The Natrah episode took place more than 50 years ago and should be viewed in its own perspective. At the center of it all was a Dutch girl, Huberdina Maria Hertogh who was better known as Natrah. She was brought up in the islamic way by her mother Cik Aminah, in Chukai kemaman, terengganu, Living among the malays. They attracted a lot of attention when Natrah natural born mother arrived in Singapore on 5th Safar 1370 Hijrah/15 November 1950 to claim her back. The court decission showed that she had been cruelly taken away from her adopted mother cik Aminah. Her marriage to Mansor Adabi was nullified under civil law and she was forced to live in a convent. Later, she was taken back to Holland to live in a small village from the traditions and culture of the Malay life she had been familliar with. Riots broke out immediately after the court judgement was announced on 2 Rabiulawal 1370 Hijrah/12 December 1950. 18 people were killed and 173 injured. Singapore was placed under curfew for two days and two night. The riots were not just the manifestation of the sensitivity of the Malays towards religious issues which had been belittled by the west, but actually indicated more seroius issues than that. It showed the deep-seated anti colonial feelings of the Malays. The unhappines of the Malays living under the colonialist and their desire to be independent like other Asian nations at that time inflamed their spirit to go againts the British. Indonesia had also just achieved absolute independence from the the Dutch. The riots were like sparks of natinalism and were the first large scale display of the desire for independence in modern times.
