No Exit: David Marshall and the Last Jews of Shanghai

David Marshall, Singapore’s first Chief Minister, visited China in 1956, and became the man who got the last Jews out of China. On Sunday November 20, we heard from Marina Shlau Cunningham, a member of one of those Jewish families who was here until 1957. It’s quite a story. (For the event recording, click here.)

Who’s David Marshall?

David Marshall was born in Singapore in 1908 to Sephardic Jewish parents from Baghdad. He was a brilliant criminal lawyer, a great orator, and a fierce anti-colonialist. In 1955, he became the then-colony’s first elected Chief Minister, and took on the mission of negotiating full internal self-government for Singapore, a precursor to independence. But the Merdeka (Freedom) Talks in April 1956 failed, and Marshall resigned in June. He then accepted an invitation to lead a Singapore trade delegation to China in September that year, where he would spend two months.

The Jewish Community Behind the Bamboo Curtain

In June 1956, Marshall received a letter from Reuben David “Ruby” Abraham in Shanghai. Abraham was the leader of the Council of the Jewish Community (CJC), and had heard of Marshall’s visit on the BBC.