Chapter 6 MALAYSIA.pptx

M A L A Y S I A
Competitive Authoritarianism in a Plural
Society

Current King and Prime Minister
Abdulah of Pahang Ismail Sabri Yaakob

Capital : Kuala Lumpur
Largest City : Bintulo
Population : 32.37M
(2022)

 1511
•Malacca fell to the Portuguese
 Dutch East India Company
(Vereenigde Oostindische Compagnie,
VOC)
•Wrested Malacca from the
Portuguese in 1641

 Late 18th century onwards
• British influence began to expand
over peninsular Malaysia
− Initially through trade
• Takeover of Penang (1786) and
Singapore (1819)

 British-Dutch Treaty of 1824
• Gave control over Malacca to Britain
• Merged it with Penang and Singapore to
become “Strait Settlements”
− Governed directly by British Crown until
1946
 Treaty of Pangkor (1874)
• Britain progressively extended its rule over all
peninsular Malaysia as well as North Borneo

 Heterogenous mix of direct colonial rule in
the so-called Strait Settlements and indirect
rule in the form of Malay royal sovereignty
 Administrative Patchwork
• Federated Malay State
• Unfederated Malay State
• Strait Settlements
• British protectorates of Sabah and Sarawak
in Northern Borneo

 Federated States
• Perak, Selangor, Negeri Sembilan, and
Pahang
• British established a resident system
− Under local Malay rules
• 1895
− Federated state were put under
centralized administrative system

 Unfederated Malay States
• Johor, Kelantan, Terengganu,
Kedah, and Perlis
• Kept their traditional political order
dominated by Malays
• Early 20th century
− Resident system was installed in
these states

 Federated States and Strait Settlements
• British investments in public infrastructure
• Introduction of Western legal system
• Emerging modern economy
− Contributed to significantly higher
levels of socioeconomic development at
independence that in the rest of
Malaysia

 Indirect rule
• Reinforced the principle of Malay dominance
• Maintaining Sultanates
• Providing a privileged status for Malays
− Civil service
− land ownership
− Educational system
 Early 19th century
• Population of the Malay Peninsula was 90% Malay

 Migration of Chinese and Indian
laborers
• Hired for cheap labors for tin and
rubber industries
• Malay population dropped to 50.15 in
1993

 Plurality society
• Distinct social orders, living in parallel
within one political entity
• Chinese – intermediary merchants,
industrial workers and entreprenuers
• Indians – employed in rubber industry
• Malays – remained traditional agriculture
or manned local and middle ranks in public
administration, police, and colonial troops

 During WWII between 1942-1945
• British Malaya was under Japanese occupation
• Local rulers lost influential
• Collapse of Malaysia’s export economy
 Malayans Peoples’ Anti-Japanese Army
• Lead by Communist party of Malaya
• Repress Chinese population and resist their
occupation in Malay

 Communist guerrilla remained in control of
parts of the country
• Malay fears of Chinese takeover
• Until the British suppressed the insurgency
between 1948 and 1955
 Malay Nationalism and communist insurgency
• British tried to reconcile ethnic tension
− Preparation for an eventual transfer of
power

 Malay elites opposed the resulting creation of a
Malay union
• Fearing the loss of their traditional privileges
 Malay Union
• From federated and unfederated states including
Penang and Malacca in 1946
 Malaysia National Organization (UMNO)
• 41 Malay organizations merged to become united in
May 1964

 Malayan Indian Congress
• Political vehicle of the Indian community
• Criticized the proposal but demanded better
political participation for the non-Malay population
 British dissolve the Union in 1948
• Instead created the Federation of Malay
− Left the sovereignty of Malay Sultans
untouched and gave constituents state moore
authority

 Provoke resistance from the newly
established Malayan Chinese
Association (MCA)
• Only 10% of the Chinese population
was granted citizenship

 The conflict resolved in the run-up to the first
general election for the Federal Legislative Council in
1955
• UMNO, MCA, and MIC agreed to form a political
coalition
− “bargain”
• Bargain
− Islam is the official state religion
− Malay is the national language
− Constitutionally guaranteed the authority of
the Tradition Malay rules

− Selection of Malay PM
− Also de facto guaranteed Malay
political supremacy
• All Chinese and Indian inhabitants gained
citizenship and security rights under a
market economic system

 August 1957
• Federation of Malaya became a sovereign state
 1963
• Singapore, Sarawak, and Sabah were accepted into
Federation that was renamed MALAYSIA
 “May 13th incident”
• Parliamentary election on 1969
• Clashed between Malays and Chinese in Kuala
Lumpur: 196 people dead

 Government imposed state emergency
• Suspend parliament and completely abolished local
elections
 British Internal Security Act (ISA)
• Shift Malaysian’s political regime towards autocracy
 National Front (Barasin Nasiona, BN)
• Almost all opposition parties and the former
component parties of the alliance co-opted into a
multiparty coalition under UMNO leadership

 New Economic Policy
• To reduce economic inequality between Indian and
Chinese on the one hand and bumiputera on the
other hand
 Rukunegra (National Principles)
• National leitmotif for a culturally heterogeneous
society
 Malaysia: Competitive authoritarian regime with
multiparty

 Political playing fields is titled in favour of the
ruling coalition
 Close relationship between BN politicians and
economic elites led to “money politics”
Asian Financial Crisis 1997/98
• Created an oppositional reformasi reform
movement
• Barisan Nasional remain in power

 Government declined to implement
political reforms
• Population: increasingly disconnected
by the extent of money politics
• Lack of political participation

 Barasin Nasional
• 2008
− 14 components parties lost its two-thirds
majority in the lower house
• 2013: opposition and loose coalition of 3 political
parties, won a plurality of the popular vote
− Pakatan Rakyat (People’s Alliance, PR)
− Partu Islam Se-Malaysia (PAS)
− Democratic Action Party (DAP)
− People Justice Party (PKRP)

 The Federal Constitution in Malaysia
 British rule has influence the constitutional history
of Malaysia to a large extent
 1956
• British authorities, Malayan delegation,
Representatives of the elected Malay government
traditional leaders
− Agreed to establish the so-called Reid
Commission

 Reid Commission
• responsible for drafting the constitution
 Commissions Draft
• Revised by traditional rulers and the leader
of the Alliance parties
− Before Parliament unanimously
approved text as the Merdaka (Freedom)
Federal Constitution on August 15 1957

 Constitution
• 14 parts
• 183 articles
• 13 “schedules”
• it grants precedent to the fundamental
rights
• Provide basis for the current affirmative
action program
• Positive discrimination of bumiputera in the
economy under the NEP.

 Constitution vest more powers in the
national government
• Foreign policy
• National Defense
• Education
• Social Welfare
• Finance
• Internal Security

 Areas of substantial importance under
control of the states
• Agriculture
• Mining
• Forestry
• Land
• Water
• Islamic Law

 Constitutional Elective Monarchy
 Federal State of Government
 Legislative Authority
• Parliament and Legislative
assemblies of the constituent state

Executive Authority
• Head of the state: KING
• Cabinet: PRIMI MINISTER
 Executive-heavy and concentrates
power in the Office of the PM
• Dominates the legislative process
through his parliament majority

 Malaysia’s head of state is King
 Elected among nine (9) traditional
rulers for a term of 5 years
Election: rotational system
• The nine (9) ruler consecutively
serve as head of state

 The traditional states makes up the
Conference of Rulers
• Except
− Constitutional amendments
• Conference Rights
− To grant pardons
− Monitor application of religious law
• Must be consulted in the appointment of
federal judges

 The King
• Serves mostly as representative and ceremonial
role
• Political directives of cabinet bind him
• The rotational system precluded individual rulers
from establishing a permanent base of individual
power
• Appoints the Prime Minister
− Usually a member of a parliament
− Commands a majority in the lower house

• Can request the PM to dissolve parliament
− The constitution is unclear as to whether
PM has to comply this request
• 1994
− The king no longer sign bills to enact them
into law
• Recommendation of PM, the King appoints:
− Cabinet Ministers, their deputies
− Attorney general
− President

− Judges from Federal Court of Malaysia
− The supreme commander of armed forces
• Supreme commander of the armed forces
− Minister defense: operational command and
control of Malaysian Military
− Symbol and Custodian of Malay traditions
− Protector of bumniputera population
− Highest Islamic authority in federal states
without traditional rules

 The role of the monarch as an integrative force in a
plural society is under pressure from two sides
1. The process of modernization weakened the
position of the traditional rulers and the king as
an expression of bumiputera privilege and
discrimination
2. Members of Indian and Chinese communities
perceive the traditional rulers and the king as an
expression of bumiputera privilege and
discrimination against another communal group

 Malaysia has bicameral parliament
• Dewan Rakyat (House of
Representatives)
− 222 members
• Dewan Negara (Senate)
− 70 members

 Dewan Rakyat (HR)
• Directly elected in a single-member
constituency for 5-year term
• By-elections are held
1. In case a member of parliament cannot
fulfil his or her term
2. There are still 2 more than 2 years until
the next schedule general election

 Dewan Negara (Senate)
• 13 state assemblies each elect two senators
• Prime ministers nominates the remaining 44
senators who are then appointed by the King
• For a 3-year term
 Membership in lower house is incompatible
with a seat in the Senate

 Constitution Mandates: candidate for appointed
position are either individual with
• Proven professional experience
• Good track record
• Special skills
• Represent important societal group
 Generally, PM mostly nominated member of Barisan
Nasional
• Its component parties who failed to win seat in the
Lower House

 Dewang Negara (Senate)
• Intended as a chamber of reflection and
review
• Protect state intersts
• Constitution: upper house has the same rights
as the lower house
− except for financial bills
• Senate has never used its right to initiate or
veto legislation

• Senate’s role in the legislative process is
marginal
− Bills usually submitted on short notice
and short notice and short annual
sitting period
− Leaves a little room for debate
• Senate can only apply a suspensive veto on
bills passed by lower house
− Easily be repealed

 Limited lower house abilities
• Monitor government
• Influence policy-making
 Almost all legislation is proposed by the
government
• Although legislation has to be approved by
both houses of parliament

 Authoritarian regimes: HR is weak in
comparison to the executive branch
 Similar to parliamentary system of
government
• Political confrontation does not take place
between the government and parliament
− But between ruling coalition and the
opposition

Oppositions contributed to the process
of check and balances
• Asking questions to relevant
ministries
• Initiating adjournment motion
• Suggesting alternative policies (some
implemented by ruling coalition)

 Opposition failed to hold government
accountable, due to:
• Restrictive parliamentary procedures
• Partisan behaviour by the speaker of
the House
• Unwillingness of the government to
answer question properly

 Prime Minister
• Must be naturalize Malaysian citizens
• A member of a lower house
• Usually belongs to the largest party
 Ministers
• Members either lower of upper house
• Collectively responsible for parliament
 Malaysian Cabinet: 24 ministers

 In practice, PM dominates the cabinet
and hence government
 Prime Ministers Maharit (1981-2003)
• Prime Minister’s Department
− Became the main center and
coordinating agency inside the
government

 Asian Financial Crises
• The OPM assisted by cabinet-rank ministers
− Oversight over Economic Planning Unit
(EPU)
− Performance management and delivery
unit
− Implementation of government policies
− Controls the development budget for 5
Economic Development Corridors

Since 2009
• Prime minister-cum-minister of finance in
charge of Malaysia’s Sovereign Wealth
Fund
• PM extensive opportunities to control and
distribute patronage among
− Politicians
− Businessmen
− Government officials

 Prime Ministers Department or Office
of the Prime Ministers (OPM), also
oversees:
• Office of the attorney general
• Judicial Commission
• Anti-Corruption Commission
• Public Service Department

 Judiciary is heavily centralized
Based on English common law
• Lesser extent: Islamic law
Two types of trials
• Civil Trials
• Criminal Trials

 Civil Trials
• Customary law (adat)
• Islamic law (Syariah)
 Criminal trials
• Follow the principle of due process
• Guarantee fair and public trials with
independent judges

Multilevel Hierarchy of Courts
• Magistrates Courts
− Lowest level
• Session Courts
− High courts for Malaya and Borneo (Sabah
and Sarawak)
• Court of Appeals
• Federal Courts of Malaysia (Mahkamahta
Persekutuan Malaysia)
− Highest court of the land

 Various courts outside the hierarchy
Penghulu Courts and Syariah courts
• Subordinate courts
• Superior courts

 Competitive authoritarian regimes
• Features some democratic institution
• Regular competitive elections
• Election
− Not entirely free and fair
− More than just façade
− Generally free of massive fraud

 Basic rules of the electoral system
• Formulated prior to independent for the first
federal election in the Federation of Malaya in 1955
• These rules together with important additions and
changes were incorporated into the constitution
adopted in 1957
 Electoral system was amended before and after the
1963 formation of the expended Federation of
Malaysia

 Citizens aged 21 or older hold suffrage
 Voters Registration
• Voluntary
• Takes place at the district level

Candidates for Parliament
• Nominated by political parties or party list
• Nonparty candidatures are also permitted
− Provide one of the highest security deposit
worldwide (3700 EUR or 15,000 MR)
Independence and smaller parties cannot afford
the registration fee
• de facto excluded from candidacy

 Reid Commission in 1957 for an electoral system
original proposal
• Establish a system that could avoid the political
exclusion of the Chinese and Indian communities
• Still guarantee the dominant position of the Malay
communities
• Based of three (3) pillars
1. Introduction of system of plurality rule in a
single member constituency
2. Acceptance of “weightage for area” for rural
constituency

3. To establish an independent electoral
commission,
− would monitor voter registration
− Conduct of election
− responsible for the
reapportionment of electoral
districts every 8-10 years

 Constitutional amendments to guarantee
its electoral hegemony
• Government majority transferred the
authority to reapportion electoral districts
to lower house
• Grave parliament the ability to change
term of office of the Election Commission
− Increased the government’s powers
over the Election Commission

Independence until 2013
• Number of electoral districts grew from 204 to
222
 Electoral gerrymandering has eroded the
principle of “one person, one vote”
The growing disproportionality of the electoral
system has favoured Barisan Nasional

 Communist Party of Malay (CPM)
• Founded in 1930
• First modern political party
• Operated as an illiberal organization
under the British colonial rule
• Staged an armed insurgency against
the Japanese occupation during WWII

• Fought guerrilla war against the
British authorities
− Later, against the Malay
government between 1948 and
1960
• Officially laid down its arms and
dissolved in 1989

 Period between 1946 and 1945
• Emergence of quite substantial
number of political party
organizations, many of which still exist
today

 Malaysian Party system stand out to four (4)
dominant features
1. The emergence of multiparty politics in
Malaysia occurred along existing social
cleavages
2. Party system is relatively well
institutionalized and patterns of competition
between parties as well as party –voter
alignments are relatively stable

3. Contemporary Malaysia has dual party
system in Southeast Asia
− Malay Peninsula (West Malaysia)
− Sarawak and Sabah (East Malaysia)
4. Increase in degree of party competition in
the late 1990s
− Developed a two-block system with
Barisan Nasional and oppositional
Pakatan Rakyat (People Alliance, PR)

Parti Islam Se-Malaysia (PAS)
• Muslim clerics founded PAS in 1951
• Party’s electoral base
− Rural and conservative north of the
Malay Peninsula
• Governed the state of Kelantan

• Form coalition governments in Terengganu and
Kedah
− Kelantan (1959-1977 and since 1990)
− Terengganu (1959-1962 and 1999-2004)
and Kedah (2008-2013
• Electoral base: more secular opposition lies in
more urban and economically advanced states
− Overlapping: rural-urban and religious-
secular cleavage

Democratic Action Party (DAP)
• The party used to represent especially the
Chinese middle and working classes
Prior to 1969 and after PAS left Barisan Nasional in
1978
• PAS and DAP formed the opposition
Asian Financial Crisis of 1997/98
• DAP and PAS protest against BN and PM Maharti’s
authoritarian style of government

 1999 General elections
• Finance Ministers Anwar Ibrahim
− Split from the government in the
wake of the economic crisis
− Created a political platform together
with other opposition political
parties to build an informal
Alternative Front (Barisan Alternatif)

 2008 General election
• Anwar Ibarahim newly found Party
− Popular Justice or Partai Keadilan
Rakyat, PKR
• Opposition political party created and
contested in 2013 election
− Pakatan Rakyat (People’s Alliance)

 2013 election
• Pakatan Rakyat
− 89 seats in national parliament
• Barisan Nasional
− 133/222 seats in the HR

 Political parties in West Malaysia
• Organizational stability
• Durability
• Autonomy
BN parties rely on connections to their ethnic
constituency
UMNO benefits from its network of party bureaus in
every electoral district

 Political parties in West Malaysia exhibit a
lower degree of internal democracy
Decision making processes
• Centralized
• Opaque
• Based on personal network

 Malaysia is the only federal state in
Southeast Asia
Federation comprise of 13 states
• 11 states in West
• 2 states in east Malaysia

Malaysia’s Federalism exist in 2 basic
features
1. Asymmetric distribution of power
between the constituent states
2. Highly centralized system of
distribution of powers between the
federal government and the states`

Federal government sets national policies
•state and district governments carry out
these policies.
The states control over
•revenues from logging and land concessions,
•natural resource exploitation,
•selected agricultural products.

“National Petroleum Act 1974”
•the national government took control
over the oil and natural gas production
in Terengganu, Sabah, and Sarawak and
−in exchange provided the three states
with a 5% compensation for their
profit loss

To ease budget constraints and balance
their budgets
•several states have returned some of
their regulatory authority to the
national government, further
centralizing Malaysian federalism

Lacking autonomous revenue, the states depend on
transfers from the federal government, which include:
• 10% of all export duties from tin and iron production for
the states mining these minerals
• general subsidies, like a capitation grant or contingency
funds granted for unforeseen needs of the states
• special grants either for specific projects like road
maintenance or based on agreements with individual states
like Sabah and Sarawak in exchange for joining the
Federation in 1963.

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