15 August 2025 – [Talk] Operation Cleeves, SOE’s Forgotten Wartime Tragedy in Thailand

Operation Cleeves, SOE’s Forgotten Wartime Tragedy in Thailand

DETAILS
Speakers: Ms. Kate Reid-Smith
Panelists: Mr. Steve Wright and Dr. Tan Chee Seng
Date: Friday, August 15th
Time: 2:00 – 3:30 PM
Venue: Conference Hall, Penang Institute
Registration (For Physical Attendance):

Note: Entrance to this event is FREE. Join us in person or watch the live stream on Penang Institute’s Facebook and YouTube channel.

About the Talk

On December 8, 1941, Malaya, then under British administration, began to be occupied by Japanese forces. This occupation would last for three years and eight months, profoundly impacting post-war Malayan society.

As we approach the 84th anniversary of this pivotal event, it prompts us to reflect on its lasting implications. In this talk, Ms. Kate Reid-Smith will discuss her latest book, Operation Cleeves: SOE’s Forgotten Wartime Tragedy in Thailand, which explores the overlooked role of Penang during World War II. Her research reveals a previously unknown chapter in Penang’s crucial involvement in the first British Special Operations Executive (Far East) covert planning behind enemy lines in December 1941.

These new perspectives reveal Penang’s previously unrecognized role in orchestrating small-scale sabotage and demolition operations planned for Southern Thailand during Japan’s invasion on December 8, 1941.

Following Ms. Kate Reid-Smith’s presentation, there will be a panel discussion featuring her, Mr. Steve Wright, and Dr. Tan Chee Seng.

About the Speaker

Ms. Kate Reid-Smith is a former military officer, now military and intelligence historian. She specializes in uncovering, investigating, and bringing to light covert Southeast Asian World War Two history, including SOE and other behind-enemy-lines operations.

Kate has lived, worked, and travelled extensively in and around Southeast Asia, and now finds herself with a travel addiction of purposefully stumbling upon old wartime-related books, stories, and photographs. She has turned into a bit of a snob about laksa. She writes in the witching hours which suit her best, then spends the rest of the day trying to impress her wayward cat named Calico, that she does not own Kate’s writing desk.

About the Panelists

Dr. Tan Chee Seng (Ph.D. in Chinese Studies, National University of Singapore) is currently Chairperson and Senior Lecturer in the History Section at the School of Humanities, Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM).

He was a Visiting Student at the Institute of Modern History, Academia Sinica, in 2010 and 2011. His research focuses on modern Chinese history and the history of Overseas Chinese. He has published academic papers in Chinese, English, and Malay in both local and international journals.

Dr. Tan has delivered keynote speeches and presentations in Fuzhou (2018), Shanghai (2019), Penang (2024), and at Academia Sinica in Taipei (2025). He currently serves as Vice President of the Malaysia Silk Road Society.

Mr. Steve Wright was born to a Eurasian mother and English father in London in 1961. He embraces his mixed-race heritage and has been actively engaged in pursuing the family history and stories passed on by his maternal grandmother, who moved to Kuala Lumpur from her birthplace in Borneo in the 1920s.

His family escaped Singapore on the last Red Cross convoy to sail for India in February 1942, before returning after the war and relocating to the UK in 1956. Steve is Global Design Director for a major pharmaceutical organisation and a regular speaker on the international Architecture and Design conference circuit. He enjoys cooking and sharing his grandmother’s passion for eastern cuisine with his three sons.

Event Summary

On August 15, the Penang Institute hosted a talk featuring three speakers: Ms. Kate Reid-Smith, Mr. Steve Wright, and Dr. Tan Chee Seng, Chairperson and Senior Lecturer in the History Section at the School of Humanities, Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM). The event successfully uncovered a forgotten chapter of Penang’s history during World War II by blending historical research with personal family stories.

Ms. Kate Reid-Smith, author of the book, SOE’s Forgotten Wartime Tragedy in Thailand, shared her extensive research on Operation Cleeves. Her presentation explained how this secret organization was established and why Penang served as its central hub, highlighting the city’s crucial role during the war. Mr. Steve Wright traveled from the UK to share his family’s deep connection to this history. He recounted his family’s struggles, beginning with his maternal grandfather’s journey from Borneo to Kuala Lumpur in 1942, followed by an escape to Singapore just before its fall. He painted a vivid picture of his family navigating wartime Southeast Asia, moving through Malaya, Singapore, and camps in India before returning to Singapore in the post-war era.

Finally, Dr. Tan Chee Seng shared his own family’s wartime story. He revealed that he only discovered later in life that his grandfather was a spy sent from China to Malaya. Dr. Tan then provided an insightful analysis of Chinese movements during the war, noting how his personal family history resonated with Ms. Reid-Smith’s research on secret wartime activities.

Together, the speakers’ narratives provided an inspiring new perspective, shedding light on the struggles and the crucial role that shaped wartime Penang and the wider Southeast Asian region.