24 Facts About Onn Jaafar

Dato' Sir Onn bin Dato' Jaafar was a Malayan politician who served as the 7th Menteri Besar of Johor from 1947 to 1950.

Onn Jaafar's organised opposition towards the creation of the Malayan Union led him to form the United Malays National Organisation in 1946; he was UMNO's founder and its first president until his resignation in 1951.

Onn Jaafar was famously known as the pioneer of organised anti-imperialism and early Malay nationalism within Malaya, which eventually culminated with the Malayan independence from Britain.

Onn Jaafar was responsible for the social and economic welfare of the Malays by setting up the Rural Industrial Development Authority.

Onn Jaafar's son Hussein Onn was the third Prime Minister of Malaysia, his grandson, Hishammuddin Hussein is a senior UMNO politician, and his great-grandson Onn Hafiz Ghazi is the current Member of the Johor State Legislative Assembly for Layang-Layang and 19th Menteri Besar of Johor.

Onn Jaafar's mother was Roquaiya Hanim, who came from the Caucasus region of the Ottoman Empire, and was either of Circassian or Georgian origin.

Onn Jaafar was likely presented as a concubine by the Ottoman court to the Sultan of Johor.

Onn Jaafar's mother was married three times and the last time was with his father.

Onn Jaafar started his education in a Malay school in Johor Bahru.

Onn Jaafar excelled in sports and captained the school's cricket and football teams.

Onn Jaafar returned to Malaya and was enrolled at the Malay College Kuala Kangsar where he studied there for two years from 1910 to 1911.

Onn Jaafar served in this capacity in several departments before joining the Johor Military Forces in 1917 with the rank of lieutenant.

Onn Jaafar rejoined the service again in 1921 as an Assistant Collector of Land Revenue.

Onn Jaafar went into exile in Singapore and became the editor of a Malay paper, Warta Malaya, in 1930.

Onn Jaafar became very popular after he continued to cover issues on Malay grievances, and Sultan Ibrahim invited Onn Jaafar to return to Johor in 1936.

In 1941, following the Japanese occupation of Malaya, Onn Jaafar was drafted into the administrative system and served as a food controller in Johor.

Onn Jaafar took up the role of UMNO's president on 1 May 1946.

In early 1950, Sultan Ibrahim approached Onn Jaafar, who was asked to choose between committing his efforts for UMNO and the state.

Onn Jaafar became increasingly disillusioned and disgusted with what he considered to be UMNO's race-based communalist policies, and called for party membership to be opened to all Malayans of all races, and for UMNO to be renamed as the United Malayans National Organisation.

Onn Jaafar left the party on 26 August 1951 after his recommendations went unheeded, and formed the Independence of Malaya Party.

However, the IMP failed to receive sufficient backing from Malayans, and eventually Onn Jaafar left it to form the Parti Negara, which placed membership restrictions on non-Malays in an attempt to appeal to Malays.

Onn Jaafar won the Kuala Terengganu Selatan seat in the Malayan parliament in the 1959 elections under his new party.

Dato' Onn Jaafar died at the age of 66, on 19 January 1962 at the Officers' Ward, General Hospital, Johor Bahru.

Onn Jaafar was buried next to his father Jaafar Muhammad's grave, at the Mahmoodiah Royal Mausoleum in Johor Bahru.