workers, peasants and students, emphasising on how plans and arrangements should be made in order to gain mass.

Especially in circumstances where the enemy is stronger than we are, the work of winning support from school children and organising them is more important than military activities.

First, the MCP recognised these Chinese students as a valuable political force and worked towards systematically absorbing them into the communist movement.

[6] 13 May 1954, as Communist subversion, was seen in the context of the cold war and in supporting this position, sources from scholars such as Lee (1996)[6] and Singh (2008)[7] are largely drawn from colonial media.

This was attributed to large levels of economic exploitation and the social injustice felt by the people, which then saw subsequent calls for self-governance and democracy.

[4] In 1954, both the Chinese leadership and student activists faced further pressures when the British made English the only language to be used in the legislative assembly.

[2] The Chinese middle school students had however, also moved out of the parameters of strictly Chinese-focused issues by linking themselves to a larger historical context of anti-colonial movement.

It argued that pressing students into military service was in no way "national" for it entailed "a colonial people to be trained to fight wars in the making of which they have no part – no choice of their foes or allies.

[9] In the view of scholars like Quee, Tan & Hong[2] and Barr, & Trocki,[9] 13 May 1954 represented the convergence of notions of nationalism, with help from the English-educated.

Thum bases his opinion largely from Chinese sources such as the Nanyang Siang Pao, Nanfang Evening Post and Sin Chew Jit Poh.

The lack of documents sent to these young men to explain the purpose of national service caused many to believe that they would be sent into the Malayan jungle to fight for the British.

In addition, miscommunication and translation regarding the term "National Service" resulted in adverse sentiments among these Chinese Middle School students for it was mistranslated as minzhong fuwu, 民众服务, which literally meant "servitude by the masses", a term with demeaning connotations implying the mass of the people acting as indentured servants of the elite.

This discontent and miscommunication was further fuelled by the ineffective registration process whereby Chinese Middle School students were provoked by the disruptive and authoritative conduct of the government team, who sent teams into Chung Cheng High School without warning, and went from class to class to distribute registration forms, disrupting lessons.

[1] On 13 May 1954 itself, representatives from the affected students made preparations to meet William Goode in government house to negotiate the ordinance.

13 May 1954 also has a crucial significance in the politics in Singapore, for it was this event that enforced unity between students, labour workers and the People's Action Party (PAP), then led by Lee Kuan Yew and leftist trade union leaders Lim Chin Siong and Fong Swee Suan.

The 1959 election was the first full internal self-government granted by the British authority, and the People's Action Party led by Lee won 43 out of 51 seats in the legislative assembly, forming the government.

The PAP appealed to the Chinese community by promoting workers' rights and establishing policies that aimed to abolish Emergency Regulations, putting an end to colonialist exploitation.