Since its formation as an independent state in 1963, Malaysia has been governed by the Barisan Nasional (BN), a coalition of ethnically-based political parties led by the United Malays National Organization (UMNO) and includes the Malaysian Chinese Association (MCA), the Malaysian Indian Congress (MIC), and the Malaysian People's Movement Party (Gerakan). The government prides itself on maintaining ethnic and religious peace and stability, which sometimes means restricting civil liberties and basic rights.
Political Situation
In March 2008, opposition parties Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR), Pan-Malaysian Islamic Party (PAS), and Democratic Action Party (DAP) made their largest gains ever by winning five states (Penang, Kedah, Kelantan, Selangor, and Perak) and winning 82 out of 222 seats in parliament, preventing BN from retaining its long-held two-thirds majority. The election results signaled a dramatic shift in Malaysia's political landscape, from being rooted in racial divisions to being based on expectations of politicians representing constituent concerns and delivering on calls for reform. Following their successes in 2008 the 2008 elections, the opposition parties formed the Pakatan Rakyat (PR) coalition, led by PKR leader and former Deputy Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim.
As opposition parties have begun to make strides in Malaysia, civil society groups have been increasingly vocal in calling for reform. In the years leading up to the 2008 general elections, opposition parties and civil society organizations formed the Coalition for Clean and Fair Elections (BERSIH) to advocate for electoral reform. On Nov. 10, 2007, tens of thousands of citizens turned out for a BERSIH-organized rally in Kuala Lumpur in support of electoral reform.
Current Activities
In February 2005, NDI launched a program in Malaysia to foster open discourse on legislative and governmental matters and to encourage political parties to be more transparent, democratic, and communicative in their relations with one another and with the public. The program fostered dialogue between parties and civil society on issues of reform to improve party constituent outreach, message development, and communication skills.
NDI has organized workshops at the national level for party officials to address issues of internal and external party and political reforms. NDI encourages political party officials to explore improvements in their parties' internal structures and decision-making processes, by sharing local and international experiences and lessons learned. In November 2006, NDI conducted a series of single-party training sessions with ruling and opposition parties on strategic communications and messaging. Together with Education and Research Association for Consumers (ERA Consumer), a leading Malaysian non-governmental organization known for its neutrality and effectiveness in promoting good governance, NDI supported forums for party officials and members to discuss local concerns and improve constituent outreach. As part of this effort, NDI and ERA Consumer organized a series of grassroots training workshops from 2004 to 2008 for ruling and opposition parties, including Sabah, focused on issues such as women in politics and Islam, the constitution, policing, and Malaysia's human rights commission.
In July 2005, NDI organized a national-level workshop for party leaders on election reform. NDI has since conducted many workshops across Malaysia to promote electoral reform in collaboration with Research for Social Advancement (REFSA), the secretariat for BERSIH. In 2006, NDI conducted a a workshop for BERSIH that focused on improving the action plans of each participating organization or political party in accomplishing their objectives. In 2007, NDI and BERSIH conducted a series of workshops in the politically neglected provinces of Sabah and Sarawak to educate previously disenfranchised political aspirants.
The Institute continues to engage both ruling and opposition parties through national and state level parliamentary skills workshops. NDI is conducting a series of ad hoc consultations with newly elected parliamentarians on parliamentary procedures and constituent outreach. Because opposition parties have had limited experience in government, many of the parliamentarians elected in 2008 lack a fundamental understanding of parliamentary processes and of representing constituent concerns. State-level parliamentary workshops in Selangor and Penang have examined the role and operation of committees and public inquiries. Future workshops in other states aim to enhance the knowledge of parliamentarians from all parties on issues of parliamentary transparency and accountability, and improve their ability to fully represent public interests.
To complement the parliamentary training program, NDI is supporting national and state-level civic information fairs for various members of civil and political society to connect and develop new relationships across sectors to facilitate better understanding between citizens and politicians. NDI also provides additional technical assistance to program participants and their respective parties and organizations through regular consultations.
Funding
NDI programming for Malaysia is funded by the National Endowment for Democracy (NED).
Contact Information
For more information about these programs, use our contact form or contact:
Malaysia
Stephanie Lynn, Resident Senior Program Director
+62 21 310 7154
Washington, D.C.
Anne Tsai Bennett, Program Manager
(202) 728-5455
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