ABOUT 75 years ago, in 1946, the headline of the local newspaper read, "Popular Malayan Civil Servant Returns... a man who had always proved himself courteous and considerate both to his subordinates and members of the public in general".
The man was none other than Mervyn Cecil ffrank Sheppard, later known as Tan Sri Haji Mubin Sheppard. Mubin Sheppard had been appointed as the First Director of the First Department of Public Relations in Malaya on March 14, 1946.
Mubin Sheppard is renowned in Malaysia for his contribution to the set-up of the National Archives and the National Museum under the direction of the first Prime Minister, Tunku Abdul Rahman Putra Al-haj.
He had also established the National Art Gallery and the Malayan Historical Society. However, few Malaysians know that Mubin Sheppard was also responsible for the setting up of the country's First Department of Public Relations.
Mubin Sheppard was popularly known for his noble and philanthropic nature and was often called by the other European officers as being "Malay Mad" for his devotion and perseverance to help Malayans. In fact, some people knew Mubin Sheppard more widely as the British officer who gave up a huge Irish castle of about 1100-acre (4,451 hectare) estate to settle in Malaysia.
With myself representing the International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM) and Dr Rizwanah Souket (of Monash University Malaysia), we want to elaborate on the distinguished contributions that Mubin Sheppard had made to the Malaysian people and the establishment of the country's first Public Relations Department.
The year 1946 in Malaya was marked by a period of disorder, chaos in law and order, scarcity of food and an antagonistic crowd that had no confidence in the British colonialists. The British were desperate to win the support of Malayans and to restore the power they had lost in World War Two.
Thus, as a post-war initiative to rebuild their image, the British introduced a Department of Public Relations in Malaya. The person selected to head the department was to be a people's person.
The young Mervyn Sheppard, arrived in the then Malaya on Jan 26, 1928 at the age of 22 after passing the highly competitive Civil Service Examination in London. He was born on June 21, 1905 in Ireland to a Christian family, was raised in England and pursued his degree in history at Magdalen College, Cambridge before embarking to Malaya.
Mubin Sheppard has recorded most of his life in the civil service and his experience of 35 years in government service in Malaya, serving in six states, one settlement, six districts and two secretariats, in his memoirs.
From his personal materials kept in the National Archives, the documents of several organisations in Kuala Lumpur, his autobiography, Mubin Sheppard's publications & biography and personal interviews conducted on him, it is evident that he played a significant role in the Malayan community.
Mubin Sheppard went to great lengths to improve the conditions of the local people. Throughout his Malayan expedition he was keen on encouraging the education of the local people through the establishment of schools and reading clubs. He also formed a Malay employment committee, encouraged land cultivation, promoted and marketed the fine quality of the local Malay weaving trade and administered the living standards of the local people.
Mubin Sheppard had also proven his loyalty to Malayans by taking up arms against the Japanese. On Feb 15, 1942, Mubin Sheppard along with other British nationals surrendered to the Japanese and was interned at Changi Prison for three and a half years.
In prison, he was caught operating a one-man secret postal service between two camps and underwent harsh interrogation by the Japanese through water treatment torture, lashes and confinement in a cage for weeks.
Once the Japanese were defeated, Mubin Sheppard took a major step along with other military groups to round up the Kempeitai soldiers in the Riau Islands.
He later took up the post of the first Director of Public Relations, Malayan Union, at Jalan Mountbatten. Mubin Sheppard had revealed in an interview that there was "nothing at all when he reported for duty… no chairs, no tables, no papers. I had to start from scratch".
However, in a period of six months, Mubin Sheppard had managed to establish the groundwork for the first Department of Public Relations in Malaya. The department controlled the setting up of Information Centres to control information flow, held exhibitions, conducted tours of mobile public address units, planned materials for public addresses and updated routine progress reports. He had also endeavoured to introduce public relations work in Sarawak.
One of Mubin Sheppard's greatest achievements, which is acknowledged even till today but not known by many, was the initiation of the Malayan Film Unit (MFU) and Radio Malaya.
In April 1946, Mubin Sheppard's strategy of purchasing a detachment of the Crown Film Unit that was used in Burma resulted in the beginning of a new chapter in the use of films for propaganda purposes in Malaya. Radio Malaya began as a merger of the British Malayan Broadcasting Corporation and the Malaya Broadcasting Corporation and began functioning in April 1946 with its headquarters in Singapore.
In early April 1947, Mubin Sheppard stepped down and made way for James Noel McHugh to take up the post of Acting Director of Public Relations Department.
The Straits Times in a report dated April 13, 1947, states, "A man who built up a completely new government department whose work now envelopes the whole of the Malayan Union leaves Malaya - He is Mr M.C. ff Sheppard, Director of the country's first Public Relations Department".
Mubin Sheppard continued helping the Malayans and the country all throughout his life. After leaving the Department of Public Relations, he worked on providing free supply of milk for undernourished children in Klang, introduced latrines to villagers in a war against hookworms, and set up the first library in Klang.
He founded the Sheppard Boys Club to help the young keep away from drugs. Throughout the Emergency in 1950s, Mubin Sheppard organised central rice kitchens in resettled areas and rubber estates to serve cooked rice to the community.
During his later years, he revived his passion for the Malay Art that he had embraced in Melaka earlier and developed an interest in the largely neglected arts and crafts of Malaysian culture. His wide knowledge of Malay history and culture contributed in the setting up of the National Archives and the National Museum.
He was often referred to as "Orang Putih Berbudaya Melayu". Mubin Sheppard retired in 1964 after years of commitment and sacrifices for the Malayan people. He was an excellent writer and had written 17 books. Some of his most successful works included the biography of Tunku, the Malay Regiment (1947), the adventures of Hang Tuah and the Living Crafts of Malaysia. In his book, 'Taman Budiman: Memoirs of an Unorthodox Civil Servant', Mubin Sheppard documented his life in the civil service between 1928 and 1956.
He embraced Islam in 1957 and further contributed to the Muslim community through Islamic foundations and welfare organisations. On Jan 15, 1958, Mubin Sheppard was granted Malaysian citizenship.
After performing the Haj in 1960, Mubin Sheppard helped establish Perkim and the Muslim Welfare Organisation of Malaysia. He also devoted a great deal of time and energy to the Malayan Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society, where he remained as its vice-president and honorary editor till his death in 1994.
In a personal letter on Jan 3, 1929, Mubin Sheppard memorably said: "It is extraordinary to think what a toss-up it was between going to Ceylon, Malaya or Hong Kong whereas, of course, this is infinitely and incomparably the best of the three - Ceylon has an impossible constitution and Honk Kong is a mere Municipality but I believe Malaya has a lot of future before it. Any way the people are so charming that I cannot cease to be thankful that I came here…"
* The writer is a professor at the International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM)