Countries of the World/COUNTRYS.BIN/dp/0232/02323.txt

Text File | 1991-06-25 | 34KB | 546 lines

$Unique_ID{COW02323}
$Pretitle{245}
$Title{Malaysia
Chapter 4A.   Government and Politics}
$Subtitle{}
$Author{Donald M. Seekins}
$Affiliation{HQ, Department of the Army}
$Subject{state
federal
government
minister
prime
public
courts
paramount
ruler
national}
$Date{1984}
$Log{}
Country:     Malaysia
Book:        Malaysia, A Country Study
Author:      Donald M. Seekins
Affiliation: HQ, Department of the Army
Date:        1984

Chapter 4A.   Government and Politics

     The politics and government of Malaysia bear an imprint of the British
constitutional monarchy and parliamentary politics. The highest public
official of the Federation of Malaysia is the paramount ruler, or king, but
his constitutional role is more symbolic than substantive. The actual,
day-to-day process of policymaking, supervision, and implementation with
regard to the affairs of the nation is in the hands of the prime minister, who
is concurrently the country's dominant political leader. Since independence in
1957 partisan political conflicts and competition have been resolved
peacefully through general elections, and the transfer of power from one set
of national leadership to another has been accomplished with no crisis of
transition. There have been no coup d'etat or countercoups and, unlike the
situation in some other countries of the world, the military has not been a
significant factor in the political process.

     In 1984 the dominant political party remained the United Malays National
Organization (UMNO), founded in 1946 by Malay nationalists to safeguard their
traditional political prerogatives from encroachment by non-Malays. UMNO was
led by Dato' Seri Dr. Mahathir Mohamad, who had succeeded Datuk Hussein bin
Onn as prime minister in 1981. As UMNO leader and prime minister, Hussein Onn
had been preceded by Tun Abdul Razak (1970-76) and Tengku Abdul Rahman
(1957-70).

     UMNO's policy objectives were twofold-to consolidate national unity in a
multiracial and multicultural society and to accelerate the pace of economic
development so that all segments of the population could equitably share the
benefits of nation-building. These objectives were dictated by the interracial
tensions and the adverse consequences such tensions would have on the
stability of civil and political orders. Accordingly, UMNO had found it
imperative to soften its initial pro-Malay orientation and to form an
interracial coalition with other political parties serving as the vehicles for
various ethnic communities.

     In 1984 this coalition arrangement worked through the National Front
(Barison Nasional), a broadened version of an earlier coalition called the
Alliance, first formed in 1952. The philosophical underpinning of the National
Front continued to be that the search for national harmony should be carried
out through mutual collaboration and with minimal infighting among the various
racially inspired political organizations. Equally important was the National
Front's commitment to the notion that poverty, perceived to be a major source
of tension and disaffection, should be removed from all sectors of society
irrespective of race.

     Among the factors, actual and potential, affecting the stability of the
nation was insurgency by factions of the communist movement. Also to be taken
into account were potential backlashes caused either by Malay dissatisfaction
with unfulfilled economic promises of the National Front government or by
Chinese reaction against any economic or political measures that they might
perceive to be blatantly anti-Chinese. From all indications the ultimate
success of the coalition government in its efforts to bring about prosperity
and interracial harmony appeared to hinge on its economic performance.

     Malaysia's gradualist approach to nationbuilding is reflected also in its
foreign policy orientation. Peace, moderation, and avoidance of conflicts with
other countries remain conspicuous features of its foreign relations. In
recent years an increasing emphasis has been placed on the promotion of
regional cooperation within the framework of the Association of Southeast
Asian Nations.

The Federal Constitution of Malaysia

     In 1957 the newly independent Malaya proclaimed a constitution as the
basic framework for a strong federation of 11 component states. The document
was carefully crafted to nurture a British-patterned parliamentary democracy,
to balance the conflicting interests of a racially divided society, and to
ensure political harmony among the princely states traditionally ruled by
hereditary sultans. The Constitution remained unaltered until 1963, when it
was slightly revised and was named the Federal Constitution of Malaysia in
order to account for the accession to Malaya of Singapore, Sarawak, and Sabah.
When Singapore opted for separation from the federation in 1965, the basic law
of the land was revised accordingly. The Constitution has since been amended
from time to time to accommodate new political circumstances; the most recent
of these amendments occurred in 1983 (see The Politics of Compromise, this
ch.). The integrity of the Constitution as the fundamental set of guidelines
and prescriptions continued to be respected in 1984 by nearly every segment of
the population, regardless of racial or political differences.

     The Constitution guarantees fundamental freedoms for peaceable assembly,
speech and press, association, political participation, worship, and privacy
of home, subject to restrictions by law only on grounds of national security,
public order, or public morality. Since independence internal security has
been the main reason for limitation of these freedoms. No person is to be
deprived of life or liberty without due process of law. A citizen is not to be
subjected to arbitrary detention, double jeopardy, or retroactive application
of criminal laws. In case of detention the arrested person must be
expeditiously notified of cause, allowed counsel of choice, and arraigned
before a magistrate within 24 hours of arrest; but in a state of emergency,
constitutional safeguards may be withdrawn indefinitely unless the law
granting emergency powers to the government is revoked by both houses of
parliament.

     Under the Constitution, Islam is the official religion of the nation, and
Malaysian Muslims are legally bound by Islamic law, but other faiths are
practiced freely without government discrimination. No one may be taxed to
support a religion alien to his or her beliefs, and each religious group is
entitled to regulate its own internal matters as it sees fit, to own property,
and to establish and maintain its organizations and charities. All faiths are,
however, subject to laws relating to public order, public health, and
morality. Every citizen has the right to propagate his or her faith, and the
freedom of conversion to Islam is not expressly forbidden; but attempts to
proselytize among Muslims is banned.

     The Constitution empowers the parliament to enact necessary laws to cope
with both actual and potential organized violence, with conditions likely to
disturb public order and endanger national security, or with actual or
potential situations abetting disaffection against the paramount ruler or any
legally constituted authority in the nation. In the event of a grave emergency
threatening the security or economic life of the federation or any part
thereof, the government may exercise special emergency powers; these powers
can be invoked, however, only after a state of emergency is declared by the
paramount ruler on the advice and request of the cabinet or of the prime
minister. The proclamation of an emergency and any related ordinance
promulgated by the paramount ruler must be laid before the parliament for its
consent. The proclamation is valid for six months unless revoked sooner by the
federal legislature. While the proclamation is in force, the federal
government may pass laws on matters that are reserved under the Constitution
for a state government. These laws may n