 As the gradual withdrawal of the Western colonial powers in Southeast Asia continued taking shape, the independence of Malaya as a united political entity seemed a foregone conclusion.However, the merger of the British crown colony of Penang into the vast Malay heartland alarmed some quarters of Penang's population.Questions were raised over economic and ethnic issues, such as the citizenship of non-Malays, greater trade regulations imposed on Penang by the central government in Kuala Lumpur and the introduction of export duties for trade with the rest of Malaya.