 |
| Kuala Lumpur, is the capital and largest city (Map of Malaysia) |
Malaysia is a Southeast Asian country occupying the Malaysian Peninsula
and part of the island of Borneo. It's known for its beaches, rainforests and
mix of Malay, Chinese, Indian and European influences. The sprawling capital,
Kuala Lumpur, is home to colonial buildings, busy shopping districts such as
Bukit Bintang and skyscrapers including the iconic, 451m-tall Petronas Twin
Towers.
MegaStructures - Petronas Towers - MegaStructures is a documentary television series. Each episode is an educational look of varying depth into the construction, operation, and staffing of various structures or construction projects, but not ordinary construction products. Generally containing interviews with designers and project managers, it presents the problems of construction and the methodology or techniques used to overcome obstacles. MegaStructures focuses on constructions that are extreme; in the sense that they are the biggest, tallest, longest, or deepest in the world.
Malaysia population - About 60 per cent of the Malaysian population live in
rural areas. Kuala Lumpur has about 7.5 million people as of 2012.
Urban and rural areas in Malaysia contrast sharply. A heavily populated
Chinese section of Kuala Lumpur, has narrow streets crowded with motor vehicles. A quiet
rural area scene, above, shows a house that is raised on stilts.
People of various ethnic groups live in Peninsular Malaysia. Malays make up the largest
group, followed by Chinese and Indians. Most of the people in the scene above
are Malays.
A school in Malaysia provides six years of primary education
and up to five years of secondary education.
Kite flying is popular on the east coast of Malaysia. Traditional
kites are elaborate and colourfully decorated.
A popular Malaysian sport called silat is a traditional
combination of dancing and self-defence.
Large drum called rebana
ubi provides a test of skill for com-
musicians. It is made from a hollow log.
The Cameron Highlands have rich soil in which farmers grow vegetables and
flowers for sale throughout Malaysia.
Tropical rainforests cover most mountain areas in Malaysia. This village is
in the Sarawak and Sabah region. Mount Kinabalu, the country's highest peak,
rises in the background.
Malaysia precipitation -
Most of the rainfall in Malaysia falls during the northeast monsoon season,
between November and March.
Palm nuts go by the truckload to the mill to be crushed. Malaysia
produces more than half the world's palm oil.
Economy of Malaysia
has one of the strongest economies in Southeast Asia. This map shows what the
land in Malaysia is used for. It also locates mineral deposits, rubber
plantations, urban centres, and fishing areas.
Rubber processing is one of Malaysia's
chief industries. Factory workers make sheets of rubber from a milky fluid
called latex, above. The fluid comes from rubber trees.
Struggling to be a Better Muslimah Everyday
Modern, Malaysian and Muslim - In this Newsline special, Jim Middleton speaks with three prominent young Malaysian women about how they balance their beliefs with the demands of 21st century life. Joining Jim on the program is Wardina Saffiyah, a Malaysian TV host and actress, Suriani Kempe from the Sisters in Islam, and Hana Shazwin Azizan from the Global Movement for Moderates Foundation.
Struggling to be a Better Muslimah Everyday
Modern, Malaysian and Muslim - In this Newsline special, Jim Middleton speaks with three prominent young Malaysian women about how they balance their beliefs with the demands of 21st century life. Joining Jim on the program is Wardina Saffiyah, a Malaysian TV host and actress, Suriani Kempe from the Sisters in Islam, and Hana Shazwin Azizan from the Global Movement for Moderates Foundation.
Modern - of or relating to present or recent times as opposed to the remote past remote times.
Your
Majesties, Your Royal Highnesses, Your Highnesses, Your Excellencies, People of
Persekutuan Tanah Melayu. I am indeed proud that on this, the greatest day in
Malaya's history it falls to my lot to proclaim the formal independence of this
country. Today as new page is turned, and Malaya steps forward to take her
rightful place as a free and independent partner in the great community of
Nations - a new nation is born and though we fully realise that difficulties and
problems lie ahead, we are confident that, with the blessing of God, these
difficulties will be overcome and that today's events, down the avenues of
history, will be our inspiration and our guide...read more>>>
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1. In economics, a depression is a sustained,
long-term downturn in economic activity in one or more economies.
It is a more severe downturn than an economic recession, which
is a slowdown in economic activity over the course of a normal
business cycle.
Malaysia is a country in Southeast Asia. It consists of two regions about 650 kilometres apart, which are separated by the South China Sea. The regions are Peninsular (formerly West) Malaysia, and Sarawak and Sabah (formerly East Malaysia), on the northern part of the island of Borneo. Peninsular Malaysia borders on the north with Thailand.
Malaysia is a tropical land, much of which
is covered by dense rainforests. It is the world's largest producer of natural
rubber and palm oil (vegetable oil from palm tree nuts). Malays and
Chinese people make up most of the country's population. Kuala Lumpur is
Malaysia's capital and largest city.
The nation of Malaysia was formed in 1963,
when Malaya, Sarawak, Sabah, and Singapore united. Malaya was an independent
nation that occupied what is now Peninsular Malaysia. Sarawak and Sabah were
separate colonies of the United Kingdom (UK) that covered what is now the
Malaysian region of Sarawak and Sabah. Singapore was a UK colony, south of
Malaya. Singapore withdrew from Malaysia in 1965.
People
Population and ethnic groups. For Malaysia's total population, see the Malaysia in brief table with this article. About three-fifths of the
people live in rural areas. More than 80 per cent of the people live in
Peninsular Malaysia.
Malaysia's largest population groups are,
in order of size, the Malays, Chinese, and Indians. Malays make up about 50 per
cent of the population, Chinese about 35 per cent, and Indians about 10 per cent.
A number of other ethnic groups who live chiefly in Sarawak and Sabah make up
the rest of the population. The largest groups in Sarawak and Sabah are the
Dyaks and the Ka- dazans (see Dyaks).
Malaysia's ethnic groups speak separate
languages or dialects, and, in many areas, have different ways of life and hold
different religious beliefs. Malays make up the most powerful group in
Malaysian politics, but the Chinese control much of the nation's economy.
Despite differences between the major ethnic groups which have led to friction
and, sometimes, violence, Malaysia is a model of racial harmony.
Languages. Bahasa Malaysia, the Malay language, is used by the Malay people and
Malaysians generally in everyday life. It is the country's official language
(see Malay).
Most Chinese speak the Chinese language,
and most Indians speak Tamil. Many Malaysians also understand English, which is
widely used in business.
Way of life. Peninsular Malaysia includes many crowded cities as
well as large rural regions. Sarawak and Sabah has several large towns along
the coast and rivers, but the interior is chiefly a rural area.
The majority of the country's Malays live
in rural areas on the peninsula. Most of them work as farmers and live in
settlements called kampungs. Many houses in
rural areas are made of wood. Most have thatched roofs, but some have roofs
made of tiles. Some houses are raised above the ground on stilts. Most Malays
who live in cities work in industry or in government jobs.
Most of Malaysia's Chinese people live in
cities. Large numbers of them work in shops, business offices, and factories.
Chinese people own a large proportion of Malaysia's businesses. Wealthy and
middle-class Chinese live in suburban homes or high-rise blocks of flats in
central city areas. In the cities, some low-income Chinese as well as Malays
and Indians live in crowded, rundown areas.
Large numbers of Malaysia's Indians work
on rubber plantations. Many others hold city jobs.
Most people of Sarawak and Sabah live in
small settlements in rural areas. Several families often live together in long houses along rivers. Many of these families struggle to
produce enough food for their own use.
Clothing. Traditional costumes are not often worn in the towns
and cities. The men tend to wear Western shirts and trousers outside their
homes, adding ties and coats for official functions. Bushjackets are also worn,
mostly by government officials. For casual wear. Western styles are preferred,
particularly by young people.
Few Chinese women wear the cheongsam, a traditional highcollared, tightly fitting dress
with slits at the sides. Older women prefer the more comfortable samfoo,
which consists of a jacket and trousers. Many Indian women like to wear saris.
See India (Clothing).
At home, many Malay men still relax in sarongs.
A sarong is a length of cloth, the two sides of which are sewn together to
form a very loose sheath. A man wears it wrapped around his body and secured by
a doublefold at the waist. It reaches to his ankles. He may wear a shirt or a
singlet with it or he may prefer to go around with a bare chest. In rural areas
on hot days, some older women sit around their homes wearing sarongs tied just
under their arms. Younger women wear sarongs in this way only when they bathe at the river
or well.
Most Malaysian men reserve traditional
dress for religious or ceremonial occasions. Many women wear their various
traditional costumes very often, and some every day. Quite a number of women
experiment with modified versions of dress that embody traditional designs
from other local and foreign cultures.
Malay traditional dress for men consists
of a baju— a roundnecked or highcollared longsleeved shirt. They
also wear seluar (trousers) with a sarong wrapped smartly around the
waist and hips, and a black songkok (boat-shaped velvet
cap) or a tanjak (elegant cloth headdress) for special occasions.
Some Malay men wear sarongs to the mosque, and instead of songkoks they may
wear ketayaps (white skull caps) for such occasions. Many men who
have been on a pilgrimage to Mecca wear serban haji (pilgrims' turbans). A number of Muslim men of all
races wear robes and turbans.
For Malay women, the traditional costumes
most widely worn are the sarong, the baju kurung, and the baju kebaya.
The baju kurung is like the baju for men. It r; is tied with gathers
on one side, and the outfit is completed with a selendang
(shawl) or tudung (scarf) around the shoulders or on the head. Some
Malay women who have gone on a pilgrimage to Mecca wear special headdresses
similar to those worn by male counterparts.
Food. Multicultural Malaysia has a variety
of delicious cuisines (styles of cooking). People in the cities can dine at
French and Italian restaurants as well as eating local Malay, Chinese, or
Indian food.
Chinese cuisine in Malaysia comes from
different provinces of China, and is extremely varied. But boiled rice is the
basis of the daily diet of most Chinese. See China (Food).
Most Indians like highly spiced food. Rice
is the main food of people from south India. Wheat flour is the main food of
families from north India. See India (Food).
Malay cooking varies from state to state
but the main dish is rice, usually boiled and eaten with vegetables, fish or
other seafood, chicken, or meat. Pork is forbidden by Islam, the religion of
most Malays. Chillies, coconut milk, onions, spices, and tamarind are
frequently used in Malay cooking. Popular dishes from different states include
the asam pedas (fish with hot chillies and sourish gravy) of Johor
and the ayampercik (chicken in thick coconut-milk gravy) of Kelantan.
One Malay appetizer is ulam— shoots, leaves, or
fruit dipped in or eaten with sambal (pounded chillies
and shrimp paste).
Rice, after being boiled, is often fried
with chillies, onions, and ikan bilis
(anchovies) to make nasigoreng (fried
rice). Other variations on plain boiled rice include nasi lemak
(boiled rice in coconut milk and eaten with sambil tunis, a preparation of chillies, anchovies, and coconut
milk); nasi ulam (rice mixed with herbs and salted fish); and nasi dagang (rice mixed with thick gravy and fish) of Terengganu.
Rice is sometimes boiled in small cases woven out of coconut-leaves to make ketupat. This is eaten with rendang
(beef or chicken cooked over a slow fire in coconut milk, with chillies and
certain condiments until the gravy thickens and dries into a delicious
coating), or at any time with satay (small pieces of
chicken or meat skewered on bamboo sticks and baked over a charcoal fire). Satay
is coated with thick peanut gravy. Many Malays like satay dipped in chilli
sauce.
Religion. Islam is the national religion but the Malaysian
Constitution guarantees freedom of worship. The number of different religions
in Malaysia is proof of religious tolerance in the country. As well as mosques
(Islamic places of worship), there are many Hindu and Buddhist temples and
Christian churches throughout Malaysia. In fact, the main religions of the
world, with their rituals, customs, and festivals are dominant features of
Malaysia's multiracial culture.
About a dozen national holidays are
governed by the Muslim calendar which varies from year to year in relation to
the Western calendar. The main holidays of the Chinese and Christian years are
also observed.
The majority of Malays are Muslims,
belonging to the Sunni sect of Islam (see Islam). Regular daily prayers and
mosque attendance is an important feature of Islam. Muslims also have a
religious duty to pay alms to help the needy.
Hari Raya Puasa is the major Muslim festival. It marks the end of the
fasting month of Ramadan, a time of strict observances, when eating and
drinking in daylight hours are forbidden. Every year, thousands of Muslim
Malays perform the haj (pilgrimage) to the Islamic holy cities
of Mecca and Medina in Saudi Arabia.
The majority of Malaysian Indians are
Hindus. There is a small Sikh community. The two main Hindu festivals are Deepavaii
(Festival of Lights) and Thaipusam.
Deepavali commemorates the overthrow of a tyrant king named Naragasuran.
Thaipusam is a colourful festival connected with the fulfilment of vows.
Buddhism has a substantial following among
the Chinese. Wesak Day is an important festival commemorating the three great
events in the life of Buddha, namely his birth, enlightenment, and death.
The main Christian denomination is Roman
Catholicism. In addition there are small numbers of Anglicans, Methodists,
Baptists, and other denominations. Christian missions played a leading role in
educating the people during the time when Peninsular Malaysia was a British
colony.
Education. The system of formal education in Malaysia consists
of four levels graded according to the age of the students. The four levels are
primary, secondary (lower and upper), post-secondary, and tertiary.
Children in Malaysia begin primary
education at the age of 6 and continue for 6 years. There are three types of
primary schools. The national primary school uses Malay as the language of
instruction. Chinese and Tamil schools use Chinese and Tamil respectively as
the basic language. More than 90 per cent of children of primary school age
complete primary education.
In lower secondary school the main
subjects are Bahasa Malaysia (the Malay language), art, English, general science,
geography, history, health and physical education, living skills, and moral or
Islamic education.
After three years students sit for the
Lower Sijil Rendah Pelajaran (Certificate of Education) examination. Successful
students, who continue for two years of Upper Secondary education, take the Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (Malaysian Certificate of Education) or the Sijil Pelajaran Vokasional Malaysia (Malaysian Certificate of Vocational Education).
Students who wish to go to university then study for two more years and sit the
Sijil Tinggi Per- sekolahan Malaysia (Malaysian Higher School Certificate) examination.
Malaysia has seven universities. The
oldest is the University of Malaya. It was founded in Kuala Lumpur in 1959
although it can trace its origins back to the King Edward VII College of
Medicine, established in 1905, the Raffles College which began in Singapore in
1929, and the University of Malaya, in Singapore, which began in 1949. The
University of Technology Malaysia and the University of Agriculture Malaysia,
founded in the early 1970's, also originated from earlier institutions.
The University of Science in Penang opened
in 1969 and the Universiti
Kebangsaan (National University) in Bangi began in
1970. In 1982, the government assisted in founding the Universiti Islam Antarabangsa (International Islamic University) in Petaling Jaya.
In 1984, the Universiti Utara (Northern University) opened in Kedah.
Two other important institutions for
higher education are Majlis Amanah Rakyat
(MARA) (Trust Council for the Indigenous People) Institute of Technology, and
Tunku Abdul Rahman College. They offer a wide range of semi- professional and
professional courses, leading to certificates or diplomas. They also offer
degree-level courses jointly with universities in the United States. The Ministry
of Education also runs a number of polytechnics and 27 teacher training
colleges. Total student enrolment in the universities and colleges in Malaysia
is about 80,000. The government bears over 95 per cent of the cost of
university education in Malaysia.
National celebrations. August 31 is celebrated as Malaysia's national day to
mark the country's independence. Parades and exhibitions are held to celebrate
this event. Another important national celebration is held to mark the birthday
of the yang di-pertuan agong (king of Malaysia) on June 5.
Several important religious festivals are
celebrated nationwide by all Malaysians. But most have special significance
for the particular ethnic group.
The Malays who are Muslims celebrate
festivals of the religion of Islam throughout Malaysia. Ramadan is marked each
year by fasting from sunrise to sunset.
The Hindus of Malaysia celebrate the
festivals of Deepavali and Thaipusam. Chosen people walk on paths of fire
with no apparent ill effects. Others have their skin pierced with long needles.
They carry heavy religious ornaments over great distances into the temples. The
Batu Caves, just outside Kuala Lumpur, are the main centre for the annual
Thaipusam festival.
The main Chinese religious festival is
held to celebrate the start of the Chinese New Year. It usually falls in late
January or early February. The celebrations start on the first day of the new
moon after the winter solstice (see Solstice).
Families pray together. They thank the gods for the year gone by. They also celebrate
with noisy rejoicing and feasting. The Chinese exchange gifts wrapped in red
paper. They consider red a lucky colour. They let off firecrackers, light
candles, burn joss sticks, and pray for their ancestors.
Another important event in the Chinese
year is the moon festival. The celebrations begin on the 15th day of the 8th
moon of the year. City dwellers join in the celebrations. But it is
essentially a time of thanksgiving for the harvest. They eat moon cakes and
other delicacies at this festival time.
Christmas is a special time for both
Christians and non-Christians in Malaysia. Hotels and shopping complexes have
Christmas trees and other decorations.
Sports and pastimes. Sports played in Malaysia range from archery to
windsurfing. Malaysia has produced world champions in badminton and hockey.
Basketball, table tennis, golf, squash, and tennis are also popular. The most
popular sport is soccer.
Malays also enjoy many traditional sports.
A favourite game is sepak raga,
in which the players kick and head the raga
(a ball woven from strips of rattan) so that it moves from one player to
another without touching the ground. The loser is the player who fails to keep
the ball in the air.
Wau (kite flying) is particularly popular on the east
coast of Malaysia. People build elaborate kites and hold contests to see whose
kites can fly highest and stay longest in the air. In other parts of Malaysia, main gasing (top spinning) is a popular sport. Teams of adults
compete with each other to see which team can keep most tops spinning for a
long period.
Another popular Malay sport is pencak
or silat. It is a traditional combination of dancing and
self-defence.
Arts and crafts. The traditional arts of Malaysia include folk dances
which represent scenes of adventure, battles, or love. These dances are
accompanied by percussion instruments including drums, gongs, and a bamboo
instrument called an anklong. Other instruments
include the suling (a bamboo flute) and the rebab (a
two-string violin). Dances include the joget,
which is probably the most popular dance in Malaysia. This dance is performed
at cultural festivals, wedding celebrations, and other social functions. Its
origins can be traced back to Portuguese folk dances that were introduced to
Melaka during the era of the spice trade in the 1500's. The joget is performed
by couples who combine fast hand and leg movements.
The tarian inang is also performed at social functions. The dancers
move quickly and wave colourful scarves.
Other performing arts include dance
dramas, shadow puppet plays, and performances by orchestras of Malay
instruments.
The wayang kulit (shadow puppet play) is an ancient theatrical form.
Puppets made from buffalo hide are held between a white cloth screen and an
oil-lamp light source, casting a dark shadow seen by the audience on the
opposite side of the screen. See Wayang.
The Mak Yong
dance drama is a comprehensive theatrical form, combining dance, opera, drama,
and comedy. Its origins go back several hundred years.
Competitions are held at the end of
harvest time to test the skills of musicians beating the rebana ubi (giant drum), made out of a hollow log about 0.6
metre in diameter. Points are awarded on timing, rhythm, and style of the
drummer, as well as the tone of the rebana itself.
Handicrafts in Malaysia include wood
carving, silver- work, and working with textiles. The states of Kelantan,
Terengganu, Sarawak, and Sabah are particularly rich in handicraft tradition.
The people of Kelantan are expert at the dyeing process called batik
(see Batik).
Land
Malaysia comprises Peninsular Malaysia,
Sarawak, and Sabah. It covers an area of 330,433 square kilometres. The
country lies in a strategic position for sea and air transport between Europe
and the Far East. It is also free from earthquakes, volcanoes, and typhoons.
The landscape consists of broad plains, mountain ranges, spectacular limestone
outcrops and caves, swamps, sandy beaches, and meandering rivers.
Peninsular Malaysia is divided into two by the mountain range, Barisan
Titiwangsa. The range runs from the Thai border along more than half the length
of the peninsula. Several peaks rise to 2,000 metres, and there are upland
resorts in the Cameron Highlands, Fraser's Hill, and Genting Highlands. The
northern half of the peninsula contains several short mountain ranges on both
sides of the main range. On one of these is Gunung Tahan (2,187 metres), the
highest peak in the peninsula.
Sarawak and Sabah covers most of northern Borneo. Sarawak has a series
of mountain ranges which form a physical barrier separating it from the
Indonesian province of Kalimantan. These ranges extend northeastward into
Sabah, where the Crocker Range stretches along the west coast. Mountains and
ridges crisscross the interior of Sabah, and produce a rugged and inaccessible
landscape. Mount Kinabalu (4,101 metres) in Sabah is the highest mountain in
Malaysia. Other peaks include Mount Trus Madi (2,598 metres) and Mount
Tambuyukon (2,579 metres).
Land features. Limestone outcrops form massive towers in many parts
of the country. Many of the outcrops contain limestone caves. In Peninsular
Malaysia, people have converted some caves into Chinese or Hindu temples. In
Sarawak and Sabah, several caves yield a rich harvest of birds' nests for
export as delicacies. The Comantong Caves in east Sabah
are the home of millions of young swifts. People climb as high as 90 metres, up
bamboo ladders, to reach the nests on the cave walls.
The largest Malaysian rivers are in
Sarawak and Sabah. The longest are the Rejang in Sarawak (563 kilo-metres) and
the Kinabatangan in Sabah (563 kilometres), Other rivers include the Pahang and
the Perak in Peninsular Malaysia and the Baram in Sarawak. Malaysia has; long
coastline measuring 1,930 kilometres in the peninsula, and 2,253 kilometres in
Sarawak and Sabah.
Climate. The Malaysian climate is equatorial. It is hot and
humid throughout the year. Daytime sea level temperatures average 26° C, and
the difference between the highest and lowest temperatures is small. Temperature
in the hills average about 18° C Temperatures in the lowlands may fall below
20° C at night, especially after! heavy shower of rain.
Rainfall is generally high, but its
distribution becomt more seasonal northward. Much of the rainfall occurs during
the monsoon season. The northeast monsoon between November and March carries
moisture-laden winds from the South China Sea and brings heavy rains to the
east coast of Peninsular Malaysia and the northern coast of Sarawak and Sabah.
Floods occur in certain parts of the east coast states. The southwest monsoon
between May and September is relatively dry.
Animal life and vegetation. The equatorial climate of Malaysia supports a rich
plant and animal life. The forests range from casuarina trees to mountain oaks
and moss. The tropical rainforests cover a large part of the uplands. They have
evolved over the past 130 million years and represent the oldest and richest
forests, and the most complex and diverse ecosystems in the world. They contain
over 6,000 species of trees and more than 9,000 species of other plants. The
tropical rainforests also contain 8,000 species of flowering plants and 200
species of mammals.
Some of these species are unique and rare.
The rafflesia produces one of the biggest flowers in the world. It is a
parasite without stem, root, or leaf and grows in the forests of Sabah, Perak,
and Pahang. The plant life also includes a variety of the common Hibiscus rosa-sinensis, the national flower of Malaysia. The rainforests
contain trees of the dipterocarp
family, some of which measure 60 metres high, and also a large variety of
bamboos, creepers, ferns, orchids, palms, and vines. The government has
reserved 12 million hectares as the permanent forest estate of the country. Of
this area, 3.8 million hectares are protected virgin forests.
Laws protect many forms of wildlife. Among
the most famous protected species are the orangutan in Sabah, the rhinoceros,
the tiger, the leopard, the clouded leopard, the leopard cat, the flat-headed
cat, the marbled cat, the golden cat, and the bay cat. Seven of these live in
Peninsular Malaysia, and five in Sarawak and Sabah. Protected birds include 18
species of pheasant and several species of hornbill.
National parks. The largest national park is Taman Negara which covers
4,300 square kilometres. Established in 1939, it was the first in Malaysia.
This park lies in the mountainous and forested border area of Pahang, Kelantan,
and Terengganu.
Sarawak has seven parks covering 830
square kilometres, and three wildlife sanctuaries covering 1,700 square
kilometres. Gunong Mulu National Park has the largest cave passage (Deer Cave),
the world's largest natural chamber (Sarawak Chamber), and the longest cave in
Southeast Asia (Clearwater Cave). The Niah Caves National Park is famous for
its prehistoric relics. The Bako National Park, near Kuching, is the first and
oldest national park in Sarawak.
Sabah has six national parks. The Kinabalu
National Park is famous for its granite massif (upland plateau) which forms
Mount Kinabalu, the highest peak in Southeast Asia. This park is rich in plant
life, with over 1,000 species of orchids, 27 species of rhododendrons, nine
species of Nepenthes (pitcher plants), 450 species of ferns, as well as
rafflesia. Pulau Tiga National Park consists of three small islands of mud
volcanoes in Kimanis Bay off the Klias Peninsula. It has clear water for
viewing coral reefs. Tunku Abdul Rahman Park (consisting of the [islands of
Gaya, Sapi, Mamutik, Manukan, and Sulug off Kota Kinabalu) contains some of
the most diverse coral reefs and marine life in the world. Turtle Islands Park
insists of the small islands of Gulisan, Selingaan, and akungan Kecil. It is
the breeding ground of green and lawksbill turtles which come up the beach to
lay eggs.
Economy
Malaysia has one of the strongest
economies in outheast Asia. Its economy depends heavily on the production of
petroleum, rubber, timber, and tin. But the country also produces a variety of
farm crops and manufactured goods.
Agriculture. The agricultural sector plays a major but declining
role in the Malaysian economy. Its contribution to the gross domestic product
(GDP) decreased during the 1980's. One-third of the population work in
agriculture.
Malaysia is the world's largest producer
of natural rubber and palm oil. The country produces more than half the world's
palm oil from 1.7 million hectares of land. It also accounts for more than
one-third of the world's rubber from almost 2 million hectares. Malaysia is the
fourth largest producer of cocoa, which occupies 311,000 hectares of land.
Cocoa is a relatively new crop, first planted on a commercial scale in the
1950's. It is now the second largest crop in Sabah and there are significant
plantations in Perak. Other important crops are wet rice (620,000 hectares),
coconuts (293,000 hectares), pepper (7,300 hectares), tobacco (12,000 hectares)
pineapples, tea, and many tropical fruit.
Rubber was introduced from Brazil by way
of Kew Gardens in London in 1876. Malaysia's own research institute has made
possible increases in yield and improvements in processing and marketing.
Standard Malaysia Rubber (SMR) is now the international standard by which
natural rubber is judged. Oil palm, first planted commercially in 1917, has
developed rapidly since the 1970's.
Timber and timber products such as sawn
logs, sawn timber, plywood and veneer, wood mouldings, and furniture are the
leading nonmineral primary products.
Mining. Tin mining was the first driving force behind the
economic development and settlement of Malaysia. In recent years this industry
has declined, and Malaysia is now only the third largest producer in the world
after Brazil and Indonesia.
The petroleum and natural gas industries
have developed rapidly. Malaysia ranks 13th in the world in natural gas
reserves and 22nd in petroleum reserves. Other minerals are copper and gold.
Manufacturing. The sector's share of GDP rose sharply from about 20
per cent in the early 1980's to 26 per cent in 1989.
The major manufacturing activities are
electronics, plastics, textiles, rubber, and wood products. Chemicals,
petroleum, and high technology industries are playing an increasingly important
role in the economy.
During the 1970s, American and Japanese
electronics companies set up factories in Malaysia to take advantage of the
country's social and political stability, efficient workforce, and favourable
economic climate. The industry is now the country's largest. Malaysia is the
third largest producer of integrated circuits in the world after the U.S.A. and
japan and the largest exporter of integrated circuits worldwide. The
electronics industry produces components such as semiconductors, silicon wafers, capacitors, speakers, telephones,
radios, tape recorders, stereo equipment, and clocks.
Malaysia is the first Southeast Asian
country to produce a national car, the Proton Saga. The Heavy Industry
Corporation of Malaysia manufactured the Saga in cooperation with Mitsubishi
of Japan.
Foreign trade. Malaysia is the second largest trading nation in the
Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) after Singapore.
The pattern of foreign trade changed
substantially in the 1970s and 1980s. Malaysia's major trading partners are the
ASEAN countries (especially Singapore), Japan, the U.S.A., and the European Community.
These partners account for 75 per cent of the total value of trade. Other
important trading partners include Australia, Germany, South Korea, Taiwan, and
Thailand.
Transport. Malaysia's transport system consists of roads,
railways, shipping, and airlines. The road network in Peninsular Malaysia is
fairly dense, with 27,000 kilometres of municipal, federal, and state roads.
The present network has a north to south trunk road along the length of the
west coast, a similar one along the east coast, and two major east to west
trunk roads across the central mountain range at the middle and northern sections
of the peninsula.
A motorway network is under construction
to accommodate the increasing traffic and freight. The most ambitious project
is the 790-kilometre North-South Highway from Johor Bahru to Bukit Kayu Hitam
at the Malaysian-Thai border. There is a new motorway in the Klang Valley from
Port Klang to Kuala Lumpur.
The road network in Sarawak and Sabah is
relatively undeveloped and poor in quality. River transport on the Kinabatangan
River and shipping on the coast are important. In Sarawak, the size of the
state, the existence of rivers, and the sparse population have made road construction
difficult and uneconomic.
In Peninsular Malaysia, Sarawak and Sabah
domestic airtransport is widely used. The national airline maintains scheduled
flights within and between the states as well as to remote villages in Sarawak
and Sabah.
Communication. Malaysia has a range of telecommunication services and
facilities. Local networks are connected to 530 telephone exchanges with 2.3
million exchange lines for domestic needs. An international service connects
Malaysia to more than 160 countries.
Communication between Peninsular Malaysia
and Sarawak and Sabah is made possible by a submarine cable between Kuantan
and Kuching. A domestic earth satellite station in Kota Kinabalu provides
telephone channels between Sabah and Sarawak and allows these two states to
receive television broadcast programmes from Peninsular Malaysia.Early times
Colonial Development
Independence
Malaysia is on a sea route, that has been important since ancient times. Francis Light, centre, a British sea captain, founded
Penang to develop trade. The Independence Memorial, commemorates the achievement of independence by the
Federation of Malaya in 1957.
The sultan's palace in Melaka is a modern replica which now houses a museum of traditional
Melakan culture.
The Porta de Santiago in Melaka was the main gate to the old fortress of A'Famosa, built
by the Portuguese in the 1500s. The Dutch attacked Melaka and took the fortress after a siege in 1641.
Melaka was under Dutch control from the 1640's to the early 1800's. The Dutch
built fine houses, a church, and a (own hall. The view of Melaka, is an artist s impression drawn
in about 1700.
Melaka came under British influence after 1795 and became a British colony in
1824, The view, drawn in
1811 shows a British naval gunship, HMS Hope,
at anchor in the Strait, off the coast of Melala.
The Japanese surrender of the territories they had invaded in Malaya was signed in
Singapore in August 1945.
The Japanese surrender of the territories they had invaded in Malaya was signed in
Singapore in August 1945.
Chin Peng, the
Malayan Communist guerilla leader, conferred with Tunku Abdul Rahman and the
Alliance at Baling in 1955.
Independence for the Federation of Malaya came at the end of August 1957. Tunku
Abdul Rahman, leader of the Alliance Party, made the declaration and became
the first prime minister. The country has been called Malaysia since
Merdeka Stadium in Kuala Lumpur was chosen for the athletics
events of the Southeast Asian games in 1989. Malaysian
leaders are active in promoting cooperation among the nations of Southeast Asia
to make it an area of peace, freedom, and neutrality.
Important dates in Malaysia
2000-1500 B.C. New Stone Age people began
growing food.
200 B.C Kelang became an important centre
of culture.
A.D. 900 Some Peninsular states come under the rule of the Srivijayan Empire.
1200's Peninsular states came under the
control of the Majapahit Empire.
1300's Melaka kingdom founded.
1511 Portuguese captured Melaka.
1641 Dutch defeated the Portuguese.
1700's New Malay kingdoms were founded.
1786 British gained control of Penang.
1826 British established Straits
Settlements.
1867 Straits Settlements became a crown
colony.
Late-1800's Tin-mining, rubber
plantations, and railways developed.
1941 Japanese invaded Malaysia
1948 Malayan emergency began.
1957 Federation of Malaya gained
independence.
1963 Malaysia founded.
1965 Singapore withdrew from Malaysia.
1989 Commonwealth Heads of Government
Meeting held in Malaysia.
Malaysia, History of. The most important factor in Malaysia's history has been its
geographical position.
The Malay Peninsula separates the Indian
Ocean from the South China Sea. In ancient times, the peninsula was a
convenient landing point for Indian and Chinese traders. The northeast monsoon (wind), which lasts from December
to March, brought sailing ships from India to the Malay Peninsula. They waited
there for the southwest monsoon, which lasts from |une to October, to continue
their voyages to China. See Monsoon.
Merchants and adventurers from many lands
were attracted to the rich trading centres of Malaya. The Indians had a
lasting influence on the art and culture of the Malayan people. The Arabs
introduced Islam, Malaysia's national religion, to the area. The Portuguese
and Dutch introduced European economic ideas and methods, and the British laid the
foundation for Malaysia's political development
Early history
Prehistory. Little evidence of Malaysia's prehistory has survived. There are few
remains of the earliest human cultures
in the region (see Culture). One of the most significant events during
this period was the change from a hunting and gathering way of life to a
food-producing economy. This change shows a knowledge of agriculture and
animal husbandry which marks the beginning of the Neolithic or New Stone Age
(see Stone Age). The change took place between about 2000 and 1500 B.C
The next major advance was the growth of making and working metal.
Archaeologists have discovered metal
objects in the
region of Kelang and the Selangor coast.
These objects indicate that the western coast of the peninsula was an important
centre of culture by about 200 B.C
Historians believe that the earliest
organized political states first emerged in the north. Traders from many lands
went to Langkasuka and Kedah. By about A.D. 900, some of the peninsular states
probably came under the rule of the Srivijayan Empire based in Palembang (see
Srivijaya).
A Chola raid from India crippled the
empire in 1025 (see Chola Empire). But Srivijaya survived for another 250
years.
Meanwhile, Java had broken away from
Srivijayan dominance and, by the end of the 1200's, the rise of the Javanese
Majapahit Empire and the Siamese (Thai) Empire had undermined the remaining
power of Srivijaya. The peninsular states probably came under the control of
the Javanese Majapahit Empire. However, much of the history of this period is
uncertain. See Majapahit
Melaka. More is known of Malaysian history from about the 1300's. Temasek (now
Singapore) enjoyed a period of fame and prosperity. But the beginning of Malaysian
history is considered the era of the Sultanate of Melaka (sometimes also spelt
Malacca) founded in the late 1100's.
Its rise coincided with the more rapid spread of Islam in the region. The main
legacy of Melaka was a combination of Islam and political tradition (called adat in Malay).
Melaka's royal family claimed descent from
Alexander the Great All subsequent Malay rulers made the same claim.
Malay society inherited from Melaka a
distinct tradition. Only the royal lineage had the right to rule. But it could
confer that right on a person of nonroyal descent in order to raise him to the
rank of royalty. All authority
was in the hands of the raja (ruler or monarch). An area with
this form of royal rule is a ke-raja-an.
During the 1400's, Melaka was a market
place which drew traders from all parts of Asia and, by the early 1500's, from
Portugal as well. Trade by sea continued to form the basis of the Malay economy
until the 1700's. In general, Malay kerajaan were located on the estuaries of
important rivers.
The rise of Johor. The Sultanate of Melaka survived for more than 100 years. It did not end
even in 1511, when the Portuguese conquered Melaka. The ruling dynasty moved
instead to Johor. Meanwhile, Aceh, in Sumatra, attracted Muslim traders and
became the leading port in the Strait of Malacca. During a power struggle
between Johor, Aceh, and the Portuguese in Melaka, Johor was attacked on a
number of occasions. But the sultanate survived, based at Johor.
Dutch ships began to visit the area
regularly during the early 1600's. In 1641, the Dutch used Johor as their ally
in a concerted attack on Melaka which dislodged the Portuguese. But Johor did
not regain Melaka. The Dutch entrenched themselves in Melaka and ruled it for
nearly 200 years.
Like the Portuguese, the Dutch did not
interfere in the internal affairs of the Malay states,
although they fought many wars with local powers. But they went deeper inland than the Portuguese. The Dutch built forts on Pangkor island (Perak)
and Tanjung Putus about 50 kilometres up the Perak River. They made treaties
with the local rulers,
mainly to obtain supplies of tin.
Throughout the second half of the 1600's,
Johor controlled almost all the territories which had been governed by the
Melaka Sultanate. Then the Johor Sultanate J gradually declined, worn out by
wars and internal strife. A ruler of Johor, a direct descendant of the Melaka
dynasty, was killed in 1699. His bendahara
(prime minister), a commoner, succeeded him. This was the first time such a
thing had happened in Malay history. But the bendahara failed to hold the
empire together. A Siak prince from Sumatra, claiming to be the son of the assassinated ruler, challenged the Johor ruler and drove : him out.
The Bugis
(people originally from the Celebes Islands in Indonesia) had already emerged
as a powerful group in the peninsula. They were well known as
traders and mercenaries (hired
soldiers) throughout the Malay Archipelago. With their assistance, the son of
the dethroned ruler regained johor from Siak. The Bugis took the opportunity
to establish themselves in )ohor. They persuaded the new johor ruler to confer
on their leader the office oiyamtuan muda
(deputy ruler). The Bugis controlled the johor Sultanate until they were
defeated by the Dutch in 1784.
The founding of new sultanates. The weakness of Johor's ruling house encouraged other territories to assert
their independence. The Sultanate of Terengganu, which emerged in about 1725,
was one of the first to establish itself in the 1700s. The Terengganu
Sultanate and three other sultanates established at about the same time have
lasted into the 1900s.
Negeri Sembilan may be an even older
sultanate than Terengganu. Most of its people were of Minangkabau (Sumatran) origin. For many
years they submitted to the authority of Melaka and Johor. But when Bugis power
grew in Johor, they looked to their homeland for leadership. This led to the
founding of the kingdom of Negeri Sembilan in the 1700's. Its first ruler was
Raja Melawar, from Pagar Ruyong, Sumatra. Later rulers continued to come from
Pagar Ruyong until the 1830's. Once a local royal lineage grew from marriages
between the rulers and local women, this ancient practice ceased.
The remaining two sultanates founded in
the 1700's were Kelantan and Selangor. In about 1764, the sultan of Terengganu
conferred authority on the Kelantan raja.
The Selangor raja, of Bugis origin, went
to Perak in 1766, was installed by the sultan of Terengganu, and assumed the
title of sultan himself.
Before the end of the 1700s, six of the
present Malaysian royal houses were already in existence: Kedah,
Perak, Negeri Sembilan, Terengganu,
Kelantan, and Selangor. The ancient Johor Sultanate still existed. It had
control over the Riau-Lingga Archipelago as well as the territory of Pahang and
peninsular Johor. The Johor Sultanate did not officially end until the
beginning of the 1900's, although its empire had broken up long before.
The growth of British power
Early traders. The arrival of Europeans in the Strait of Malacca marked a major turning
point in Malaysian history. The first British expedition reached western Java
in 1601, shortly after the Dutch. But over the next 20 years, the Dutch proved
the stronger power in the area, and the British withdrew.
During the 1600s and early 1700's, the
Malays developed their maritime trade. Ships from Europe visited ports such as
Kuala Kedah, Kuala Selangor, Riau, and Kuala Terengganu. In the mid-1700s,
British country traders
(merchants who lived in Asia) established contact with these Malay ports. They
sold opium and bought tin and other local produce, offering better prices than
the Dutch.
By the late 1700s, the British East India
Company controlled much of India and the Indian Ocean, and was extending its
activities to China. The company began looking for a suitable trading post in
Southeast Asia. It made unsuccessful attempts to establish bases on the islands
of Balembangan and Labuan off the coast of Borneo. Finally, the company chose
the island of Penang.
In 1786, Francis Light gained control of
Penang (see Light Sir Francis). Penang opened up as a port, and British
influence on trade in the Malay Archipelago became increasingly powerful.
Penang soon began to service the ports on the western side of the peninsula.
Through the efforts of Sir Stamford Raffles, the British occupied Singapore in
1819 (see Raffles, Sir Stamford). The peninsula ports declined as a result
While the western ports continued to have direct links with Penang and Melaka,
the eastern ports became commercial dependencies of Singapore.
The Straits Settlements. The British eventually succeeded where the Dutch had failed. The
British offered incentives instead of using force. They established the port of
Penang to act as a centre of entrepot
trade (where goods are deposited, stored, and redistributed). It
grew into a major collecting point for produce from the archipelago, including
betel nut, pepper, rattan,
tin, and tobacco. These goods were, in
turn, exported to China.
Penang also served as a port from which
small Malay vessels and country traders could distribute British goods
throughout the archipelago. The most important of these products were woollen
goods, cotton cloth, and iron, as well as opium purchased privately from East
India Company sales in Bengal. The company sold British goods in Penang from
their warehouses to visiting Malay traders rather than to resident merchants.
Singapore was a far more successful
entrepot than Penang. It provided a much needed centre from which traders could
distribute British goods throughout the Malay Archipelago. It was also the most
profitable port to which the Malay traders could bring their products. Within
nine months of the opening of the port, traders from many countries had arrived
in their ships. The most important of them were from Siam (now Thailand),
Cambodia, Kelantan, Terengganu, Pahang, Brunei, Sambas, Pontianak, Celebes,
Siak, Indragiri, Jambi, and the Riau-Lingga Archipelago.
The British took over Melaka from the
Dutch after the signing of the Anglo-Dutch Treaty in 1824. The treaty divided
the Malay Archipelago into two spheres of influence. The British consolidated
themselves to the north of the equator and the Dutch to the south. In 1826, the
British formed Penang, Singapore, and Melaka into one administrative unit,
called the Colony of Straits Settlements. The East India Company administered
it as part of India.
By the 1850's, the growth of Singapore's
trade had begun to slow. German firms in Singapore offered serious competition
to British firms. Local British traders realized that the rapid making of
fortunes had given way to hard work and moderate returns. They began to look
for fresh opportunities elsewhere. The Straits merchants turned to the Malay
Peninsula, where tin mining had expanded greatly by about 1850.
Development of the Malay Straits. Mining in the Malay states, especially Perak, Selangor, and Sungai
Ujong, revived after the Dutch withdrew from the peninsula. The Malay
chieftains were then free from the obligation to deliver tin only to the
Dutch. They began to open up more mines, but they were
dependent on the « Chinese merchants in the Straits Settlements for capital* In
the 1840's, this financial dependence forced the chieftains to allow the
Chinese merchants to mine tin directly.
By the 1860's, the tinplate industry in
the United Kingdom had expanded. The declining Cornwall mines could not meet
the demand for tin. This demand stimulated the rapid growth of the Malayan
mining industry. Chinese migration to the Malay states increased rapidly.
Chinese capital dominated tin mining until the 1920's.
In Province Wellesley and Johor, Chinese
immigrants developed commercial agriculture. Sugarcane was the main produce in
the north. In the south, Chinese plantations grew pepper and gambier, a tropical shrub whose leaves
were used for dyeing and tanning in the 1800's.
Between 1750 and 1850, the Malay states
had experienced two major developments. The British ports of Penang and
Singapore took over from the traditional Malay ports as international trading
centres. The increase in mining and agriculture helped a multiracial society
to develop.
Problems of immigration. Malay society changed rapidly during the 1800's. Mining and commercial
agriculture turned land into a valuable commodity. Chief- 3 tains competed
with one another for control of territories and natural resources. Straits
merchants encouraged this rivalry by backing one group or the other with
finance.
The struggle for power became so intense
that British officials called the Malay states anarchic, meaning that they had no political institutions and
no effective legal j systems. Malay society had long been governed strict by
tradition, but this ancient system could not cope with the presence of so many
immigrants. This was especially true of the expanding Chinese population. The
Chinese brought their own customs and rules, often enforced by the
formation of elaborate secret societies. The Malay j ruling class attempted to
accommodate the new forces, but rivalry continued between Malays and Chinese.
Some sections of the Malay aristocracy turned to the British for assistance.
This development led to the estate lishment of British administration in the
Malay states.
At first, the Malays enjoyed the changing
economic environment, despite political rivalry for control of territory. They
benefitted commercially from the increase in population, which created a demand
for food supplies. Although they played only a minor role in the production of tin, the Malays provided most of the transport, using canoes on the rivers
connecting the mines with the ports.
The rate of development in the Malay
Peninsula was uneven. It was more rapid on the western and southern parts of
the peninsula. Two states, Kelantan and Terengganu, were left relatively
untouched until the beginning of the 1900's because they were so
difficult to reach.
Modern Johor. During the 1800's, three new kingdoms emerged: Perlis, Pahang, and
modern Johor. Perlis was created by Siam. In 1821, the Siamese conquered Kedah.
They remained there for about 20 years and then withdrew. The Siamese freed
Perlis from Kedah and turned it into an independent state in 1841.
In Pahang, a bendahara assumed the title
of sultan. This was the second time such a thing had
happened in Peninsular Malaya. Wan Ahmad, the bendahara of ancient Johor, was
elected sultan of Pahang in 1881. This ended Pahang's subordination to the
kingdom of ancient johor, which had almost ceased to exist by that time.
Wan Ahmed created a dynasty which survived
into the late 1900's.
The story of modern Johor is more complex.
When the British occupied Singapore in 1819, they did not have the consent of
the sultan of ancient Johor. Dutch influence was strong in the region where
the Johor sultan lived. The British knew that they could not persuade the
sultan to surrender the island of Singapore to them. Discovering that there
was a dispute over succession, they recognized the sultan's elder brother as
the true ruler of Johor. They were then able to take control of Singapore. But
the new sultan had no authority in the Riau-Lingga Archipelago.
By the mid-180ffs, the British no longer
had any use for the ruler they had created. They reluctantly recognized his
son as successor, but made him sign a treaty agreeing to confine his control to
only a small territory near Melaka, called Kesang. Instead, the British turned
to the family of the temenggong,
a high-ranking officer of ancient Johor, who had cooperated with them in the
occupation of Singapore. They looked upon the te- menggong's son as the actual
ruler of Johor. In 1868, his grandson adopted the title of maharajah. He cultivated the friendship
of British officials and merchants in Singapore, and became Queen Victoria's
personal friend. In 1885, the British recognized him as the sultan of Johor.
This was the ninth and last dynasty to be founded in the peninsula.
Colonial rule. The extension of British influence to the Malay Peninsula began after
the Straits Settlements became a crown colony in 1867. The main cause of Britain's
intervention was to protect the interests of its subjects. The British signed
formal treaties with the Malay rulers which enabled them to appoint officers
(called residents or advisers) to take charge of all
administrative matters, except those relating to Islam and Malay customs.
The 1800's also saw the expansion of
British influence to Sarawak and Sabah. Sarawak (originally not much larger than the present area of Kuching)
was acquired from Brunei by an English adventurer, James Brooke. In the next 20
years, Brooke expanded his territory at the expense of Brunei. At the same
time, he launched expeditions against all local groups who opposed him. Brooke
allied himself with the coastal people in order to suppress the people living
in the interior. Agricultural development of sago, pepper, and rubber drew a
large number of Chinese to Sarawak. By the late 1800's, distinct Chinese
settlements had emerged in a number of places.
Private traders purchased North Borneo
(Sabah) between 1877 and 1878 from the sultan of Sulu. They formed a company
to administer the territory systematically. In 1881, the British government
granted a charter to the company, which continued to rule the territory until
the Japanese invasion of 1941. Development was slow, as in Sarawak, until the
close of the 1800's. Tobacco was the main export, but rubber became increasingly
important by 1917. Large-scale Chinese migration to North Borneo occurred
mainly in the 1900's, a period of more rapid agricultural development.
British power gradually extended to the
north. In 1909, the United Kingdom signed a treaty with Siam which allowed the
British a free hand to establish influence over the Malay states of Perlis,
Kedah, Kelantan, and Terengganu. But Terengganu did not accept a British
adviser until 1919.
Opposition to colonial control. The Malay ruling classes opposed British attempts to gain political control
in the mining states (Perak, Selangor, and Sungai Ujong). The most serious
disturbances occurred in Peralt The first resident of Perak, J. W. W. Birch,
was assassinated in early November 1875. In Sungai Ujong, the dato bandar (a local headman) refused
to accept a British officer. In 1876, war broke out between Britain and Tengku
Antah, a candidate to rule Negeri Sembilan. But attempts to check the British
advance failed. By 1887, Pahang had also come under British rule, despite
fierce local opposition. The British finally suppressed the disturbances in
1894.
Then the British took a further step to
consolidate their position in the Malay Peninsula. In 1896, they established a
federation comprising Perak, Selangor, Negeri Sembilan, and Pahang. But when
the British took control of the northern Malay states they again met
resistance.
There were challenges in both Kelantan and
Terengganu which, because of their geographical locations, had no close links
with the British settlements. The main problem in Kelantan and Terengganu
involved the method of land administration. The British introduced new land
laws which taxed landowners rather than agricultural produce. These laws were
alien to the local people, and also caused hardship.
The British suppressed an uprising in
Kelantan in 1915 after killing the leader. In Terengganu, the problem was more
complex because it involved religion. A religious teacher emerged as the
leader of the peasants. He persuaded them not to accept British laws as they
were the laws of the unbelievers. Opposition to British laws occurred as early
as 1921, and reached a climax in an outbreak of violence in 1928. In the clash
between the police and the local opponents of British rule, a number of Malays
were killed.
Gradually, the British consolidated their
control over the Malay Peninsula. Whenever the opposition was strong, the
British sent troops to suppress it Frequently, they took action to punish local
people who opposed them. In Perak, they hanged two local chieftains and sent
others, including the British-appointed sultan of Perak, Raja Abdullah, into
exile in the Seychelles. In Pahang, the leaders of the opponents of British
rule, together with their followers, were exiled to Siam.
The Brooke regime in Sarawak and the
Chartered North Borneo Company in Sabah also had to take strong measures to
deal with local headmen who were unwilling to surrender. During the
long-drawn-out conflict between the Brooke regime and the Iban people in Sarawak,
many Iban leaders emerged as heroes. Anti-Brooke activities continued from time
to time until 1935.
The situation in Sabah was even more
troubled. Opposition to British rule began almost as soon as they established
an administration in Sabah in 1878. Mat Salleh was one leader who attained
legendary fame for his stand against the British. He fought against the company
for about five years and was finally defeated in January 1900.
Developments in technology. By the late 1800's, several of the Malay states had begun to develop economically
because of the investment of European and Chinese capital. Tin mining continued
to be a major industry. In agriculture, coffee had become a more important
export crop than sugar. Many new towns, such as Ipoh, had emerged in the mining
areas. Railway services, opened in 1885, linked the tin-mining centres with
the nearest ports. Next, a railway was built running north-south to join the
ports of Penang and Singapore.
By the early 1900's, railway construction
had advanced so far that the railway was beginning to displace sea transport
The railway had reached all the major towns on the west coast of the peninsula by
1908. Railway development coincided with the growth of rubber, which gradually
replaced coffee as the country's main agricultural produce. At the same time,
the Tamil population also increased rapidly. Most rubber tappers were Tamils,
who came from southern India.
The introduction of the dredge in tin
mining in 1912 gradually enabled European capital to become as important as
Chinese capital. Motor transport provided competition to rail transport Roads
gave greater access to small towns which were not served by railways. The
outbreak of World War I (1914-1918), held up these developments temporarily.
Education. The British founded new schools at Melaka and Penang in the early
1800's. Later, when the British established their administration in the Malay
states and in Sarawak and Sabah, they also founded modern schools. In the
peninsula, the British allowed Malay, Chinese, and Tamil schools to exist
separately according to the wishes of the resident population. But English
schools became increasingly popular by 1900.
By the early 1900's, many of the larger
city schools had candidates sitting the yearly examinations conducted by the
Cambridge Examination syndicate in England. The brighter local students were
already studying in British universities. Change in education in Sarawak and
Sabah was slower, but Christian missionaries contributed greatly to educational
development
Penang produced the first English
newspaper east of! Suez in 1805. By 1904, there were seven English newspapers published in various parts of the country, including Singapore.
During early 1900's, the British introduced
various sports to reduce opposition toward their administration. Soccer,
cricket, and tennis were especially popular. Many people took part in local
tournaments. There were recreation clubs in all the towns and sport became an
important activity in English-run schools.
Political unrest Political movements in other parts of Asia soon influenced Singapore
and the Malay Peninsula. Chinese reformist and revolutionary groups, Indian’
militant nationalists, and Muslim reformists all found supporters among the
country's multiracial population. Just before World War I, the greatest
threat to the British position came from the Muslims, especially the Indian Muslim soldiers serving in the
British army. In 1915, Indian soldiers mutinied in Singapore and almost took
control of the island. Political problems continued into the 1920's. There was an
anarchist movement and then the emergence of secret Communist organizations in
1926 and 1927. Both were the work of agents from > China. Meanwhile, Indian nationalist leaders, both Hindu
and Muslim, found a large following in the Malay Peninsula and Singapore.
Indonesian political activists \ (the Communists and the nationalists) also had
an influence on the local Indonesian immigrants. The English educated part of the population began
to demand a greater role in the government of the country. In 1930, the
Malayan Communist Party was founded.
By the middle of the 1920's, the situation
was very complex. Popular movements in both China and India caught the
imagination of the Chinese and Indian population. The British attempted to
decentralize the administration of the Federated Malay States. This led to
conflict between Malays, who wanted the states to have greater power, and
non-Malays, who believed that decentralization would lead to administrative
inefficiency. Locally- i born Chinese and English-educated Indians strongly oppossed
the British policy which they saw as pro-Malay. Both communities felt that they
ought to enjoy all the privileges given to British subjects. In response to
non-Malay claims, the Malays formed political associations. The first
All-Malaya Malay Congress took place in Kuala Lumpur in 1939 to work toward
greater Malay unity.
Effects of depression. Malaysia changed significantly after the end of World War I. The
postwar years brought a period of economic depression. There was a severe shortage of rice, which led to
rioting in Penang. The price of rubber fell drastically, and an international
restriction scheme was introduced to stabilize prices. It was clear that
Malaysia needed to diversify its economy. In the following years, the country
began to export palm- oil, tea, and canned pineapples. The production of canned
pineapples and rubber manufactured goods, both of which started in the 1920's,
marked the beginning of industrialization in Malaysia.
The world depression of 1929 to 1930 also
had serious effects on the country's economy. The prices of , commodities fell
and there was widespread unemployment Many Indian labourers and Europeans were
sent home. The government introduced restriction schemes to assist the rubber
industry, and, for the first time, the country. As early as 1943, they had set
up a Malayan Planning Unit in the United Kingdom to prepare for the
reconstruction of Malaya. One reason for the union was the desire to prepare
Malaya for self-government. But many people believed that it would turn the
Malay states from protectorates into crown colonies.
The final proposals for a Malayan Union
were first announced in the UK Parliament in January 1946. The Malayan Union,
which would include Penang and Melaka but not Singapore, was to be headed by a
British governor. The sultans would rule in conjunction with an advisory
council subject to the approval of the governor. They would be given authority
only on general matters relating to the Islamic religion. The Malayan Union government
would take over all assets of the Malay states, except those connected with
Islam and with the rulers' personal property. In Penang and Melaka where there
was no sultan, the resident commissioner became head of administration. He was
given a great deal of power and was responsible only to the governor.
The Malayan Union scheme also proposed new
laws which would grant citizenship to all people bom in Malaya and Singapore
as well as immigrants who had been resident there for a period of 10 out of the
15 years before Feb. 15,1942.
In 1945, the British government sent
Harold McMichael, previously guardian to a number of Malay princes, to Malaya
He was to obtain the written consent of the Malay rulers to the Malayan Union
scheme. McMichael forced the rulers to accept the proposals and gave them no
time to consult their councils.
The Pan-Malayan Congress. The reaction to the Malayan Union proposals was hostile. The Malay newspapers
all attacked the scheme and called upon Malays to unite in opposing the
proposed Union. At this point a leader arose to mobilize the Malays. Dato Onn
bin Ja'afar, educated in England and at the Malay College in Kuala Kangsar,
called for a Pan-Malayan Malay Congress to mobilize opposition to the proposed
scheme.
A Pan-Malayan Malay Congress commenced at
the Sultan Suleiman's Club, Kuala Lumpur, on March 1,1946. Forty-one Malay
organizations sent representatives to the four-day congress. The congress
appointed a committee to draft a constitution for the formation of the United
Malays' National Organization (UMNO). There was another congress in Johor Bahru in May
1946, during which UMNO was formally launched. The congress elected Dato Onn
as its first president.
On April 1,1946, despite violent Malay
protests, the British brought the Malayan Union into being. The local rulers
refused to attend the ceremony. By the middle of 1946, the British were
compelled to admit that the union ! scheme could not work. They made plans to
negotiate i with the Malays and draft a new constitution.
In the talks which followed, the British
dealt only with ’ the rulers, through their representatives, and UMNO, Dato Onn's
popularity and moderate political position impressed the British. The
British, the Malay rulers, and UMNO quickly came to an understanding on the new
constitution. But protests from various groups not included in the
negotiations caused a delay in implementing it. The All-Malays Council of
Joint Action led by Tan Cheng Lock, a Melaka-born Chinese, was especially critical.
The council was a mixture of organizations, including trade unions,
communist-sponsored bodies, the Malayan Indian Congress, and the Malayan
Democratic Union, led by English-educated non-Malays. It cooperated with Malay
radical groups under the leadership of the Malay Nationalist Party.
This opposition subsequently produced a
people's constitution which demanded greater concessions from the British
including direct participation for local people in the government of the
country. But the Federation of Malaya Agreement, implemented on Feb. 1,1948, in
place of the Malayan Union, reinstated most of the arrangements of the prewar
era. The Malay states once more became protectorates and the Malay rulers retained
their sovereignty.
Sarawak and Sabah. There were also important political changes in Sarawak and Sabah. Rule
by the Brooke family and Chartered Company rule both came to an end. Both
territories became British crown colonies in 1946. The transfer of sovereignty
in Sabah was uneventful. In Sarawak, the reaction was almost as hostile as the
Malay response to the Malayan Union proposals. In order to prepare for the cession (transfer) of Sarawak to
Britain, Charles Vyner Brooke, who was then rajah, sent his private secretary
Gerald MacBryan to find out the feelings of the people. But, like McMichael,
MacBryan used threats and promises to convince members of the Supreme State
Council that they should allow the rajah to cede (give up) Sarawak to the British government
From the moment of MacBryan's visit, there
was uneasiness among the Kuching Malays, who suspected that the cession of
Sarawak was close at hand. There was a massive anticession demonstration in
Kuching on July 1,1946. The two groups most strongly opposed to the cession
proposals were members of the Sarawak Malay National Association and the
Sarawak Dayak Association. The British immediately issued a notice requiring
all government servants to support cession and prohibiting them from
participation in politics.
A group of 338 government servants, the majority
of them teachers, subsequently resigned their appointments rather than obey
the notice. So many of them resigned that many schools had to be closed down.
The movement gained support in several areas and was joined by many
organizations.
the country. As early as 1943, they had
set up a Malayan Planning Unit in the United Kingdom to prepare for the
reconstruction of Malaya. One reason for the union was the desire to prepare
Malaya for self-government. But many people believed that it would turn the
Malay states from protectorates into crown colonies.
The final proposals for a Malayan Union
were first announced in the UK Parliament in January 1946. The Malayan Union,
which would include Penang and Melaka but not Singapore, was to be headed by a
British governor. The sultans would rule in conjunction with an advisory
council subject to the approval of the governor. They would be given authority
only on general matters relating to the Islamic religion. The Malayan Union government
would take over all assets of the Malay states, except those connected with
Islam and with the rulers' personal property. In Penang and Melaka where there
was no sultan, the resident commissioner became head of administration. He was
given a great deal of power and was responsible only to the governor.
The Malayan Union scheme also proposed new
laws which would grant citizenship to all people born in Malaya and Singapore
as well as immigrants who had been resident there for a period of 10 out of the
15 years before Feb. 15,1942.
In 1945, the British government sent
Harold McMichael, previously guardian to a number of Malay princes, to Malaya
He was to obtain the written consent of the Malay rulers to the Malayan Union
scheme. McMichael forced the rulers to accept the proposals and gave them no
time to consult their councils.
The Pan-Malayan Congress. The reaction to the Malayan Union proposals was hostile. The Malay newspapers
all attacked the scheme and called upon Malays to unite in opposing the
proposed Union. At this point a leader arose to mobilize the Malays. Dato Onn
bin Ja'afar, educated in England and at the Malay College in Kuala Kangsar,
called for a Pan-Malayan Malay Congress to mobilize opposition to the proposed
scheme.
A Pan-Malayan Malay Congress commenced at
the Sultan Suleiman's Club, Kuala Lumpur, on March 1,1946. Forty-one Malay
organizations sent representatives to the four-day congress. The congress
appointed a committee to draft a constitution for the formation of the United
Malays' National Organization (UMNO). There was another congress in Johor Bahru in May
1946, dur- ing which UMNO was formally launched. The congress elected Dato Onn
as its first president.
On April 1,1946, despite violent Malay
protests, the British brought the Malayan Union into being. The local 1 rulers
refused to attend the ceremony. By the middle of * 1946, the British were
compelled to admit that the union ! scheme could not work. They made plans to
negotiate i with the Malays and draft a new constitution.
In the talks which followed, the British
dealt only with ’ the rulers, through their representatives, and UMNO, Dato Onn's
popularity and moderate political position 1 impressed the British. The
British, the Malay rulers, and UMNO quickly came to an understanding on the new
constitution. But protests from various groups not included in the
negotiations caused a delay in implementing it. The All Malays Council of Joint
Action led by Tan Cheng Lock, a Melaka-born Chinese, was especially critical.
The council was a mixture of organizations, including trade unions,
communist-sponsored bodies, the Malayan Indian Congress, and the Malayan
Democratic Union, led by English-educated non-Malays. It cooperated with Malay
radical groups under the leadership of the Malay Nationalist Party.
This opposition subsequently produced a
people's constitution which demanded greater concessions from the British
including direct participation for local people in the government of the
country. But the Federation of Malaya Agreement, implemented on Feb. 1,1948, in
place of the Malayan Union, reinstated most of the arrangements of the prewar
era. The Malay states once more became protectorates and the Malay rulers retained
their sovereignty.
Sarawak and Sabah. There were also important political changes in Sarawak and Sabah. Rule
by the Brooke family and Chartered Company rule both came to an end. Both
territories became British crown colonies in 1946. The transfer of sovereignty
in Sabah was uneventful. In Sarawak, the reaction was almost as hostile as the
Malay response to the Malayan Union proposals. In order to prepare for the cession (transfer) of Sarawak to
Britain, Charles Vyner Brooke, who was then rajah, sent his private secretary
Gerald MacBryan to find out the feelings of the people. But, like McMichael,
MacBryan used threats and promises to convince members of the Supreme State
Council that they should allow the rajah to cede (give up) Sarawak to the British government
From the moment of MacBryan's visit, there
was uneasiness among the Kuching Malays, who suspected that the cession of
Sarawak was close at hand. There was a massive anticession demonstration in
Kuching on July 1,1946. The two groups most strongly opposed to the cession
proposals were members of the Sarawak Malay National Association and the
Sarawak Dayak Association. The British immediately issued a notice requiring
all government servants to support cession and prohibiting them from
participation in politics.
A group of 338 government servants, the
majority of them teachers, subsequently resigned their appointments rather
than obey the notice. So many of them resigned that many schools had to be
closed down. The movement gained support in several areas and was joined by
many organizations.
Despite opposition, Sarawak became a
British colony I lv i 1946. Many people refused to attend the cere- °n
v for the installation of the governor, Sir Charles
rjen-Clarke. But the anticession movement gradually lost its force as
disagreements occurred within the roup and frustration grew. On Dec. 3,1949,
the second overnor, Duncan Stewart, was assassinated on a visit to Sibu by a
youth called Roslie bin Dhoby. This assassination did further damage to the
anticession movement, and the movement finally collapsed.
Moving toward independence
The emergency. Since the end of World War
II in 1945, the Malayan Communist Party had attempted to capture political power
by constitutional means. Because it had played a major role in the
anti-Japanese movement during the war, the British had not banned the party.
The Communists had influence in a number of trade unions, and formed
organizations such as the Malayan Democratic Union and the Malay Nationalists
Party. But the Federation of Malaya Agreement ended their hopes of achieving
their objectives peacefully.
The Communists aimed to cripple the
country economically by attacking mines and rubber estates. They hoped that
this would force the poverty-stricken population to turn against the British.
In June 1948, the British declared a state of emergency and officially banned
the Malayan Communist Party.
In the war which followed, the government
forces gradually gained the upper hand. By 1950, the British had resettled
large numbers of Chinese living on the fringe of the jungle. This prevented the
Communists from obtaining assistance and supplies.
The government mobilized almost the entire
country to fight the Communist guerrillas. They introduced conscription and
recruited home guards and special constables. Armed forces travelled from
various African countries under British political control. Australia and New
Zealand also sent military assistance to help in the war against the
Communists. By 1954, the Malayan Communist Party was ready to negotiate for
peace.
The New Federation. The Federation of Malaya Agreement of 1948 brought about important
changes.
For example, in April 1951, the member system was introduced. This
allowed local people, including members of the federal council, to serve in
the government The member system also changed the role of the high
commissioner. His position was no longer consistent with the establishment of a
parliamentary system of government In September 1953, the high commissioner
withdrew as the president of the federal council, and was replaced by a local
speaker.
Not long after the inauguration of the
federation, the government also introduced local elections. Elections first
took place on Dec. 1,1951 to elect members to the George Town (Penang)
Municipal Council. But the elections which captured greater attention were for
the municipal council of Kuala Lumpur in February 1952. The UMNO, in alliance
with the Malayan Chinese Association (MCA), won 9 of the 12 seats. The victory
inspired the formation of the Alliance Party.
In 1953, the UMNO-MCA Alliance, under
their new leader Tunku Abdul Rahman, held a national convention. They
submitted the following proposals:
(1) a minimum of three-fifths elected majority in the legislative council,
(2) universal suffrage (votes for all adult citizens),
(3) a two-thirds elected executive council chosen from members of the legislative council, and
(4) the holding of federal elections not later than 1954.
(1) a minimum of three-fifths elected majority in the legislative council,
(2) universal suffrage (votes for all adult citizens),
(3) a two-thirds elected executive council chosen from members of the legislative council, and
(4) the holding of federal elections not later than 1954.
The Alliance's demands did not gain the
sympathy of the Colonial Office. UMNO-MCA then sent a delegation, led by Tunku
Abdul Rahman, to London. But the delegation failed to persuade the minister to
accept their proposals. The British government, however, agreed to an elected
majority of six in the federal legislature.
In planning for the Malayan Union, Britain
decided against including Sarawak, Sabah, and Brunei. Instead, they proposed a
Borneo Federation. The first concrete step toward the formation of the Borneo
Federation was taken in April 1953, when a meeting took place at Kuching.
Among those who attended the meeting were the governor of Sarawak, the governor
of Sabah, and the sultan of Brunei, Sultan Omar Ali Saiduffin. Also present
were three representatives from the states concerned. But Brunei opposed the
proposed federation.
National elections. Federal elections took place on July 27,1955. The Alliance, by then
including the Malayan Indian Congress, contested all 52 seats. The voters
elected 51 of the Alliance candidates. The Pan-Malayan Islamic Party won only
the Krian constituency. With the victory, the Alliance also won the opportunity
to play a direct part in the government of the country. Tunku Abdul Rahman
became the country's chief minister and minister for home affairs.
As the Alliance prepared for independence
and the first full-scale national elections scheduled for 1959, there was an
attempt to end the emergency. The Alliance held a dialogue with the Malayan
Communist Party (MCP) at Baling (Kedah) in December 1955. The MCP was informed
that after independence the country would not be under colonial rule and so
there was no longer any reason to continue their struggle. But the MCP would
only agree to lay down arms if they could operate as a political party. Tunku
Abdul Rahman and his party could not accept this demand, and talks broke down.
The Alliance then turned its attention to
other pressing problems. Members of the Alliance took part in independence
talks with the British in London from Jan. 18 to Feb. 6,1956. The meeting
agreed to establish a self-
governing and independent Federation of
Malaya on Aug. 31,1957, if possible. The two sides also agreed to set up a
commission to prepare the constitution for an independent Malaya. The
commission, under the chairmanship of Lord Reid, held its first meeting at the
end of June 1956 and completed its work by early 1957. The Alliance did not
accept the draft constitution in its entirety. After a number of amendments the
Merdeka (Independence)
Constitution subsequently provided for (1) The adoption of Malay as the
official and national language, (2) the creation of a single nationality with
provisions to enable everyone in Malaya to qualify for citizenship, (3) the
formulation of a system whereby the people would elect a yang di-pertuan agong (paramount ruler)
in rotation from among the nine rulers once in five years, (4) the setting up
of an elected House of Representatives and an appointed Senate, and (5) the
recognition of the special position of Malays as the original inhabitants of
the country, as well as of Islam as the official religion.
One of the major concerns of the Alliance
party was the future unity of the people, in their various racial groups. The
party set up a committee in 1956 to draw up a national education policy aimed
at instituting a sense of nationalism. The result was the Education Act of
1957. The national education system provided primary schools using Malay,
English (temporarily), Chinese, and Tamil as the languages of instruction. At
the secondary level only Malay and English (temporarily) were to be used as the
languages of instruction. It was also stated that there should be a common
syllabus for all schools.
The formation of Malaysia
Birth of a nation. Malaya became an independent nation on Aug. 31,1957. Tunku Abdul Rahman
was its first prime minister. One of the first problems was the development of
the country's economy. In 1956, the government had drafted the first Five Year
Plan. In the same year, they had set up the Federal Land Development Authority
(FELDA) to develop poor rural areas. The basic aim of FELDA was to open up new
land for agriculture and to give land to those who had little
or none at all. FELDA worked to increase the agricultural output of the nation
and raise the standard of living of rural people.
The Ministry of Rural Development,
established in 1959, coordinated all the activities of the administrative and
technical divisions throughout the country.
In 1959, the nation once more went to the
polls and again the Alliance was victorious, winning 74 out of the 104
parliamentary seats contested. By 1960, the government was able to declare the
emergency over.
Foreign policy. The emergency had made Malays reluctant to have any relations with
Communist nations.
The new country became a member of the
Commonwealth of Nations, and stood apart from the African and Asian nations
who were strongly against colonialism. In defence matters, Malaysia was still
dependent on Britain. Nevertheless, in formulating its foreign policy, Malaysia
tried to stay independent of the Western bloc. It did not join SEATO (the
Southeast Asia Treaty Organization), which was a military pact strongly
influenced by i the United States of America.
But Malaya was conscious of the need for
Southeast Asian nations to establish
close relations with one another. There was a danger that the region might
become a zone of conflict between the Western bloc and the Communist bloc. In
1961, Malaya, together with the Philippines and Thailand, formed the
Association of South-east Asia (ASA). The aim of ASA was to promote the
ec<S- nomic interests as well as the social and cultural progress of the
nations concerned. The three nations hoped that ASA would lead to the emergence
of a common market in Southeast Asia.
But other nations refused to join. Burma
preferred to isolate itself from the rest of the world. Indonesia was
suspicious of ASA, which it saw as an organization somehow linked to SEATO.
Indonesia also opposed the presence of Western troops in Southeast Asia. In
1963, the Philippines, Indonesia, and Malaya held a meeting in Manila and
formed Maphilindo (a word
formed from parts of the names of the member nations). Maphilindo formation of a larger nation. He hoped
that this would include Singapore, Sarawak, Sabah, and Brunei.
There was opposition to the idea of a
united Malaysia in all the territories concerned. The British government set up
a commission to find out the wishes of the people of Sarawak and Sabah. The
commission submitted its report in June 1962. According to this report, more
than 80 per cent of the people of Sarawak and Sabah were in favour of a united Malaysia.
In Singapore, the government held a referendum on how Singapore should become a part of Malaysia.
The referendum showed that the Singaporeans supported an existing agreement made
in November 1961. The agreement had proposed that the federal Malaysian government
should be responsible for defence,
foreign relations, and security and that Singapore should have full control
over its own education and labour.
The British commission report formed the
basis of t'becon ^scuss'ons between Malaya and Britain.
The commis- id the ''on recom|T|ended that the Malayan Constitution
of i the Phi sh°u'd serve as the basis for a new
Malaysian Con- if South- ;titution-11 a*so
proposed that Sarawak and Sabah e the ed ’^ou^ have power to control
immigration. Malaysia I :ame into existence on Sept 16,1963. lations Conflict
and cooperation. Maphilindo made no fur- of a con ^er Progress
after its formation in 1963. In the same ear, Malaya, Singapore, Sabah, and
Sarawak came to- ferred ti let*1ert0 form Malaysia.
Indonesia and the Philippines sia was ^ not reco9n'ze
the new federation. Indonesia ition d°Pted a policy of confrontation (armed opposition) to-
josed th Malays'a- The Philippines claimed Sabah on the
In 1963, rount^s that it was, historically, part of Sulu.
Confronta- meeting 00 en<*ed onty when
President Suharto displaced Pres- d (rom tent Sukarno in 1965. But,
in the same year, Singapore aohilindc ^drew from Malaysia because of the threat
of conflict etween its Chinese and Malay communities.
tions.
Meanwhile, negotiations were held to form
an association of Southeast Asia (to comprise Malaysia, Indonesia, the
Philippines, and Thailand). On Aug. 8, 1967, the Association of Southeast Asian
Nations (ASEAN) was launched. Singapore also took part. The association aimed
to improve cooperation among nations in the region.
Race riots broke out in Kuala Lumpur in
1969. The government then tried to reduce tension between the Chinese and Malay
communities.
By 1970, Britain had decided to withdraw
from direct involvement in Malaysia's defence. Malaysia was therefore free to
formulate its own foreign policy. In the same year, Tun Abdul Razak was elected
prime minister. In the 197ffs, Malaysia began to play a bolder role in international
relations. The government proposed that Southeast Asia should declare its
neutrality.
On Nov. 27,1971, Indonesia, Malaysia, the
Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand accepted the Kuala Lumpur Declaration.
It stated that the five nations would find ways to obtain recognition and
respect for Southeast Asia "as a zone of peace, freedom and neutrality,
free from all forms of intervention by outside forces." A committee, made
up of heads of the foreign ministries of the five ASEAN nations, held its first
conference in Kuala Lumpur in July 1972.
Malaysia, at the same time, was also
helping to bring about unity among Islamic nations. In 1969, there was a
conference of Islamic nations at Rabat in Morocco. The nations also established
the Islamic Development Bank and the Islamic News Agency.
In the early 1970fs, Malaysia's
foreign policy toward China changed. This was because Malaysia wished Southeast
Asia to become a neutral zone. It was clear that China could not guarantee
Southeast Asia's neutrality if the region did not recognize China in return.
In 1971, Malaysia supported Albania's resolution calling for Communist China's
admission to the United Nations. Subsequently, a Malaysian trade mission
travelled to Beijing and a delegation from China paid a return visit to Malaysia. In 1973, Malaysia established
diplomatic relations with the Communist countries of North Vietnam, North
Korea, and East Germany. In May 1974, Tun Abdul Razak, visited China and paved
the way for the formalization of diplomatic ties between the two countries.
The National Front. After the race riots of 1969, Tun Abdul Razak tried to reduce political
rivalry within Malaysia. The Alliance Party agreed with various other political
parties in Sabah, Sarawak, and the Malay Peninsula to form the Barisan National (National Front).
The new coalition registered as a
confederation of political parties on June 1,1974. It contained the Alliance
(UMNO, MCA, MIC), Parti Islam
(Islamic Party), Cerakan Rakyat Malaysia
(Malaysian People's Movement), the People's Progressive Party, the Sarawak
United People's Party, the Sarawak Alliance (Parti Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu and the Sarawak Chinese
Association), and the Sabah Alliance (the United Sabah National Organization,
or USNO, and the Sabah Chinese Association).
In 1976, a new party in Sabah, called Berjaya, joined the National Front. In
1978, Parti Islam left the coalition.
A new party, Berjasa took its place. In the early 1980's, a new United
Sabah Party, the Parti Bersatu Sabah,
joined the National Front after winning the state elections.
Datuk Seri Mahathir bin Mohamad succeeded
Hussein bin Onn as prime minister in 1981. He encouraged industry. The first
Malaysian car, the Proton Saga,
went into production in 1985. Mahathir also worked hard to promote Malaysia's
image overseas. For the first time, the country was host to the Commonwealth
Heads of Government meeting in October, 1989.
Kings of
Malaysia (with dates of reign)
Tuanku Abdul Rahman ibni Al-Marhum Tuanku
Muhammad. August 1957-April 1960.
Tuanku Hisamuddin Alam Shah ibni Al-Marhum
Sultan Alaid- din Sulaiman Shah. April 1960-September 1960.
Tuanku Syed Putra ibni Al-Marhum Syed
Hassan lamalullail. September 1960-September 1965.
Tuanku Ismail Nasiruddin Shah ibni
Al-Marhum Sultan Zainal Abidin. September 1965-September 1970.
Tuanku Abdul Halim Mu'adzam Shah ibni
Al-Marhum Sultan Badlishah. September 1970-September 1975.
Tuanku Yahya Petra ibni Al-Marhum Sultan
Ibrahim. September 1975-March 1979.
Sultan Haji Ahmad Shah Al-Musta in Billah
ibni Al-Marhum Sultan Abu Bakar Ri' Ayatuddin Ai-Mu Adzam Shah. March
1979-April 1989.
Sultan Almutawakkil Alallah Iskandar Johor
ibni Al-Marhum Sultan Ismail. April 1984-April 1989.
Sultan Azlan Muhibbuddin Shah ibni
Al-Marhum Sultan Yu- suff Izzuddin Ghaffarullahu-Lahu Shah. April 1989-March
1994. Tuanku Jaafar Al-Marhum Tuanku Abdul Rahman. March 1994-
Prlme ministers of Malaysia (with dates of office)
Tunku Abdul Rahman. 1957-1970
Tun Abdul Razak. 1970-1976
Datuk
Hussein bin Onn. 1976-1981
Datuk Seri Mahathir bin Mohamad. 1981-
Biographies
Abdul Chafar Baba
Abdul Rahman, Tuanku
Abdul Rahman, Tunku
Abdul Rahman Yakub Datuk Patinggi
Abdul Razak bin Hussein, Tun
Abdullah Munshi
Abu Bakar
Azlan Shah
Brooke, Sir James
Burhanuddin, al-Hemy
Chin Peng
Chulan bin Sultan Abdullah, Raja
Clifford, Sir Hugh
Fatimah Hashim
Hang Tuah
Hussein bin Onn, Datuk
Ishak, Haji Muhammad
Ismail bin Abdul Rahman, Tun
Jaafar, Long
Light, Sir Francis
MacDonald, Malcolm
Maharajalela
George Town ipoh
Johor Bahru Kota Kinabalu
Mahathir bin Mohamad, Datuk Seri
Musa Hitam, Datuk
Onn bin Jaafar, Dato
Parameswara
Parani, Daing
Perak, Tun
Sambanthan, Tun
Veerasamy Thirugnan
Swettenham, Sir Frank
Tan Chee Khoon
Tan Cheng Lock
Templer, Sir Gerald
Thuraisingham Dato, Sir Clough
Winstedt, Sir Richard
Yap Ah Loy
Early history
Prehistory
Melaka
The rise of Johor
The founding of new sultanates
The growth of British power
Early traders
The Straits Settlements
Development of the Malay straits
Problems of immigration
Modern Johor
Colonial rule
Opposition in colonial control
Developments in technology
Education
Political unrest
Effects of depression
invasion
The Malayan Union
Racial conflict
Preparing for the Union
Moving toward independence
The emergency
The New Federation G National elections
The formation of Malaysia
Birth of a nation
Conflict and cooperation Plans for Malaysia
Foreign policy
The National Front
Questions
What has been the most important factor in
Malaysia's history? Where have important archaeological discoveries been made
in Malaysia?
When did Dutch ships begin to visit the
Johor area?
Where did the people of Negeri Sembilan
come from?
What were the names of some leading ports
in Malaysia in the 1600's and 1700's?
What did Sir Francis Light do?
What areas become known as the Straits
Settlements?
Who was Sir James Brooke?
When did Malaya become an independent
nation?
When did Malaysia come into existence?
Malaysia Vacation Travel Video Guide
(A Travel video about destination Malaysia)
Malaysia is an exotic world located in the Far East, full of tradition and history.We begin our journey in Malacca, the oldest city on the southwest coast of the Peninsular Malaysia that boasts six hundred years of history. Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia’s modern capital city, is relatively young. It originated in the middle of the nineteenth century at the junction of two rivers. Chinese pioneers discovered an abundance of minerals here. Since then, however, things have much improved and Kuala Lumpur is now one of the cleanest cities in the world with two steel towers as its unmistakeable landmark, connected by an impressive bridge.
Malaysia is an exotic world located in the Far East, full of tradition and history.We begin our journey in Malacca, the oldest city on the southwest coast of the Peninsular Malaysia that boasts six hundred years of history. Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia’s modern capital city, is relatively young. It originated in the middle of the nineteenth century at the junction of two rivers. Chinese pioneers discovered an abundance of minerals here. Since then, however, things have much improved and Kuala Lumpur is now one of the cleanest cities in the world with two steel towers as its unmistakeable landmark, connected by an impressive bridge.
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