In February 1951, James and the other detainees were sent to St. John’s island where living conditions were much better. The leader of the group was P.V Sharma, who according to James, did not have a good intellect but was inclined to adhere to communist guidelines in managing the group.
Soon after their arrival at St. John’s island, Sharma wanted them to be organised into cells. James saw no sense in this because there was only 10 of them and they were no longer involved actively in any political struggle.
James suggested that they should all admit to their involvement and be released so that they could return to their political struggle. He submitted that an undertaking obtained from them by the police while they were under detention had no binding force on a gentlemen’s agreement and hence they were free to break it. His suggestion sparked a round of protests and was later dropped.
Another difference that arose with the rest of the group was James’ plan to escape. He and Low Wah Lian felt that they should not waste their life in detention which they expected to last a long time. Loh Wah Lian promoted the idea that the group should escape from the camp. He found a piece of steel one day and started to sharpen it daily with the hope of making a knife which would be used for the escape. The plan was to enageg the assistance of some Malay inhabitants on the island and obtain a boat to take them to Batam.
The plan was rejected rejected by Sharma and Yap Thian Fong. They insisted that the group stay together on St. John’s island until they were freed by the Revolution.
Despite their leaders opposition, James and the other proceeded to prepare for their escape. What they needed most was the money to purchase a boat. James enlisted his brother George to help me. One day, during one of his visits, George handed James a packet of prunes. He had removed the paper cover of the packet, wrapped the currency notes amount to $500 around the packet and then pasted the paper cover over the notes. The escape plan did not materialise because soon after, the group split up.
James was not really surprised by the detention of the ABL group. Before this he had no dealings with Samad Ismail. However he was aware that the Malay section of the ABL was led by Samad Ismail and his superior Abdullah Sudin was holding their activities in a house near Paterson Hill Road. He was also aware that after Lim Chan Yong’s detention, Abdullah Majid and Tan Seng Lock had visited Samad Ismail to seek advice on how to respond to the new situation.