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.

Politics Drive Upcoming Anwar Trial

(July 13, 2009) - The Malaysian government should immediately drop politically motivated criminal charges against opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim, Human Rights Watch said today. On July 15, 2009, the Kuala Lumpur High Court will hear Anwar's application to strike out a sodomy charge against him, and an ongoing defense request for evidence it says is crucial to properly prepare for trial.

This is the second time Anwar has been charged with sodomy. He spent six years in prison before his previous conviction for sodomy was overturned in 2004.

Human Rights Watch said the current charge appears politically motivated and lacks credibility.

The government has failed to disclose key evidence to the defense, hastily sought to pass a DNA statute that aids the prosecution, and put Anwar at a disadvantage by unnecessarily moving the trial to the high court. In addition, the government allowed the attorney general, who is under investigation for misconduct in Anwar's previous trial, to be involved in the current case.

"This trial is a bald-faced attempt to permanently remove an opposition leader from Malaysian politics," said Elaine Pearson, deputy Asia director at Human Rights Watch. "The government is trying to manipulate the justice system for political purposes."

The current charge against Anwar relates to allegations that on June 26, 2008, he had sexual relations with Mohd Saiful Bukhari bin Azlan, a 23-year-old male former volunteer aide to Anwar. Although initially filed as a non-consensual offense, prosecutors later changed the charge to consensual sodomy, though Saiful has never been charged. A conviction would force Anwar to vacate his seat in Parliament and effectively bar him from contesting in the next general election, expected before 2012.

Anwar's July 15 court application to drop the sodomy charge rests on the basis of two medical reports. Three specialists from the public Kuala Lumpur Hospital endorsed a July 13, 2008 medical report regarding the complainant that found "no conclusive clinical findings suggestive of penetration to the anus and no significant defensive wound on the body of the patient." A doctor at the private Pusrawi Hospital who examined Saiful on June 28, 2008, two days after the alleged incident, reported the anus as "normal." The doctor later left Malaysia to escape what he said was persistent pressure to alter his report.

In addition, the defense will reiterate its January 2009 request for at least 10 documents it asserts are necessary for it to properly prepare Anwar's defense at trial. They include the original closed-circuit television recordings from the alleged crime scene, original specimens from which DNA samples were allegedly obtained, chemist's notes, witness statements including the complainant's, and medical reports. To date, the Public Prosecutor's office has denied it is withholding any documents it is mandated to share under the Malaysian Criminal Procedure Code.

"Providing the defendant with evidence crucial for preparing his defense is a basic requirement of a fair trial," said Pearson. "The prosecution's withholding of key evidence is a red flag of political shenanigans."

Concerns about a fair trial were heightened on July 1 after the court dismissed Anwar's appeal challenging Attorney General Tan Sri Abdul Gani Patail's decision to move the trial to the High Court from the Sessions Court where it originated. Transfer to a high court reduces opportunities for a defense appeal to higher courts should Anwar be found guilty. Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi then stated publicly in July 2008 that Abdul Gani, who is also public prosecutor, would have no part in Anwar's trial as he is under investigation by the Anti-Corruption Commission for allegedly falsifying evidence to protect those involved in an assault on Anwar in 1998 while he was in police custody during the earlier sodomy trial.

Sessions Court Judge Komathy Suppiah ruled in March that, "it is evident that any involvement by the AG [Gani] in this case would seriously undermine public confidence in the administration of criminal justice." The High Court overruled Judge Komathy's decision, stating that Gani was only acting administratively in approving the transfer and thus was not involved in the new trial.

DNA issues are also contentious in the case. On June 23, 2009, the lower house of Parliament quickly passed the Deoxyribonucleic Acid (DNA) Identification Act, which will go into effect after Senate and Royal assent. It would allow police to take DNA samples from criminal suspects and to use those samples to build a DNA databank. Anwar has repeatedly refused to submit DNA samples in this case on the grounds that current law does not require it and because of his reasonable concern for evidence tampering as happened in his 1998 trial.

The proposed DNA law includes a provision stating that "any existing DNA profile and any information in relation thereto kept and maintained by the Chemistry Department of Malaysia or Royal Malaysia Police, immediately before coming into operation of this Act shall ... form part of the DNA Databank established under this Act." Circumventing Anwar's refusal to provide a new DNA sample, this would permit the manipulated samples from his previous trial to be used as evidence and manipulated again during the upcoming trial.

Other language in the bill raises fair-trial concerns. Article 24 reads: "Any information from the DNA Database shall be admissible as a conclusive proof of the DNA identification in any proceedings in any court." Such decisive stipulations ignore well-known information that DNA databanks are not foolproof, and are often prone to tampering and mistakes in evidence collection and handling. As a safeguard, many courts around the world have determined that information gleaned from DNA cannot be conclusive and must always be corroborated. Those responsible for the collection of evidence must be professional, competent, and beyond the reach of any improper interference.

Serious concerns about fairness and impartial administration of justice, combined with heavy-handed police tactics at the time of Anwar's arrest and intimidation of witnesses, are reminiscent of Anwar's earlier, deeply marred sodomy trial, Human Rights Watch said. Given these concerns, Human Rights Watch renewed its call for the charge against Anwar to be dropped immediately.

"The Malaysian government should stop using the courts to pursue political vendettas," said Pearson. "Unless it drops these dubious charges against Anwar, it risks giving its reputation another black eye."

Sodomy ("committing carnal intercourse against the order of nature"), even when consensual, is punishable in Malaysia under Section 377B of the Penal Code by up to 20 years in prison and whipping. Human Rights Watch urges the Malaysian authorities to uphold international human rights standards by decriminalizing consensual homosexual conduct and replacing Section 377A with a gender-neutral rape law.

A cyber war in Malaysian politics?

FEB 19 — Once upon a time, before the Internet became as common as the television in Malaysian homes, public figures made local speeches that were tailored to suit the audience that was physically present.

This worked well for politicians wishing to entertain the parochial tendencies of the audience of the day without jeopardising their prospects of becoming nationally relevant.

Today, however, such speeches quickly leak into the wired world of the Internet, putting things into a different context, and revealing the speakers' supposed real values to the world.

Playing local politics with the awareness that the audience is always the whole wide world is no easy task, especially for those who have been in politics and in power long before the Internet changed everything.

The dominant Umno learned this the hard way three years ago when it decided to telecast "live" its national assembly. The parochialism and racism expressed by its candidates on that occasion for the nation to hear soon forced it to backtrack.

Defensive arrogance does grow out of the inability to evolve.

The attempt to block access to Raja Petra Kamarudin's controversial Malaysia Today website last year managed to stop traffic going to that site, but did not stop access to its contents. Mirror sites sprung up immediately to nullify the censorship.

The police decision in September 2008 to use the Internal Security Act to jail Raja Petra, along with prominent opposition politician Teresa Kok and journalist Tan Hoon Cheng, merely backfired. The de facto minister of law, Datuk Zaid Ibrahim, soon resigned in protest.

Publicly calling female bloggers liars, as then Tourism Minister Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor did in March 2007, is also not a very smart thing to do. The negative reaction on the web on that occasion was tremendous.

Opinions expressed for local consumption becoming national news is part and parcel of a revolution in information technology which carries enormous consequences for the near future. Some are positive, and some will certainly not be.

Through the Net, you can sell old useless books you have under the stairs on the world market; you can get to know strangers on the other half of the world merely by being on chat sites; and you can arrange an entire holiday to the south of France without talking to any salesperson at all.

In Malaysian politics, we have witnessed how SMSes, videos and phone cameras have come into play. While these can uncover abuse of power, as in the case of the woman forced to do ear-squats naked while detained by the police in December 2005; reveal dubious practices, as in the case of the Lingam Tapes released in 2007 showing a prominent lawyer boasting about his ability to fix top judge appointments through political connections; and contribute to court cases, as in SMSes supposedly sent by Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak to a lawyer, discussing the detention of a close associate then charged with involvement in the murder of a Mongolian woman.

The latest political incident involving IT innovations concerns the circulation of nude pictures of prominent opposition politician Elizabeth Wong, secretly taken on a phone camera.

The case of Wong (also a blogger), who has offered to resign from her position as state assemblywoman for the opposition-held Selangor, adds worrying dimensions to the political use of modern IT.

First, it is not only the line between the local and the national that is being erased. The line between the private and the public is fading fast as well.

That is worrying indeed. Most urbanites in Malaysia of all races, especially in the Klang Valley where Wong lives, would undoubtedly consider Wong the victim. Mass media attempts to class the case as a "sex scandal" — and this happened on both sides of the Causeway — smack of shameless sensationalism, journalistic amateurism and political opportunism.

In the sanctity of her home, surely she is allowed to walk scantily dressed, sleep half-naked, even shower nude, and yes, have sex without clothes on. The culprits deserving punishment are those who facilitated the publicising of those pictures, regardless of whether they were taken with her permission or not.

The fact that she is an unmarried woman, and not a man, has had a serious impact on how the incident is being interpreted. Should a male politician, married or not, such as former Selangor Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Dr Khir Toyo, for example, have been photographed in the nude while asleep, the fallout would have been minimal, even comical.

The Wong case also shows the disturbing shrinkage of moral space when the private and the local are technologically subsumed under the public and the national.

Moral values do differ geographically, individually, culturally and according to lifestyle. This diversity is denied when such a case gets politicised, and here, the supposed sensitivities of the vocally most religious, most parochial, most traditional and most rural are allowed to define the national public norm. Wong is being sacrificed to appease illiberal elements within the opposition. Surely, this is not what the Pakatan Rakyat is fighting for.

A political cyber war has started in Malaysia. While we thought that the old would be at the mercy of the new in such a showdown, it is time to realise that, in truth, the more desperate and more immoral has the edge.

The Way Foward For Malaysian Politics

IN THE wake of the recent General Elections in Malaysia in March, Malaysians and foreigners alike are asking the questions: What now? And where will Malaysia head to?

Some have commented on the possibility of the Islamists in Malaysia growing more aggressive, after it became clear that the Pan-Malaysian Islamic party (PAS) had made huge gains in states like Kelantan and now has two states under its control. Speculation aside, it should be emphasised that the real winners in the recent elections were the Malaysian people, who managed to show that they were able to vote across racial and religious communitarian boundaries.

How and why did the Malaysian electorate vote the way they did, and what message were they trying to convey?

After a term in office, the Badawi administration had failed to deliver on many of the reform promises it made when it first came to power in 2004. The Malaysian public seems to have grown tired with the stream of promises of renewal and the creation of a citizen-based Malaysia for all, when it became clear that the Badawi administration was still being run along the lines of Malaysia’s old race-based politics.

The people’s vote of no confidence was not merely directed towards the Badawi government but also to the entire political system and political institutions of the country. So we have to look at how and where the governance model of Malaysia went wrong; and what were the factors that led to it being so radically rejected recently.

Malaysia’s social contract has been revised time and again, and perhaps the last great revision took place in the wake of the May 1969 racial clashes that followed in the wake of the May 1969 elections. During the ‘69 elections, the ruling coalition was dealt with a major blow as the Malaysian public voted for the opposition parties. Since then, successive Malaysian leaders and administrations have tried to fine-tune the Malaysian model of governance to create the much-touted “Malaysian model” of a multi-racial plural compromise system. This was reflected in the racial and ethnic make-up of the ruling Barisan Nasional (BN or National Front) itself, that was dominated by the Malay-Muslim Umno party that was in turn supported by its non-Malay-Muslim partners like the Malaysian Chinese Assembly (MCA) and the Malaysian Indian Congress (MIC).

For three decades, Malaysians were told that this was the only system that could work that would reflect the diversity and racial mix of Malaysia. Yet two steady streams of development worked against each other to erode the appeal of this model: The first was the rise of the ethno-nationalist forces in the ruling Umno party itself. Since 1969 to the 1990s, the Umno party slowly but moved even further to the right of the political spectrum with the rise of more and more ethnic and religiously-minded communitarian leaders. The Islamisation race between Umno and PAS during the 1980s and 1990s did little to inculcate the universal values of Islam into the politics and daily life of Malaysians, but did more to up the stakes in the political contest between Umno and PAS instead. During that time, the leaders of both parties were keen to demonstrate their commitment to Islam and Malay-Muslim concerns to an extent that many non-Malay-Muslim communities felt themselves marginalised.

Over the past few years, the pitch and tenor of the Islamisation contest has been raised even further, as has the communitarian language of Umno. With senior Umno leaders constantly harping on the rights and special status of the Malays, the dream of a plural Malaysia seemed to fade into the distance.

The second factor that eroded the appeal of the BN model was the changing nature of Malaysian society itself post-1969. While the leaders of Umno and the BN coalition parties continued to operate according to the logic of race-relations and racial compartmentalisation, they seemed to overlook the fact that Malaysian society was transforming itself: New urban constituencies emerged in the cosmopolitan urban settlements all over West Malaysia, ranging from urban Malay-Muslim youth who were less interested in Islam or notions of cultural supremacy to new non-Malay youth who were more attracted to the possibility of reinventing their identities and places in society.

This, then, is the way forward for Malaysia, though it has to be noted that the new Malaysian politics that is being invented has to take into account the manifold paths that Malaysia could – but didn’t – take in its recent past. It is for that reason that drawing the future road-map for Malaysia would involve a revisiting of its history as well, for that chequered history tells us as much about what Malaysians should not do as well as what they should.

Teresa Kok To Hire Bodyguards

KUALA LUMPUR - MALAYSIAN opposition MP Teresa Kok is hiring bodyguards to protect her after the recent threatening SMSes and molotov cocktail attack on her family home.

She said she was advised by the police to hire bodyguards as a precautionary measure and for her own safety.

'I have been advised to look after my safety, that is why I am now in the midst of interviewing people to become my bodyguard,' she said outside the city police headquarters on Tuesday.

Ms Kok, accompanied by her father, had gone to the police station to get an update on the investigation of several police reports she and her family had lodged.

She said closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras have been installed in her family home in Taman Rainbow, Jalan Ipoh after two molotov cocktails were thrown at the house on Sept 27.

However, when asked if she would be installing CCTVs in her apartment, Ms Kok said there was no need to do so as she felt her condominium unit was safe.

Ms Kok is also seeking help from the police to provide police presence during her upcoming Hari Raya open house functions on Sunday and next week in Puchong.

'I have told the Selangor police chief about my Hari Raya open house plans. 'I hope the increase in police presence during the event would help deter any untoward incidents,' she said

Malaysia court sets date for Anwar sodomy trial

KUALA LUMPUR (AFP) - - Malaysia's high court has set a new date for Anwar Ibrahim's sodomy hearing, his counsel has said, voicing fears that the opposition leader will not get a fair trial.

Sankara Nair told AFP that the high court has said it will now try Anwar, a former deputy prime minister, July 8 rather than July 1 for sodomy charges levelled by a former aide.

"We are not fully prepared for the trial because we do not have the full set of documents. The prosecution has not given us crucial documents to help us in our defence. It will lead to (an) unfair trial," he said.

The lawyer said that among the documents the defence needs are witness statements, CCTV footage and original swabs taken from Anwar and his accuser for re-testing.

Sankara also said that the trial judge would hear Anwar's request to have the charge dropped on the same date.

"We maintain the charge is baseless and should be withdrawn. There is no case against Anwar," he said.

The opposition leader said last week that the charge against him should be dropped because it was a "political ploy" but vowed to fight hard in court to clear his name.

In an interview with AFP, he voiced concern false evidence would be introduced in a bid to jail him and end his political career.

"It's a convenient way for UMNO to get rid of me to settle their political problem," he said, referring to the United Malays National Organisation which is the dominant party in the ruling National Front coalition.

Anwar, 61, has consistently rejected the allegations levelled by a 23-year-old former aide -- the same charge that saw him jailed a decade ago -- as a government conspiracy to derail his plan to topple the ruling coalition.

Sodomy, even between consenting adults, is illegal in predominantly Muslim Malaysia and carries a penalty of 20 years' imprisonment.

Anwar has the best ever chance of ousting the weak National Front government that has ruled Malaysia since 1957 after the opposition deprived the government of a two-thirds majority in 2008 elections.

The opposition leader is currently out on a 20,000-ringgit bail (5,700 dollars) pending his trial but supporters have expressed fears that it might be revoked during the hearing.

Malaysia's Anwar: Ready to be jailed for sodomy

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia - Malaysian opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim said Thursday he is prepared to be jailed for sodomy in a trial next month, but warned his conviction could unleash a groundswell of public support to rout the government in the next elections.

Anwar denies the charge and said he does not expect a fair trial. It's the second time in his political career that he has been charged with sodomy. Both cases have been politically motivated to stop him from challenging the people in power, he said.

But just like the first case, "there will be a huge outcry here and internationally," Anwar told The Associated Press.

"The worst-case scenario for me personally would be great for the opposition and the worst-case scenario for the government" in the next elections in 2013, he said.

Anwar, 61, was charged last August with sodomizing a 23-year-old male former aide, Saiful Bukhari Azlan. Sodomy, a crime in this Muslim-majority country, is punishable by up to 20 years in jail even if it is consensual.

The trial starts July 8 and is seen as a test of credibility for Malaysia's judiciary, which has been tainted by allegations that many judges are corrupt and easily influenced by the government. The trial will also reflect on new Prime Minister Najib Razak's promises to create a more open and free society.

"My chances, given a free fair trial, are 100 percent, but under the current circumstances the chances go down fast," Anwar said. "Nobody likes to go to jail, but I will do it if forced to ... and hopefully (come) out like a hero."

He said a government hospital's July 13 medical report of a rectal examination of Saiful found no evidence of anal penetration. He also claimed that his defense team has evidence to show that he was framed and that Saiful has become exceedingly wealthy in recent months. He implied Saiful was bribed by the government.

The government denies it is persecuting Anwar, and says it has nothing to do with what it describes as a personal case between two individuals.

Anwar, a former deputy prime minister, spent six years in prison after being convicted of corruption and sodomy following his ouster from the Cabinet in 1998. His arrest led to weeks of massive anti-government protests, and support for the ruling National Front coalition fell drastically in general elections the following year, even though it returned to power.

After emerging from jail in 2004 when the sodomy conviction was overturned, Anwar formed an unusual three-party opposition alliance that won more than one-third of Parliament seats in the 2008 elections.

It was the first time Malaysia's opposition parties had formed an alliance cutting across racial lines. Anwar brought them together by tapping into the anti-government resentment not only among the minority Chinese and Indians but also the majority Malays.

Anwar said his alliance will surely win the next elections, due in 2013, if he goes to jail.

"If (Prime Minister) Najib pursues this, he is making a big blunder. It will continue to haunt him for the rest of his life," he said. "They can control the judiciary, the media, the police but they cannot control public opinion."

Still, Anwar said, the alliance has taken into account the possibility of him going to jail, which would bar him from contesting elections for five years after he has served his sentence.

The three parties are holding "elaborate sessions" on who would lead the alliance into next elections, Anwar said.

"This time, we are prepared for everything," he said.

Body politics and morality in Malaysia

A lot has been said of the politician Eli Wong photo controversy in much of the mainstream media as well as the new media. This is because not only has this issue been considered as something of ‘public interest’ by certain quarters, it also has the potential of being sensationalised and, eventually, capitalised to the hilt by these people and certain sections of the media.

That this Eli issue, and particularly the much-sought after photos, have aroused, and rather passionately at that, the interests of many people also bare the kind of society we live in Malaysia.

For one thing, the subject of morality has time and again been reduced to all things sexual, especially – in the Malaysian context – those pertaining to women’s sexuality.

Often, the professed concern for women’s sexuality is stressed so much by certain quarters in society to the extent that it overrides other equally, if not more, important issues of morality, such as trustworthiness of politicians, professional ethics of journalists, fairness and sterling integrity of judges, etc.

One explanation for this is the unequal power relations between men and women in society so that quite often the latter get discriminated and exploited by the former. Hence, it is relatively difficult enough for women to climb up the political ladder, and it is even harder if they happen to be on the ‘wrong side’ of the political and ideological divide.

At times you wonder why, for instance, those who pontificate and moralise about woman’s body, or at least what are considered to be the ‘sexually attractive’ parts of her body that have been exposed, do not seem to publicly display the same degree of moral outrage when it comes to the reported cases of dead bodies in police custody.

Many Malaysians get excited to know about who jumps with whom into bed more than about politicians who jump from one party to another (and, at times, back to the original party) without a blink of an eye.

A woman rape victim receives not only the enrapt attention of certain sections of the media but also becomes the talk of town. The rape of the environment, essentially caused by predatory developers in cohort with unethical politicians and professionals, does not get as much public interest.

The social cleavage that shows the stark contrast between the rich and the poor in regard to access to resources within the society often does not command the attention and excitement of people as compared to the response to the body cleavage of a woman.

Holding hands between loving couple in public places gets much more flak from many members of the public compared to public reaction to the act of clutching packets of ringgit notes by certain government officials and politicians in the most illicit fashion. This is to say that some people are ever ready to close one eye to the conscious blurring of the line between private interests and public positions.

Thus, stripped of all official religious pronouncements and moral posturing, are we really a nation with scruples?

Practising in Perak

For federal battles to come

WHEN three legislators in Perak, one of five of opposition-ruled Malaysian states, switched sides in February, overturning a narrow majority in the 59-seat assembly, the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) was cock-a-hoop. After a big electoral setback last year, the long-dominant UMNO was at last taking the fight to the opposition, led by its nemesis, Anwar Ibrahim, a former deputy prime minister. Loyalists credited the defections, reportedly induced by the threat of corruption probes, to the bare-knuckle tactics of Najib Razak, since sworn in as prime minister in place of the mild-mannered Abdullah Badawi. Taking back Perak was just the start, UMNO snarled.

Perak was indeed the start of something, but not the rollback of Malaysia’s opposition, as foreseen by UMNO and its ruling coalition partners. Instead it has snowballed into a constitutional crisis that reveals the wobbly underpinnings of a democracy yet to be tested by a handover of power at the federal level. On May 7th, amid scuffles at Perak’s parliament, UMNO’s man was installed as chief minister. Scores of people were arrested, including the speaker of the house, who was bundled away by plainclothes police. He had objected to the takeover as it had never been put to a vote in the assembly.

On May 11th it was the opposition’s turn to crow. The High Court ruled that its man, Nizar Jamaluddin, was still the chief minister of Perak as his removal in February was illegal. He had been removed not, as is usual in parliamentary systems, by his elected peers but by Perak’s sultan, one of Malaysia’s hereditary state rulers. Sultan Azlan Shah had sealed the controversial takeover on February 5th, ignoring an appeal from Mr Jamaluddin to dissolve the house and hold snap elections.

The opposition’s euphoria was short-lived. The next day UMNO successfully obtained a stay from an appeals court against the reinstatement of Mr Jamaluddin. That decision allowed Zambry Kadir, UMNO’s candidate, to return on May 13th as caretaker chief minister. Grotesquely, in a blog posting, Mr Kadir likened his grubby power play to the struggles of Nelson Mandela and Mahatma Gandhi.

A fast-track deliberation by the appeals court should resolve the case in the next week or so. But the political fallout is much harder to fix. Should the obstreperous assembly reconvene, more scuffles are likely, says James Chin, a political scientist at Monash University’s campus in Kuala Lumpur. One way out, it seems, is to hold fresh elections in Perak. Yet that is exactly what UMNO fears most after a run of embarrassing defeats in state and federal polls. Ministers complain that by-elections are a waste of public money. In the case of Perak, the legal and legislative routes have not been exhausted, argues Khairy Jamaluddin (no relation), a senior UMNO official.

The opposition is expected to win again in Perak, as it did in March 2008 in an election that saw the UMNO-led National Front lose its cherished two-thirds majority in parliament. Mr Anwar subsequently sought to persuade 30 ruling MPs to cross the floor, the same tactic used in Perak. His advisers argued that this was justified as he planned to dissolve the house and return power to the people, betting on victory. In the end, Mr Anwar’s carrot went unbitten. But it dangles still, and UMNO knows it.

The bigger question posed by the proxy war in Perak is what happens if the levers of federal power should one day slip from UMNO’s hands, as has seemed inevitable since last year’s election. Entrenched political elites rarely go quietly. A politicised civil service and security apparatus might resist an opposition victory, and look to the judiciary and, possibly, the sultans for support. Mr Anwar knows this, and is courting power-brokers in the system. But the danger of civil unrest should not be dismissed lightly. That is particularly true if UMNO decides to play on tensions between Malaysia’s majority Malays and its ethnic-Chinese and Indian minorities.

Until the Perak storm broke, Mr Najib had been steering a mildly reformist course. A handful of political prisoners have been freed, including ethnic Indians jailed after rowdy anti-government protests in 2007. Regulations on Islamic banking and insurance, and on local-ownership restrictions in selected service sectors were liberalised. But the core grievances of non-Malays over statutory privileges for the Malays remain. These privileges, staunchly defended by UMNO, were introduced in 1971, two years after deadly race riots in Kuala Lumpur. The riots began after UMNO suffered election losses to Chinese-based opposition parties. The date, by coincidence, was May 13th 1969.

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.