Military Ill-prepared for Peacekeeping - G&M

[pbi]

Not to mention with that resettlement came a path of citizenship and land rights, which few of the people moved enjoyed prior to Emergency.

Definitely: it pulled some of the rug out from under the guerillas, along with the announcement of independence.  A few more:

-the guerillas were mainly ethnic Chinese, who were not well liked or trusted by the Malay people: it was not really a "popular uprising" of Malays;

-the land mass of Malaya was relatively easy to isolate, thus making resupply and safe haven more difficult for the guerillas; and

-the British already had a long-standing colonial administration including police structures. This  was disrupted by the Japanese occupation, but it gave the Brits a solid base of  corporate knowledge and understanding which was an advantage.