The Untold Negotiations Behind Singapore's Independence in 1965

For decades, the conventional wisdom was that Singapore was “kicked out” of Malaysia. However, newly released documents in Dr Goh Keng Swee's Albatross file reveal a more complex history. In this episode, Janadas Devan, the coordinator for the Albatross File project, tells us more about the secret negotiations by Singapore’s leaders to separate from Malaysia, even as many of them still hoped to preserve a looser federation.Janadas Devan is Senior Advisor (Government Communications) of Ministry of Digital Development and Information and the Prime Minister’s Office, and Director of the Institute of Policy Studies. A former journalist, he was educated at the National University of Singapore and Cornell University in the United States.What Janadas Talked About00:00 – Introduction to the Albatross File book and exhibition04:41 – Why Singapore joined Malaysia in 196308:18 – Agreement between Lee Kuan Yew and Tunku to keep out of Malaysian politics10:25 – UMNO’s performance in Singapore general elections 12:09 – PAP’s participation in Malaysia general elections and politics15:05 – What Janadas remembers of the rallies in Malaysia16:42 – Last straw that led to separation24:46 – Goh Keng Swee’s proposal to separate25:25 – Why Lee Kuan Yew was disliked by Malaysian politicians28:54 – Why the British opposed a looser federation31:02 – Why negotiations on separation were kept secret31:50 – Opposition within Singapore leadership to the idea of looser federation34:43 – Why the narrative of Singapore being “kicked out” of Malaysia was dominant37:52 – What the Albatross file reveals about separation41:47 – Importance of archives in other countries and Lee Kuan Yew’s memoirs43:00 – Whether a looser federation would have worked44:13 – Whether Goh Keng Swee had a vision for independent Singapore47:07 – How the book and exhibition came about52:25 – Which document in the Albatross file surprised Janadas57:03 – How to begin reading the book57:45 – Possible second edition1:00:47 – The books Janadas is working onTranscript and ResourcesRead the transcript: https://biblioasia.nlb.gov.sg/all-sections/podcast-the-untold-negotiations-behind-singapore-s-independence-in-1965/Read the related BiblioAsia article: https://biblioasia.nlb.gov.sg/all-sections/vol-22-issue-1-apr-jun-2026-the-architect-of-separation/Subscribe to BiblioAsia for more stories about Singapore.This episode of BiblioAsia Podcast was hosted by Jimmy Yap and produced by Soh Gek Han. Sound engineering was done by Red Ink Media. The background music “Di Tanjong Katong” was composed by Ahmad Patek and performed by Chords Haven. Special thanks to Janadas for coming on the show.Produced by the National Library Singapore, the BiblioAsia Podcast tells stories about Singapore history.