TEMERLOH: The historical Kuala Krau police station here, which was attacked by the communists twice, will be turned into a gallery once the new police station is completed.
Pahang police chief Datuk Seri Yahaya Othman said the communists attacked the Kuala Krau police station in two separate incidents on June 26, 1948 and Sept 11, 1949, which led to fatal incidents involving the policemen.
"The Kuala Krau police station has huge historical significance, so we plan to turn it into a gallery or maybe a police museum for the public.
"Not many people are aware of the incidents here where not only the policemen, but the wife of one of them fought bravely to defend the police force.
"The new police station nearby will be completed next year, and the existing building will be vacant.
"We can preserve the old buildings at the site here and turn it into a new tourist attraction for the public," he told reporters at the Kuala Krau police station here today.
Yahaya had earlier unveiled a memorial stone in honour of the policemen who lost their lives while serving at the police station during the communist attack between 1948 and 1949.
"In the first attack on June 26, 1948, policeman Mohd Yusoff Mohamad's heavily pregnant wife Mahani Konel was killed while helping her husband defend the police station from a communist attack.
"She told her two children to hide under a blanket while she carried a firearm to join her husband.
"The second incident on Sept 11, 1949, saw some 250 communists attacking the police station at about 4am and was ironically known as "Peristiwa Subuh Berdarah" as the attackers stopped when the azan for Subuh was sounded.
"Police officer Hamzah was killed in the incident," he said in his speech earlier.
Yahaya expressed his appreciation to Associate Professor Dr Azhar Wahid who led a team of researchers from Universiti Pendidikan Sultan Idris in Perak to conduct a detailed study and produce a book titled "Naratif Peristiwa Kuala Krau 1948-1949" which has become a main source of reference for the programme today.