Malaysia
Mass arrests at Malaysian protest
By John Roberts, August 5, 2009
Thousands of demonstrators took to the streets of Kuala Lumpur to demand the repeal of draconian security laws. Police responded with beatings, tear gas, water cannon and mass arrests.
Malaysian government alters ethnic-based investment laws
By John Roberts, July 24, 2009
Under intense economic and political pressure, Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak announced measures to reduce the preferences given to ethic Malays.
Malaysian government crackdown on political opponents
By John Roberts, June 9, 2009
The Malaysian government carried out a wave of arrests last month in a bid to stem opposition to its ousting of the state government in Perak earlier this year.
Political turmoil wracks northern state in Malaysia
By Dante Pastrana, May 15, 2009
In a protracted power struggle in the northern Malaysian state of Perak, the former chief minister this week was reinstalled in power by a court, then removed within a day.
Najib Razak to take over as Malaysian prime minister
By Dante Pastrana, April 2, 2009
Najib Razak is due to be sworn in tomorrow as Malaysia’s new prime minister following his election as president of the ruling UMNO party. Despite his near unanimous approval, UMNO continues to be wr...
ASEAN summit: amid talk of cooperation, economic rivalry on the rise
By John Chan, March 5, 2009
The annual summit of the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) in Bangkok last weekend followed what is becoming a familiar pattern at top-level international gatherings. Amid a sharp downtu...
Malaysia’s prime minister to step down next year
By John Roberts, October 20, 2008
After weeks of political infighting, Malaysia's Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi announced on October 8 that he will not contest the presidency of the ruling United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) a...
Political power struggle in Malaysia continues unabated
By John Roberts, September 30, 2008
The deadline set by Malaysian opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim to force the ruling Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition from office—September 16—has come and gone. Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi...
Malaysia proposes limited changes to ban on political activity at universities
By Wan Ali, September 5, 2008
The Malaysian government has proposed, but is yet to enact, its promise to allow political freedoms for university students through an amendment of the country’s notorious University and University ...
Anwar’s landslide win: a further blow to Malaysian government
By John Roberts, August 28, 2008
Anwar Ibrahim, leader of the opposition Malaysian Peoples Front (PKR), won a hotly contested by-election for the seat of Permatang Pauh on Tuesday with 67 percent of the vote. The scale of the win in ...
Malaysia: Anwar contests by-election despite being charged
By John Roberts, August 18, 2008
Anwar Ibrahim, the de facto leader of the opposition Malaysian Peoples Front (PKR), nominated on Saturday for the August 26 by-election in the seat of Permatang Pauh, which was made vacant by the resi...
Malaysian government persists with bogus charges against Anwar
By John Roberts, July 28, 2008
Political tensions remain high in Malaysia following the arrest and release of de facto opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim on trumped-up charges of sodomy. The police, backed by the Barisan Nasional (BN)...
