the authorities. On the second day of the talks, Chin promised that the CPM would stop fighting and lay down its arms if the Alliance government persuaded the British government to grant it authority over internal security and defence. Tunku Abdul Rahman accepted it as a challenge and promised that he would push for it on his upcoming trip to London. Great publicity was given in the media to this dramatic challenge from Chin Peng. The challenge, indeed, served to strengthen the Alliance government's bargaining position at the London talks. Anxious to end the Emergency, the British government agreed to concede those powers of internal security and defence and to accede to the demand for independence for Malaya by 31 August 1957, if possible. Chin claimed it was his challenge to Tunku Abdul Rahman that hastened the independence of Malaya. Tunku Abdul Rahman had acknowledged the importance of the Baling talks, writing in 1974 that "Baling had led straight to Merdeka (Independence)." Regardless, the talks themselves ended without a consensus between the two sides. The talks finally collapsed but were regarded as both a success and failure for Tunku Abdul Rahman, as the talks made the British regard him as a strong leader who was tough on communism. His performance had also impressed the Colonial Office enough to grant Malaya independence. For the CPM, it was a very demoralising affair that nearly destroyed their already ailing struggle. The failure of the Baling Talks was a great blow for the CPM, since they now lost hope both of ending the war and of propagating their ideology. Due to the mounting combat casualties and the insecurity of food supplies, the members began surrendering to the government in exchange for monetary rewards and pardons. In 1956, Chin wrote to Tunku Abdul Rahman offering to resume negotiations. This was rejected by Rahman in a broadcast on 2 April. By late 1958, the MNLA had lost almost 88% of its men, declining from an approximately 3000-strong army when they first rebelled in mid-1948 to no more than 350 men, as a result of casualties and surrenders. In 1959, the central committees of CPM decided to demobilise their activities and to have the guerrillas reintegrate into society while continuing to promote their communist ideals until such a time when they could once again rise up in revolt. Chin then moved to south Thailand with the remnants