Sex, race and religion still political weapons in Malaysian politics

The Malaysian national and state elections on 8 March 2008 surprised all observers.

Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi’s ruling coalition, Barisan Nasional, lost its two-thirds majority in the federal parliament, and a coalition of secular and Islamist opposition parties, Pakatan Rakyat, won five state governments.

The election saw Malaysia’s ethnic voting patterns break down to an unprecedented extent.

Pakatan leader Anwar Ibrahim heralded the result as a ‘New Dawn’ for Malaysian politics. Pakatan’s rise seemed to finally enable the creation of a new politics that could somehow unite both Islamists and liberal cosmopolitans against ethnic and religious political manipulation.

Very quickly however, the possibility of a genuine political challenge to Barisan began to fade.

Instead of articulating a post-racial vision, Anwar’s major post-election strategy has consisted of seeking defectors from the ruling coalition. He even suggested 16 September as the date Pakatan would gain the numbers to form a new federal government.

Instead, almost one year on, Pakatan’s state government in Perak has collapsed. Pakatan representatives crossed over as Barisan allies instead, reportedly in return for millions of ringgit in payment. Media speculation over the viability of the Selangor and Kedah Pakatan governments is intense.

Malaysia’s New Dawn has been reduced to a sheer numbers game. The grim calculus of attaining numerical dominance in state and federal legislatures, in turn, has seen important players launch cynical and calculated attacks based on sex, race and religion against Pakatan parliamentarians.

Two recent events have revealed that sex, race and religion are still key themes, and major political weapons, in Malaysian public life.

A Pakatan member of the Selangor state assembly, Elizabeth Wong, offered her resignation on 18 February 2009, after photographs of her sleeping semi-naked were leaked to the Malay Mail, a government-linked tabloid.

The photographs appear to have been taken without Wong’s consent by a former partner and political ally.

Despite the cruelty of the public betrayal, and Wong having broken no laws, the photographs were immediately used to slur her character. Former Barisan Chief Minister for Selangor, Mohamad Khir Toyo, quickly declared that “This is about morality”. It was not necessary to elaborate, but Khir persisted, “She is a single person. How can she allow a man into her room when they are not married?” Wong’s resignation has not yet been accepted by the Pakatan leadership, but she has effectively been shamed off the political stage. She has been one of Pakatan’s brightest stars, one of the most capable of articulating the new politics that was promised last year.

Months earlier, in September 2008, another high-profile, ethnic Chinese Pakatan member for Selangor, Teresa Kok, found her parents’ home had been firebombed.

Some weeks earlier, the same Khir Toyo had used his blog to allege that Kok had asked that a mosque in her constituency cease amplifying the azan (Muslim call to prayers). The accusation was repeated in another newspaper, Utusan Malaysia.Mosque officials quickly revealed that the amplifier was actually faulty, but Kok was arrested and detained under the Internal Security Act, which allows for indefinite detention. Several Muslim NGOs, widely regarded as government fronts, quickly declared Kok an enemy of Islam.

Fortunately for Kok, other prominent Muslim organisations denounced her detention and she was released a week later. Regardless, the insinuations continued, and Kok was accused of wearing a short skirt to a Ramadan meal to break the fast.
Attached to the Molotov cocktails was a note which mocked her racially, called her a pig, and threatened that she would burn next.

These two women’s public humiliation has been driven by two developments following the election.

First, Kok was detained on 12 September, days before Anwar’s federal government crossover deadline. The political defectors, however, did not exist.

Second, Barisan’s reduced majority has created much bitterness within its main constituent party, the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO). Abdullah was immediately blamed for the poor election result. A political succession deal was brokered and Deputy Prime Minister, Najib Tun Razak, will apparently become Prime Minister next month.

Khir, too, is involved in a major power struggle. Vying for the position of UMNO Youth Chief, Khir is hoping to undermine the Pakatan state governments with appeals to racial and religious majoritarianism, and widespread community acceptance of the moral surveillance of Malay-Muslim women.

The moral insinuations which result, along with frequent racial and religious slurs, are key features of Malaysian political life. Non-Malay, unsurveilled, non-Muslim and immoral: two prominent, unmarried and politically capable Chinese women hit all the important political triggers at once.

Pakatan component parties have condemned the attack on Wong’s character. However, Islamists in the coalition—like Barisan—have an active interest in promoting public discussion of women’s personal choices.

Other power-brokers are focused on keeping the coalition together, and on winning two upcoming by-elections in Perak and Kedah states. Without a coherent, unifying vision to bind the coalition, Pakatan has lacked the political resources to defend Wong, and her fate is uncertain.

Author: Amrita Malhi, ANU

Najib wants Selangor back in BN’s clutches

KUALA SELANGOR, Aug 9 — Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak said today he wants Selangor back in Barisan Nasional’s (BN) fold.

Describing the state as the heartbeat of the country, he said, the BN has a bright chance of winning back the state provided that component parties, led by Umno, are prepared to change, he said when opening the Kuala Selangor Umno delegates’ meeting here today.

There is also a need for Umno and component parties to work together based on the spirit of consensus, he said.

“This is my hope... my message is, if we want to win, let’s act in a way that allows us to win. Let’s not say we want to win but court defeats in our deeds,” said Najib, who is also Selangor Umno chief.

Najib, who is Pekan member of parliament, also spoke of what he called the “Pekan Formula” which saw him rising in the political arena to become the prime minister and party president.

Najib said he implemented numerous changes after his narrow victory in Pekan in the 1999 general election, where he won by a mere 241-vote majority.

He said many felt that his political career was nearing an end but he nevertheless stood by the Pekan parliamentary seat even though he could choose to contest in safer seats in subsequent elections.

He said he began analysing the situation in a realistic manner and implement changes based on his sincere observation.

“We must be able to read the situation correctly... we must listen to the voices and aspirations of the people.

“If it’s a black area, we don’t say it’s a grey area. If it’s a grey area, we don’t say it’s a white area,” he said.

In the following election, he won by a thumping majority of 22,922 votes and last year, the winning margin increased to 26,464 votes.

The prime minister said leaders should go down to the grassroots, keep their promises, work for the people and not for their clique and be sincere in discharging their duties.

He said it was important for leaders to be sincere as this would determine whether they could get the extra support from the people. Leaders who failed to keep their promises would lose the support of the people, he said.

“When that happens, they can only become the people’s representatives for one term,” he said

Najib said it was important for the party to listen to the voices of the people so that it could translate them into policies, otherwise there would be a disconnect between the policies and the people’s aspirations.

When policies were in line with the people’s hopes, aspirations and expectations, they would readily support the government, he said.

He also said that the BN should be seen as a party with less problems.

This was not the case among opposition parties which were prone to clashing every now and then, said Najib. Unlike the opposition pact, the prime minister said, the BN had proven that it could unite its component parties.

He also said that the BN should be fair to the people in line with the 1 Malaysia concept.

“Being fair to all races is required in Islam and if Umno is fair to all, it will be respected by them,” he said.

At the event, Najib presented RM200 worth of Amanah Saham 1 Malaysia each to Saidon Alang, Tamodharan Manavalan and Loh Chooi Peng.

Future & Politic Of Malaysia

Malaysia''s predominant political party, the United Malays National Organization (UMNO), has held power in coalition with other parties since Malaya''s independence in 1957. In 1973, an alliance of communally based parties was replaced with a broader coalition — the Barisan Nasional — composed of fourteen parties. The political process in Malaysia has generally been described as taking the form of "consociationalism" whereby "communal interests are resolved in the framework of a grand coalition""Malaysia: Developmental State Challenged". In Government and Politics in Southeast Asia'' The executive branch has tended to dominate political activity, with the Prime
Minister''s office being in a position to preside "over an extensive and
ever growing array of powers to take action against individuals or
organizations," and "facilitate business opportunities". Critics
generally agree that although authoritarianism in Malaysia preceded the
administration of Mahathir bin Mohamad, it was he who
"carried the process forward substantially" Legal scholars have
suggested that the political "equation for religious and racial harmony"
is rather fragile, and that this "fragility stems largely from the
identification of religion with race coupled with the political
primacy of the Malay people colliding with the aspiration of other
races for complete equality."
Like the desire of a segment of the Muslim community for an Islamic State,
the non-Malay demand for complete equality is something that the present Constitution will not be able to
accommodate. For it is a demand which pierces the very heart of the political
system — a system based upon Malay political pre-eminence. It is a demand that
challenges the very source of Malay ruling elites'' power and authority.
In early September 1998, Prime Minister Mahathir bin Mohamad dismissed Deputy
Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim and accused Anwar of immoral and
corrupt conduct. Later in
September, Anwar was arrested, beaten while in prison (by among others, the
chief of police at the time), and charged with corrupt practices, in both legal
and moral contexts, charges including obstruction of justice and sodomy.
In April 1999, he was convicted of four counts of corruption and sentenced to
six years in prison. In August 2000, Anwar was convicted of one count of sodomy
and sentenced to nine years to run consecutively after his earlier six-year
sentence. Both trials were viewed by domestic and international observers as
unfair. Anwar''s conviction on sodomy has since been overturned, and having
completed his six-year sentence for corruption, he has since been released from
prison.The current Prime Minister is Dato'' Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi (colloquially
known as "Pak Lah"). He took office following the retirement of Dr.
Mahathir (now Tun Dr. Mahathir) on October 31, 2003. He is seen as a more
compromising and affable figure as opposed to Tun Dr. Mahathir''s more
confrontational and direct style. He has pledged to continue Tun Dr. Mahathir''s
growth oriented policies, while taking a less belligerent stance on foreign
policy than Tun Dr. Mahathir, who has regularly offended Western countries, the
United States
of America and Australia in particular.
In the March 2004 general election,
Dato'' Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi led Barisan Nasional
to a landslide victory, in which Barisan
Nasional recaptured the state of Terengganu.
The coalition now controls 92% of the seats in Parliament. In 2005, Mahathir
stated that "I believe that the country should have a strong government
but not too strong. A two-thirds majority like I enjoyed when I was prime
minister is sufficient but a 90% majority is too strong. We need an
opposition to remind us if we are making mistakes. When you are not opposed you
think everything you do is right."
The national media are largely controlled by the government and by political
parties in the Barisan Nasional/National Front ruling
coalition and the opposition has little access to the media. The print media
are controlled by the Government through the requirement of obtaining annual
publication licences under the Printing and Presses Act. In 2007, a
government agency — the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission —
issued a directive to all private television and radio stations to refrain from
broadcasting speeches made by opposition leaders. The official state ideology
is the Rukunegara,
which has been described as encouraging "respect for a pluralistic,
multireligious and multicultural society". However, political scientists
have argued that the slogan of Bangsa, Agama, Negara (race, religion,
nation) used by UMNO constitutes an unofficial ideology as well. Both
ideologies have "generally been used to reinforce a conservative political
ideology, one that is Malay-centred"
Malaysia is a federal constitutional elective
monarchy. It is nominally headed by the Paramount Ruler or Yang di-Pertuan Agong, commonly
referred to as the King of Malaysia. Yang di-Pertuan Agong are selected for
five-year terms from among the nine Sultans
of the Malay states;
the other four states, which have titular Governors, do not participate in the
selection. The king also is the leader of the Islamic faith in Malaysia. The
system of government in Malaysia is closely modeled on that of Westminster parliamentary system, a legacy of British
colonial rule. In practice however, more power is vested in the
executive branch of government than in the legislative, and the judiciary has
been weakened by sustained attacks by the government during the Mahathir era. Parliamentary elections are held at least
once every five years, with the last general election being in March 2008.
Since independence in 1957, Malaysia has been governed by a multi-racial
coalition known as the Barisan Nasional (formerly the Alliance).
Executive power is vested in the cabinet led by the prime minister; the Malaysian constitution stipulates that the prime
minister must be a member of the lower house of parliament who, in the opinion of the Yang
di-Pertuan Agong, commands a majority in parliament. The cabinet is chosen from
among members of both houses of Parliament and is responsible to that body.
In recent years the opposition have been campaigning for free and fairer
elections within Malaysia.

Whither Malaysian Politics?

Since the 8 March 2008 general election, Malaysian political development and change has never been as vibrant and dramatic as before. The “political tsunami” that swept away the 50-year political hegemony of the Barisan Nasional (BN) has given Malaysians a taste of “People’s Power” for the first time.

But this “People’s Power” is not yet a mature one. There is freedom of speech, more so for non-governmental magazines publications, internet blogs and online newspapers, but less so for the (controlled) mainstream newspapers especially the Malay presses. Public debates on political issues, on television shows as well as public ceramah enjoy a higher degree of openness. Yet, several public gatherings have been selectively quashed by police intervention. These include the ISA candlelight vigils and the countrywide cycling event organised by the Oppressed People’s Network (Jerit). And police have intervened and broken up a few ceramah ahead of by-elections.

Whither Malaysian politics? Is Malaysia going to be a mature democracy or will we witness a return to the era of an autocratic regime? Or is it muddling through a transition that will leave us somewhere in between? These are not simple questions to answer.

But we can learn much from our neighboring country’s experiences. A look at the historical events in the Philippines might give us some hypothetical answers. I will provide four possible scenarios for Malaysian politics. I argue that a return to authoritarianism is doomed to failure. But I raise a doubt on the political behavior of the Malaysian people, who play a significant role in regime change.

I am not arguing that the Malaysian common folks are ignorant and do not want a change. My doubt is the unexplored political behavior of this “realm” of politics, which Pakatan Rakyat (PR) has not yet learned from the BN.

Political drama on the stage

The euphoria of the political tsunami began to subside when a whole series of political events followed. First, was the dispute within PR on the distribution of state assembly seats especially in Perak and the uncertainty over the appointment of its Chief Minister. Then, Anwar’s announcement of the possibility of PR forming a new federal government. The Sabah Progressive Party (Sapp) was the first to withdraw from the BN. The withdrawal gave high hopes for the PR supporters that ‘September 16’ would materialise. But, as we all know, it did not succeed. Then, the list just goes on and on, culminating with the political fiasco in Perak and the sudden Elizabeth Wong episode.

The change of Perak state government has made many Malaysians; especially Perakians disgusted and at the same time doubtful. People felt betrayed and angry by the decision made by the three defecting politicians. It is no surprise that many were upset.

The chronology of the political drama began with the defections of the Bota Umno state assembly member Nasaruddin Hashim followed by the ‘missing-in-action’ PKR state assembly members Jamaluddin Mohd Radzi and Mohd Osman Jailu ahead of their corruption court cases. Then came the sudden show of support for the BN by the three PR’s state assemblypersons’, the third being DAP state assembly member Hee Yit Foong. All three appeared side by side with Prime Minister to-be Najib Razak over TV news and finally came the meeting with the Sultan of Perak.

Currently, most Malaysians are in doubt whether the formation of the new state government is constitutionally proper or otherwise. (See malaysiakini.com, 6 February 2009) Without passing through the (much-debated) dissolution of the state assembly, the appointment of Zambry Abdul Kadir as the new Menteri Besar has forced Menteri Besar Mohammed Nizar Jamaluddin to take the matter to court. The fiasco continues with the now much-debated issue of whether the Perak Sultan’s decision has legal basis and is grounded in the constitution.

Karpal Singh also sought legal means, this time not directed at the new state assembly but looking at the “constitutional” and customary right of the Sultan. Aside from that, Karpal also criticised and blamed Anwar Ibrahim, Lim Guan Eng and Lim Kit Siang for PR’s political disaster in Perak.

What has happened within Pakatan Rakyat – leaving aside their two by-election victories on 7 April? What has happened to the politicians in whom many have placed their hopes? What has happened between Umno and the royal family? These are the doubts that many Malaysians would like to clear.

The semi-nude photograph episode involving PKR’s Elizabeth Wong is the most distasteful and disgraceful drama that Malaysian political history has witnessed since the Anwar sodomy case in 1998. Unlike before, this event has twisted Malaysian politics from racial politics and the politics of suppression into the politics of intrusion into a person’s personal life, character assassination and conspiratorial politics.

Possible scenarios

What do the above events tell us? There are two political manifestations. On the one hand, it reveals that the maturity of PR as a coalition is weak. PR is facing internal rivalry besides pressure from the BN. Further, PR is not yet a firm coalition that can face the realpolitik of external pressures, particularly from Umno.

On the other hand, we witnessed a comeback attempt by the BN, especially Umno, which reflected Najib’s desperation to consolidate his power ahead of the March Umno general assembly and Umno’s lack of a political strategy, apart from racial and gutter politics.

What then are the possible scenarios? There are four possible scenarios:
• a return to authoritarianism;
• less authoritarian but no further liberalisation;
• a liberal era, and
• PR to become another BN.


The comeback of authoritarianism

BN will continue to use gutter and racial politics to consolidate its power as shown by recent political events. The semi-nude photographs episode is unlike what happened to Anwar Ibrahim and certainly not similar to Chua Soi Lek’s case, though some quarters might argue otherwise.

Both these cases involved top politicians, with the former being deputy Prime Minister and the latter a former MCA vice president. Both are also male politicians. More importantly, both cases were highly linked to internal political rivalry that happened during political crises. That is to say, if both Anwar and Chua had not been politically assassinated, their enemies would have lost their political hegemony altogether. Hence, a direct, planned, quick, and openly orchestrated political assassination was deemed necessary.

In Elizabeth Wong’s case, she was the victim of a political power struggle between two political blocs, namely PR and BN. It is not yet proven that the episode was politically oriented. But if this is the case, then it is similar to cases of political conspiracy, “dirty” and gutter politics. The only difference is that she is not a high-ranking politician and had never had a political career of any sort that was similar to Anwar’s and Chua’s.

Political assassinations have now gone ‘behind the scene’ and appear unplanned unlike the much more openly orchestrated image assassination in the public sphere that both Anwar and Chua endured: both were publicly alleged or rumoured to have engaged in sexual acts, a form of “constructed” public image assassinations. In contrast, the Elizabeth Wong episode was without any rumour of any sort; yet it appeared to be orchestrated “behind the scene.”

On 19 February 2009, Umno Youth leader Hishamuddin Hussien and his followers organised a rally at PWTC. A closer listening to his speeches (see malaysiakini.com video on 19 February) revealed a heightened calling for “Ketuanan Melayu.” In general the speeches revolved around the rhetoric of “kestabilan dan keamanan” (stability and harmony); bangsa (nation); “hormat kepada raja” (respect for the Malay royalty), which were juxtaposed to Malaysian history of political struggles and its political harmony.

A betrayal of the raja or disrespect to the raja’s decision in the formation of the new Perak state government or even questioning the decision could subject one to condemnation as a penderhaka (traitor). This interpretation of political history and rhetoric translates to just one conclusion: “ketuanan Melayu” represented by respect to Malay royalty.

BN or Umno is still engaging in the racial politics of “ketuanan Melayu.” This time, the rhetoric does not revolve around the disputes over the Malays’, Chinese, or Indians’ rights but the royalty. The politics of new bottles filled with old wine attempts to seek a return of old politics.

In a seminar talk organised by a Mandarin online newspaper, merdekareview.com and The Kuala Lumpur and Selangor Chinese Assembly Hall on 17 February, the DAP Bukit Bendera Member of Parliament, Liew Chin Tong, argued that Najib attempted to put forth a political strategy similar to his late father Tun Razak’s. In the midst of political crises such as the May 13 crisis, Umno regained its power in 1969 by turning chaos through racial riots to its advantage. Similarly, Najib was alleged to have been creating political crises to begin in Perak in order to create a political climate for intervention.

Such an attempt is doomed to failure. History lessons from the Philippines have shown that Ferdinand Marcos attempt to come back to power amidst political instability and crises sparked his downfall. Marcos had to flee with his billion dollars of cash and jewellery to Hawaii.

Marcos’ downfall was the result of a combination and the culmination of human rights abuses, rampant corruption, and the suppression of freedom and democratic rights of civil society during his Martial Law era from 1972 - 1986.

In 1983, the assassination of Ninoy Aquino at Manila Airport and the widely publicised photo of his body lying on the floor at the airport shook Filipinos. The assassination revealed to the people that the act of violence was an act of betrayal of the people, an act of disrespect to democracy, and an act of denial of the people’s freedom of choice. In February 1986, Filipinos demonstrated and gathered at Edsa and succeeded in toppling the authoritarian regime. The return to old politics was doomed to fail.


Less authoritarian rule but no further liberalisation

A second scenario will be that BN has learned its lessons but will not relinquish its power for further democratisation. Opting for the latter will spell the end of the political careers of certain BN personnel. Unless these politicians are willing to change, they will allow for less democratisation. Given the events that are happening now, it is unlikely they are going to opt for less authoritarian rule and further liberalisation.


A liberal PR or another BN

A liberal era will be born – that is, if PR survives the political fiasco. Let’s be optimistic despite the “demise” of PR caused by BN. PR has not yet been institutionalised as a stable coalition in its ideology, its unity to sort out differences, and its ability to build a valid political platform for the people.

Besides that, PR will need to get used to realpolitik – that is, gutter politics, money politics and repressive politics of BN/Umno. It will have to find a way of maneuvering and learning how to fight against Umno hegemony within the system.

If PR survives these, it will become a more institutionalised political coalition. A liberal era will be born - if PR keeps its promises of liberalisation.

It is possible, however, that PR could become another BN. Let’s not forget that PR is made up of a variety of “politicians”. It includes those who are committed to democratisation, those with vested interest such as the three musketeers, and those who are susceptible to realpolitik pressure from Umno.

Hypothetically speaking, if PR survives the political pressures through a strategy of know-how and political maneuvering within the system, it will not be surprising that some of PR’s political figures will begin to compete for a revamp in the political distribution of power - at the expense of democratisation.

The history of the Philippines between 1898 to 1901, when Emilio Aguinaldo, the President of the Malolos Republic, was attempting to strengthen his political authority from the intervention of the United States, is revealing. One of the strategies that Aguinaldo used was to reorganise the power structure in Manila as well as in the provinces.

A number of commissioners were appointed to organise elections for the cause. In doing so, Aguinaldo made a decree, which was known as decree June 18, 1898. It stipulated that only those 20 or above were eligible to vote; those “friendly” towards the idea of independence; and those who had “high character, social position and honorable conduct, both in the community and the suburbs.”

In other words, only the elites – the learned and the rich - of the country were eligible to vote and compete for political positions.

The consequence of such stipulation was that the latter political administrations were controlled by those elites with less interest in independence, with vested (economic) interests; and less committed to the revolution. That left the masses (mostly peasants), non-elites, revolutionary elites and military personnel committed to the revolution to continue fighting for independence. In short, Aguinaldo had a chance to revamp the Philippines’ political structure with committed political personnel but instead prioritised politicians with vested interests.

Unexplored "realms"

An article published in merdekareview.com on 19 February stated that there was a hint that the Perak crisis was about to happen. It found out that articles were already being published by Utusan Malaysia and interviews with several Malay organisations and personnel about the then PR-controlled state government on the issue of land entitlement for the (Chinese) new villages. Land is another symbol that is seen as part of Malay rights. Therefore, the PR government’s proposal had intimidated hardcore supporters of “Tanah Melayu”. As a result, Umno used such racial politic for its own ends.

It is certainly possible that the land issue was of concern for the Malays, especially rural Malays - but let us think out of the box for the time being. I would argue that there is more than just “Tanah Melayu.” There are other politics that we have taken for granted.

What about the politics of morality? What about the politics of charisma? What about the politics of “taking care of the people’s welfare” in the kampung areas (note, not bandar or bandaraya)?

These are the unexplored “realms” that have not yet been surveyed - the way rural folks ‘do’ politics. Most analyses are too caught up with the racial politics and electoral politics, which are important too, but these have limitations in representing the political perspective of rural folks. Seldom do we attempt to understand their political perspectives (not culture), their articulation, their desire, their views of authority, and their way of interpreting change.

Remember that recently Khairy Jamaluddin teamed up with AirAsia in the former’s MyTeam football project, which was to make “dreams come true” for the rural folks to play Manchester United in London? We might argue that this sort of tour is a waste of money and without meaningful political participation.

Whether we like it or not, it is precisely these sort of Umno ways of political engagement with the people that has constructed a moral political platform from the grassroots. Thus, this is politics of a different sort. Not authoritarianism, not democra-tisation, not corruption or human right issues, but a politics that is perhaps based on morality, personality, charisma and commitment.

Likewise, it is not gutter politics but moral politics that attracts people. This sort of politics has been engaged by Umno/BN throughout its 50 years of hegemony. On the whole, Umno has had solid support from the rural folks, which does not necessary translate to national politics, but it has solid ground in local politics as seen in the 7 April by-elections.

This different sort of BN regime might remain in the rural area for years to come, which PR is lacking and way behind! The votes cast for PR was not because PR was a better alternative than the BN. Neither was it because Umno failed to deliver. It was, perhaps (if we have conducted a thorough survey), simply to teach Umno a lesson for its arrogance, its negligence, and the frustrations caused by the economic downturn.

March 8 was an “unexpected” result for the BN, for the PR, and for the the Malaysian people. We do not yet know ‘the commoners’’ voting behaviour on March 8. What PR should do now is to look at the politics of rural folks, which Umno or BN has long ago done so much work on. Is PR ready for a political ideological change?

Epilogue

Both BN/Umno and PR will need to learn their lessons. A return to old politics would be political suicide for BN and PR. Equally, a lesson not learned would be political suicide for both. Both face huge challenges ahead. The former is required to strip off its old political ideologies and to engage in new, liberal and moral politics ahead. The latter needs to solidify its liberal political agenda more forcefully and to learn from its enemies’ good deeds.

Indonesia has taken 10 years to reform and is still continuing to do so. Are Malaysian voters ready for a regime change? Are we ready to face the new and more frustrating challenges ahead? Whither Malaysian politics? Let us explore this further in the next few years.

Malaysian Politics Turned Upside Down

Malaysians awoke on Sunday to a vastly altered political landscape after voters suddenly and unexpectedly questioned five decades of political status quo and decided it was time for a change.

Malaysians from across the country's deep racial divide deserted the ruling coalition in droves at general elections, handing control of its north to Islamists and its industrial hub to leftists.

The result from Saturday's elections were still being counted on Sunday morning, but the protest vote looked to hand an unprecedented five state assemblies to the opposition and cut the coalition's majority in federal parliament to a record low.

"It's bad," said a source close to Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, attributing the massive protest vote to a raft of concerns focusing on rising prices and religious tensions.

"It's a perfect storm."

The result has raised security fears: the last time the multi-racial Barisan Nasional (National Front) suffered a big setback, in 1969, race riots and a state of emergency ensued.

"The only other time this happened was in 1969 and that's why everybody is very nervous now because of the uncertainty," said Bridget Welsh, political analyst with Johns Hopkins University.

Malaysia's streets were largely quiet, and political experts said they doubted there would be racial violence this time, noting that all of Malaysia's major ethnic communities -- Malays, Chinese and Indians -- had deserted the government.

In 1969, the majority Malay community had stayed loyal to Barisan while the Chinese backed the opposition, setting the stage for racial clashes.

About 200 people were killed, according to the official tally, but unofficial estimates were much higher.

Barisan and the opposition both appealed for calm on Sunday.

But peace on the streets is unlikely to totally erase investor concerns as they survey the surprising new political landscape.

"This is probably not good news for the equity market or the ringgit," said Tim Condon, Singapore-based head of Asia research for investment bank ING.

ISLAMISTS FAN OUT

Islamist party Parti Islam se-Malaysia (PAS), whose platform calls for stonings and amputations of Muslim thieves and adulterers, looks set to win control of three northern states, stretching along Malaysia's border with Thailand.

PAS has already run Kelantan state, in the northeast, for 18 years and has banned gambling and hotels from serving alcohol. It claimed victory on Sunday in the neighboring states of Kedah and Perak, the latter having a large population of Chinese.

PAS leader Nik Aziz Nik Mat tried to broaden the party's appeal in the election campaign -- even nominating a non-Muslim candidate in one seat -- but the predominantly Buddhist Chinese community has always held deep suspicions about it.

Instead, the Chinese turned to the leftist Democratic Action Party (DAP), which won control of Prime Minister Abdullah's home state of Penang, the hub for Malaysia's electronics industry, which accounts for about half of the country's exports.

Central Selangor state also tilted toward the opposition in counting on Sunday, suggesting an unprecedented five state assemblies could fall to opposition parties.

Abdullah spoke on Sunday as though none of this had happened, telling reporters he would go ahead and form the next government and giving no hint of his own future, which looks bleak. He has to survive his own internal party elections later this year.

Abdullah held hands aloft with his deputy and most likely challenger, Najib Razak, in a hollow victory salute, but the real winner sounded like another ambitious Malay politician, Anwar Ibrahim, who heads the opposition Keadilan (Justice) party.

"This is a new dawn," said Anwar, a former deputy prime minister who is styling himself as the one leader who can galvanize Malaysia's ideologically divided opposition parties and appeal to all of the main ethnic communities.

Unable to stand in Saturday's polls because of his criminal record, he is expected soon to take over his old parliamentary seat from his wife, who kept it warm while he was in prison.

"Tomorrow we will start building a brighter future," he said.