Malaysia

Persekutuan Tanah Melayu
Flag	Coat of Arms
Capital	Kuala Lumpur
Government	Federal Constitutional Monarchy
Language	Malay (official)
Monarch	King Tuanku Abdul Halim Mu'adzam Shah
Prime minister	Mohamed Najib bin Abdul Razak
Area	127,355 sq mi
Population	32,500,000 (2020)
GDP	$350,000,000,000 (2020)
GDP per capita	$10,769 (2020)
Currency	Ringgit

Malaysia is a predominantly Muslim country in south-east Asia, a federation of thirteen states, nine of which have hereditary sultans instead of governors. Its capital is Kuala Lumpur.

Geography[edit]

Malaysia is divided in two areas separated by the South China Sea: Peninsular Malaysia, located on the end of the Malay Peninsula and sharing a border with Thailand; and East Malaysia, occupying the northern third of the island of Borneo, with which it shares with Indonesia and Brunei.

People[edit]

Malay girls.

Malaysia's multi-racial society contains many ethnic groups. Malays comprise a majority of just over 50%. By constitutional definition, all Malays are Muslim. About a quarter of the population is ethnic Chinese, a group which historically played an important role in trade and business. Malaysians of Indian descent comprise about 7% of the population and include Hindus, Muslims, Buddhists, and Christians. Non-Malay indigenous groups combine to make up approximately 11% of the population.

Population density is highest in peninsular Malaysia, home to some 20 million of the country's 27 million inhabitants. The remaining 7 million live on the Malaysian portion of the island of Borneo in the large but less densely-populated states of Sabah and Sarawak. More than half of Sarawak's residents and about two-thirds of Sabah's are from indigenous groups.

Mosque Masjid Jamek, Kuala Lumpur.

• Population: 28,274,729 (July 2010 est.).
• Annual growth rate: 1.6%.
• Ethnic groups: Malay 50.2%, Chinese 24.5%, indigenous 11.0%, Indian 7.2%, non-Malaysian citizens 5.9%, others 1.2%.
• Religions: Islam (60.4%), Buddhism (19.2%), Christianity (9.1%), Hinduism (6.3%), Confucianism (2.6%), tribal/folk (0.8%), other (0.4%), none/unknown (1.2%).
• Languages: Bahasa Melayu (official), Chinese (various dialects), English, Tamil, indigenous.
• Education: Years compulsory—6. Attendance—98.5% (primary), 82% (secondary). Literacy—93.5%.
• Health: Infant mortality rate (2005)--5.1 /1,000. Life expectancy (2005)--female 76.2 yrs., male 71.8 yrs.
• Work force (10.55 million, 2005): Services—51%; industry—36% (manufacturing—28.4%, mining and construction—7.6%); agriculture—13%.

Government[edit]

Perbadanan government center.

Malaysia is a constitutional monarchy, nominally headed by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, customarily referred to as the king. Kings are elected for 5-year terms from among the nine sultans of the peninsular Malaysian states. The king also is the leader of the Islamic faith in Malaysia.

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.

The bicameral parliament consists of the Senate (Dewan Negara) and the House of Representatives (Dewan Rakyat). All 70 Senate members sit for 3-year terms, which are normally extended for an additional 3 years; 26 are elected by the 13 state assemblies, and 44 are appointed by the king. Representatives of the House are elected from single-member districts by universal adult suffrage. The 219 members of the House of Representatives are elected to parliamentary terms lasting up to 5 years. Legislative power is divided between federal and state legislatures.

The Malaysian legal system is based on English common law. The Federal Court reviews decisions referred from the Court of Appeal; it has original jurisdiction in constitutional matters and in disputes between states or between the federal government and a state. Peninsular Malaysia and the East Malaysian states of Sabah and Sarawak each have a high court.

The federal government has authority over external affairs, defense, internal security, justice (except civil law cases among Malays or other Muslims and other indigenous peoples, adjudicated under Islamic and traditional law), federal citizenship, finance, commerce, industry, communications, transportation, and other matters.

Principal Government Officials[edit]

• Chief of state: King - Tuanku Abdul Halim Mu'adzam Shah (since 11 April 2012)
• Prime Minister—Mohamed Najib bin Abdul Razak (since 3 April 2009)
• Foreign Minister—Anifah Aman
• Ambassador to the U.S.--Datin Paduka Rajmah Hussein
• Ambassador to the UN—Datuk Hamidon bin Ali

Political Conditions[edit]

Georgetown (Penang).

Malaysia's predominant political party, the United Malays National Organization (UMNO), has held power in coalition with other parties since independence in 1957. The UMNO coalition's share of the vote declined in national elections held in May 1969, after which riots broke out in Kuala Lumpur and elsewhere, mainly between Malays and ethnic Chinese. Several hundred people were killed or injured. The government declared a state of emergency and suspended all parliamentary activities.

In the years that followed, Malaysia undertook several initiatives that became integral parts of its socioeconomic model. The New Economic Policy (NEP), launched in 1971, contained a series of affirmative action policies designed to benefit Malays and certain indigenous groups (together known as bumiputera or "sons of the soil"). The Constitution was amended to limit dissent against the specially-protected and sensitive portions of the Constitution pertaining to the social contract. The government identified intercommunal harmony as one of its official goals. The previous alliance of communally based parties was replaced with a broader coalition—the Barisan Nasional (BN) or National Front. The BN won large majorities in the 1974 federal and state elections.

Dr. Mahathir Mohamad was Prime Minister between 1981 and 2003, leading UMNO and BN to successive election victories. Mahathir emphasized economic development during his tenure, in particular the export sector, as well as large scale infrastructure projects. Mahathir attributed the success of the Asian tiger economies to the "Asian values" of its people, which he believed were superior to those of the West. Mahathir sharply criticized the International Monetary Fund (IMF), international financiers such as George Soros, and Western governments during the sharp economic and financial crisis that affected Asia in 1997–8, and denied that the downturn was due to the failures of corruption and "crony capitalism."

Kuala Lumpur, the capital.

The end of Mahathir's tenure was marred by a falling out with his deputy and presumed successor, Anwar Ibrahim. In September 1998, Mahathir dismissed Anwar and accused him of immoral and corrupt conduct. Although Anwar was convicted on both charges in 1999 and 2000, the trials were viewed as seriously flawed. Malaysia's Federal Court eventually freed Anwar after overturning his immoral conduct conviction in September 2004.

Disputed claims in the South China Sea.

Mahathir stepped down as prime minister in October 2003 after 22 years in power, and his successor, Deputy Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, was sworn into office. Abdullah called elections and won an overwhelming victory in March 2004, with Barisan Nasional taking 199 of 219 seats in the lower house of parliament. UMNO itself won 110 seats. The Islamic opposition party (PAS), which had made electoral inroads in 1999, was reduced to six seats in parliament and lost control of the state of Terengganu. The left of center Democratic Action Party (DAP), with predominately urban ethnic Chinese support, won 12 seats in parliament, and party chairman Lim Kit Siang became Leader of the Opposition in parliament.

Since taking office, Abdullah, an Islamic scholar, has promoted the concept of "Islam Hadhari" or "civilizational Islam," emphasizing the importance of education, social harmony, and economic progress. His relationship with Mahathir eventually soured, and the former prime minister now expresses regret at supporting Abdullah to be his successor. Under the terms of the constitution the government must next call elections no later than May 2009.

Foreign Relations[edit]

Regional cooperation is a cornerstone of Malaysia's foreign policy. It was a founding member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and served as the group's chair most recently in 2005–2006. It hosted the ASEAN Summit and East Asia Summit in December 2005, as well as the ASEAN Ministerial and the ASEAN Regional Forum in July 2006.

Malaysia is an active member of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC), the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC), the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM), and the United Nations. It is the current chair of the OIC and has also chaired the NAM. Malaysia hosted the APEC Leaders' Meeting in 1998.

Malaysia is a frequent contributor to UN and other peacekeeping missions, including recent deployments to East Timor, Indonesia, Pakistan, Sierra Leone, Kosovo, and Lebanon.

Economy[edit]

Petronas Twin Towers.

Since it became independent, Malaysia's economic record has been one of Asia's best. Real gross domestic product (GDP) grew by an average of 6.5% per year from 1957 to 2005. Performance peaked in the early 1980s through the mid-1990s, as the economy experienced sustained rapid growth averaging almost 8% annually. High levels of foreign and domestic investment played a significant role as the economy diversified and modernized. Once heavily dependent on primary products such as rubber and tin, Malaysia today is a middle-income country with a multi-sector economy based on services and manufacturing. Malaysia is one of the world's largest exporters of semiconductor devices, electrical goods, and information and communication technology (ICT) products.

• Nominal GDP: $130.8 billion.
• Annual real GDP growth rate: 7.1% (2004); 5.2% (2005).
• Per capita (GDP) income: $5,042.
• Natural resources: petroleum, liquefied natural gas (LNG), tin, minerals.
• Agricultural products: palm oil, rubber, timber, cocoa, rice, tropical fruit, fish, coconut.
• Industry: Types—electronics, electrical products, chemicals, food and beverages, metal and machine products, apparel.
• Trade: Merchandise exports--$145.0 billion: electronics, electrical products, palm oil, petroleum, liquid natural gas, apparel, timber and logs, plywood and veneer, natural rubber. Major markets—U.S. 18.8%, Singapore 15.0%, Japan 10.1%. *Merchandise imports--$118.0 billion: machinery, chemicals, manufactured goods, fuels, and lubricants. Major suppliers—Japan 16.1%, U.S. 14.6%, Singapore 11.2%.

New Zealand - Malaysia Free Trade Agreement.

The government has taken an active role in guiding the nation's economic development. Malaysia's New Economic Policy (NEP), first established in 1971, sought to eradicate poverty and to enhance the economic standing of ethnic Malays and other indigenous peoples (collectively known as "bumiputeras"). One NEP goal was to expand the share of corporate equity owned by ethnic Malays. In June 1991, after the NEP expired, the government unveiled its National Development Policy, which contained many of the NEP's goals. In April 2001, the government released a new plan, the "National Vision Policy," to guide development over the period 2001–2010. The National Vision Policy targets education for budget increases and seeks to refocus the economy toward higher-technology production. The stated goal is for Malaysia to be a fully developed economy by 2020.

The Malaysian economy went into sharp recession in 1997-1998 during the Asian financial crisis, which affected countries throughout the region, including South Korea, Indonesia, and Thailand. Malaysia's GDP contracted by more than 7% in 1998. Malaysia narrowly avoided a return to recession in 2001 when its economy was negatively impacted by the bursting of the dot-com bubble (which hurt the ICT sector) and slow growth or recession in many of its important export markets.

In July 2005, the government removed the 7-year old peg linking the ringgit's value to the U.S. dollar at an exchange rate of RM 3.8/U.S.$1.0. The dollar peg was replaced by a managed float against an undisclosed basket of currencies. The new exchange rate policy was designed to keep the ringgit more broadly stable and to avoid uncertain currency swings which could harm exports.

History[edit]

Acheen St. Mosque.

The early Buddhist Malay kingdom of Srivijaya, based at what is now Palembang, Sumatra, dominated much of the Malay peninsula from the 9th to the 13th centuries AD. The powerful Hindu kingdom of Majapahit, based on Java, gained control of the Malay peninsula in the 14th century. Conversion of the Malays to Islam, beginning in the early 14th century, accelerated with the rise of the state of Malacca under the rule of a Muslim prince in the 15th century. Malacca was a major regional commercial center, where Chinese, Arab, Malay, and Indian merchants traded precious goods.

Drawn by this rich trade, a Portuguese fleet conquered Malacca in 1511, marking the beginning of European expansion in Southeast Asia. The Dutch ousted the Portuguese from Malacca in 1641. The British obtained the island of Penang in 1786 and temporarily controlled Malacca with Dutch acquiescence from 1795 to 1818 to prevent it from falling to the French during the Napoleonic war. The British gained lasting possession of Malacca from the Dutch in 1824, through the Anglo-Dutch treaty, in exchange for territory on the island of Sumatra in what is today Indonesia.

In 1826, the British settlements of Malacca, Penang, and Singapore were combined to form the Colony of the Straits Settlements. From these strongholds, in the 19th and early 20th centuries the British established protectorates over the Malay sultanates on the peninsula. During their rule the British developed large-scale rubber and tin production and established a system of public administration. British control was interrupted by World War II and the Japanese occupation from 1941 to 1945.

Lu Chon Min, Fishing Village, 1961.

Popular sentiment for independence swelled during and after the war. The territories of peninsular Malaysia joined together to form the Federation of Malaya in 1948 and eventually negotiated independence from the British in 1957. Tunku Abdul Rahman became the first prime minister. In 1963 the British colonies of Singapore, Sarawak, and Sabah joined the Federation, which was renamed Malaysia. Singapore's membership was short-lived, however; it left in 1965 and became an independent republic.

Neighboring Indonesia objected to the formation of Malaysia and began a program of economic, political, diplomatic, and military "confrontation" against the new country in 1963, which ended only after the fall of Indonesia's President Sukarno in 1966. Internally, local communists, nearly all Chinese, carried out a long, bitter insurgency both before and after independence, prompting the imposition of a state of emergency from 1948 to 1960. Small bands of guerrillas remained in bases along the rugged border with southern Thailand, occasionally entering northern Malaysia. These guerrillas finally signed a peace accord with the Malaysian Government in December 1989. A separate, small-scale communist insurgency that began in the mid-1960s in Sarawak also ended with the signing of a peace accord in October 1990.

External links[edit]

• Malaysia rejects Christian appeal, BBC News, 30 May 2007.
• Malaysia. CIA
• Tourism Malaysia Official Website.

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