johnlee_my Judging by Pas’s pragmatic record and successes in the past, the Islamist party may yet surprise the sceptics by adapting its Islamistolitics to suit the needs and aspirations of the younger generation of Malaysian voters who voted for the party, observes Farish Noor. These voters opted for Pas not because they wanted to see an … Read more
One of the most glaring failures of the Malaysian nation-building project is our failure to develop a national language that is actually used as the lingua franca of all Malaysians, writes Farish Noor. While the laborious debate over whether BM should be termed ‘Bahasa Malaysia’ or ‘Bahasa Melayu’ has been raging for decades, it is … Read more
Malaysia’s PM pays high price to stay in powerBy Michael Backman, The AgeMarch 26, 2008 MALAYSIA’S hapless Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi got something right last week: he announced a radical reshuffle of his cabinet, which included dropping several ministers who had seemed untouchable. But what Abdullah got wrong was the timing. The reshuffle is about … Read more
The Kingmakers: Sabah, Sarawak and the 12th Malaysia General ElectionsBy Anthea Mulakala(Anthea Mulakala is The Asia Foundation’s Country Representative in Malaysia. She can be reached at amulakala@asiafound.org.) March 26, 2008 The Economist last week featured a telling pie chart on Malaysia’s 12th general election results. It revealed, without analysis, that Malaysia’s Barisan National (BN) coalition … Read more
Malaysian voters open the door for Anwar Ibrahimby Michael BackmanThe AgeMarch 12, 2008 MALAYSIA Boleh! (Malaysia Can!) is Malaysia’s national slogan but after last Saturday’s elections, the real slogan should be Malaysians Boleh! for ordinary Malaysians are to be congratulated. The humiliation they handed their government at the federal and state elections demonstrates how politically … Read more
Malaysia needs a strong Oppositionby Michael BackmanThe AgeFebruary 27, 2008 SHOULD Malaysians bother to vote? The corollary of this question is: does the Malaysian Government deserve to be re-elected? The answer to the second question is no. In the past few years, the Malaysian Government has presided over an extraordinary number of scandals that are … Read more
Commentary by Dr. Lim Teck GheeShameless Political Partisanship of Media: The Fong CoverageKuala Lumpur, 19 Feb 2008 “PO KUAN CRIES OFF???; “Fong drops a bomb??? screamed the headlines of the two major papers in the country yesterday. Most readers would have wondered what earth shattering event had taken place to warrant such eye catching coverage. … Read more
Press statement by Dr. Lim Teck Ghee: The Elections: Etiquette and Good Practice I fully support the call by the Kuala Lumpur and Selangor Chinese Assembly Hall (KLSCAH) for the Government to respect the cultural sensitivities of the Malaysian Chinese community by refraining from dissolving Parliament and calling for elections during this period of the … Read more
The game MONOPOLY by Parker Brothers must have been a good socializer to the idea that monopolizing and being greedy is good. For decades the ideology of monopolizing has shaped the consciousness of Malaysians and monopolizers are considered heroes of the Malaysian-styled laissez faire world of corporate-crony-crypto capitalism. There is even a Malaysian version of … Read more
Productivity and Ethnical Aspects by Tan Sri Ramon Navaratnam on the 2nd of February 2008 at the Hari Alumni UM: Balik Kampus 2008 under thetheme of “Malaysia Development Vision” [Download]