A lifetime dedicated to documenting OneMalaysia

Michael Wong Swee Lin was born in Kuala Lumpur on October 3, 1926. His father was with the telecommunications department in Rasah, Kuala Kubu, Selangor area. His mother’s family lived in Kepong. When his father was transferred to Muda Hulu to Tapah Road, Ipoh, Wong studied at the Government English School and the Anderson School, Ipoh. (January 1, 1933 – December 12, 1938. When the Japanese occupied Malaya, Wong worked with the Tokyo Bus Company (January 1, 1939 - December 12, 1941, as a clerk, in charge of petrol for the company’s consumption.


When the British returned, he was employed as a temporary English teacher at a public Chinese school at Rasa from July 1, 1946 to December 31, 1946 earning $130 a month. Wong then taught English at Xu Hua Chinese School from January 1, 1947 to May 30, 1948, earning about $140 a month.



Joined the Department of Public Relations as a temporary clerk, earning $120 a month from August 26, 1948 to end of 1949 and was employed as a State Clerical Officer after passing a special examination. He was then appointed as Photographer in 1950 with the Public Relations Department after passing a special photography examination conducted by the government. During that time he had to support 8 people – his grandmother, mother, four sisters and two brothers.

The True Spirit of Merdeka

Every August 31 is Malaysia's birthday. And the media would definitely publish and air all those classic photographs of the past. But do they acknowledge the people who had worked painstakingly to capture those moments? It is sad that all the big guns in the Malaysian Press do not acknowledge the contributions of senior photographers who had documented all those old pictures of Malaya. What they only do was to post the source as theirs when in actual fact were captured by former Information Department photographers.

Long ago during the early days after Malaysia's Independence, the Information Department staffs were the most handy of all people in disseminating information about the country to rural folks. They used to put up shows on big screens in the remotest area of Malaysia informing the people about the country's development Green Book and Red Book Plans, conveying important messages pertaining to the Communists threat, or merely airing old films for free entertainment.

There were also incidents when their comrades from other department, for instance, the Filem Negara unit, were killed in accidents or murdered by bandits, in line of duty. And most of the photographs we are viewing now take no credit of these people who had sacrificed their very own life to get the job done.

I hate to see these big guns running the show without even a small credit to the Unsung Heroes. Perhap true to the phrase, 'Old photographers do not diminish, they're only out of frame.'

People like the Large Format print companies, many of them, are 'hungry' of any hint of old photographs of the Royalty or prominent leaders, and get them treated and printed for exhibitions but pay no respect to the people who caught those moments on film. They even reproduce the prints on canvas for show at their gallery or for other people to purchase at hansome prices. They are actually the cannibals. I'd like to smack their pretty faces, but the law forbid.

So come Merdeka Day, these cannibals are the real victors, bagging home big profits, out of the true spirit of the people who had dedicated their whole life documenting the historic moments of the past. And these cannibals are the same people who are contributing the many pictures at exhibitions around the country, the Merdeka Stadium, National Art Gallery, in publications and etc.

Happy Independence Day

     Happy Merdeka Day to 95-year-old, Wong Swee Lin.