How badly could the UK have realistically mishandled the Malayan Emergency?
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Bad as in, a much less effective counter-insurgency, whilst possibly also straining relations between the British and local forces. Along with a much less successful hearts and minds campaign. Were there any alternate choices for Director of Operations who might have done things differently, and specifically more aggressively, than Briggs and Templer (say for example if they had to be called away to some other conflict in the region)?
What I'm looking for wouldn't, in and of itself, lead to an outright British defeat (although there are some other factors I'm thinking of playing with), it should go some way to causing America to later reconsider excessive hard power in their containment strategies and instead favour a more soft power centric approach.
TBH the British didn't need to handle it well. They had naval superiority in a island environment and their enemies were a hated minority they could trust the locals to massacre for them if needed. Vietnam it was not.
If they bungle the whole thing, though...
Maybe they try to depose the Sultans, if they get too close with the Chinese. Remember, the Sultans owed the Chinese HUUUGEE sums of ca$h, so if the Chinese promise to end all the debt in return for support...
Then they just default and ask the British for cash or the possibility to take over the rights of the Chinese to collect debt from others.
Please keep in mind that I know (almost) nothing about Malaya...
If they bungle the whole thing, though...
Maybe they try to depose the Sultans, if they get too close with the Chinese. Remember, the Sultans owed the Chinese HUUUGEE sums of ca$h, so if the Chinese promise to end all the debt in return for support...
Trouble is the uprising was communist, the sultans are very well aware that they are public enemy number 1 to communists.
The sultans will always be on side- turn the population against the sultans in some way?
You would have to have Britain go in very handed and somehow make it less of an ethnic Chinese thing. Piss off Malays so much that they also go into the communist camp