MALAYSIA HURRAY FOR HARRY WHEN PRETTY CATHERINE LOH WAS ELECTED MISS MALAYSIA 
LAST APRIL, THE PERT BEAUTY FROM THE OIL-RICH BRITISH PROTECTORATE OF 
BRUNEI FULLY EXPECTED TO PRESIDE OVER THE INDEPENDENCE CEREMONIES OF THE 
NEWLY FORMED FEDERATION OF MALAYSIA . BUT THAT WAS BEFORE BRUNEI 
WITHDREW FROM THE PLANNED FEDERATION IN A STATE OF PIQUE, LEAVING 
MALAYA, SINGAPORE, SARAWAK AND NORTH BORNEO TO GO IT ALONE . 
BRUNEI'S DEFECTION NOT ONLY LEFT THIS WEEK'S JOYOUS CELEBRATIONS WITHOUT A 
BEAUTY QUEEN BUT IT ALSO TOOK MALAYSIA OUT OF THE RUNNING 
FOR THE MISS UNIVERSE CONTEST . THE BEAUTY QUEEN FLAP WAS 
LOW ON THE LIST OF LAST-MINUTE LABOR PAINS ATTENDING THE LONG-AWAITED 
BIRTH OF MALAYSIA . AT THE INSISTENCE OF INDONESIA'S BELLIGERENT PRESIDENT 
SUKARNO, WHO BITTERLY OPPOSES THE FEDERATION, MALAYSIA'S INDEPENDENCE HAD BEEN POSTPONED 
TWO WEEKS BEYOND THE ORIGINAL AUG . 31 STARTING DATE, WHILE 
A UNITED NATIONS TEAM INVESTIGATED WHETHER OR NOT NORTH BORNEO AND 
SARAWAK REALLY WANTED TO JOIN . HOPING TO INFLUENCE OPINION AGAINST 
FEDERATION, SUKARNO BEGAN MOVING PARATROOPERS INTO INDONESIAN BORNEO ALONG HIS 900-MILE-LONG 
BORDER WITH THE TWO TERRITORIES . SOME INDONESIAN GUERRILLAS EVEN SNEAKED 
THROUGH THE JUNGLES INTO SARAWAK TO STIR UP TROUBLE ; THEY 
WERE RELENTLESSLY HUNTED DOWN BY TOUGH LITTLE BRITISH ARMY GURKHAS, AIDED 
BY HALFNAKED IBAN TRIBESMEN, WHO HUNG UP AT LEAST ONE INDONESIAN 
HEAD IN THE RAFTERS OF THEIR LONGHOUSES . FEARFUL THAT INDONESIA 
MIGHT EXTRACT FURTHER DELAYS OUT OF MALAYA'S EASYGOING PRIME MINISTER TUNKU 
ABDUL RAHMAN, THE ARCHITECT OF THE FEDERATION, SINGAPORE'S BRILLIANT, SHIFTY PRIME 
MINISTER LEE KUAN YEW, WHO REGARDS SUKARNO AS " AN INTERNATIONAL 
BLACKMAILER, " SWUNG INTO ACTION . FLYING TO SARAWAK AND NORTH 
BORNEO, " HARRY " LEE PICKED UP THE CHIEF MINISTERS OF 
BOTH TERRITORIES AND BROUGHT THEM BACK TO KUALA LUMPUR TO STIFFEN 
UP THE TUNKU . BRITAIN'S COMMONWEALTH SECRETARY DUNCAN SANDYS WAS ALSO 
ON HAND, WORKING HARD TO GET AGREEMENT . THREATENING TO DECLARE 
SINGAPORE AN INDEPENDENT STATE, LEE PRESSURED ABDUL RAHMAN INTO HOLDING FIRM 
FOR THE FEDERATION'S SEPT . 16 DEADLINE . LAST WEEK THE 
FINAL OBSTACLE TO INDEPENDENCE WAS CLEARED AWAY WHEN THE U.N.'S MALAYSIA 
TEAM REPORTED THAT BOTH NORTH BORNEO AND SARAWAK FAVORED THE FEDERATION 
. AS THE NEW NATION PREPARED TO UNFURL ITS RED-AND-WHITE-STRIPED FLAG, 
HARRY LEE WAS QUICK TO CAPITALIZE ON THE OCCASION . WITH 
HIS POPULARITY AT ITS ZENITH FOR HIS MAJOR ROLE IN BRINGING 
THE FEDERATION ABOUT, HE SCHEDULED IMMEDIATE ELECTIONS IN SINGAPORE . 