United Malays National Organisation
The Philippines and Indonesia strenuously objected to this development, with Indonesia claiming Malaysia represented a form of neocolonialism and the Philippines claiming Sabah as its territory. The United Nations sent a commission to the region which approved the merger after having delayed the date of Malaysia's formation to investigate. Despite further protests from the Indonesian President, Sukarno, the formation of Malaysia was proclaimed on 16 September 1963. Indonesia then declared a "confrontation" with Malaysia, sending commandos to perform guerilla attacks in East Malaysia (Sabah and Sarawak). The confrontation was ended when a military coup replaced Sukarno with Suharto. The Philippines, which had withdrawn diplomatic recognition from Malaysia, also recognised Malaysia around the same time.
Monarchies of Malaysia
In 1946, after World War II, the British combined the Federated Malay States and the Unfederated Malay States, together with two of the Straits Settlements, Penang and Malacca, to form the Malayan Union which was headed by a British governor. Under the terms of the Union, the Malay rulers conceded all their powers to the British Crown except in religious matters. Widespread opposition by Malay nationalists led to the reform of Malayan Union to become the Federation of Malaya in 1948, in which the rulers were restored to their symbolic role as heads of state.