Asia and Oceania

Malaysia
Last reviewed: 13 May 2009

Country information

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HISTORY

Recent History

1957: Independence for the Federation of Malaya (mainland Peninsular states).
1963: Formation of the Federation of Malaysia, comprising the Federation of Malaya, Singapore, Sabah and Sarawak.
1965: Singapore left the Federation.
1969: Inter-racial riots led to the introduction in 1971 of 20-year New Economic Policy (NEP) aimed at alleviating causes of the tension through enhancing the bumiputra (Malay) economic position.
1971 – Present: Country experienced rapid economic growth and industrialisation (with a major but temporary downturn in 1997/98).
1981: Dr Mahathir Mohamad became Prime Minister.
1997/1998: Asian Economic Crisis.
1999: General election returned the Barisan Nasional to power with a reduced, but still two-thirds majority.
2003: Dr Mahathir stepped down; succeeded by his Deputy, Abdullah Badawi
2004: General election on 21 March resulted in a landslide win by the UMNO-led Barisan Nasional coalition.
2008: General election on 8 March: Barisan Nasional coalition returned to power, but with a much reduced simple majority.
2009: Abdullah Badawi stepped down; succeeded by his deputy, Najib Razak.

Longer Historical Perspective

In ancient times the Malay Peninsula was settled by waves of immigrants from the north and was later subject to Indian and Islamic influences. A series of indigenous trading empires culminated in that of Malacca which fell to the Portuguese in the sixteenth century. They were ousted by the Dutch who, in turn, were supplanted by the British in the late eighteenth century.

Three administrative entities emerged under British rule during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries: the Straits Settlements of the city states of Malacca, Penang and Singapore; the Federated Malay States and the Unfederated Malay States. The British preserved the Malay system, working through the Sultans of the individual states and respecting Muslim Malay religion and culture. With the development of rubber plantations and tin mines, thousands of Chinese and Indian migrants arrived to work as labourers. Meanwhile, Sarawak was governed by the Brooke family (the 'White Rajahs') and Sabah by the British North Borneo Company.

During the Second World War, Malaysia was occupied by the Japanese from 1941 –1945. Anti-Japanese resistance was led predominantly by ethnic Chinese who largely made up the Malayan Communist Party (MCP). British control was restored after the Japanese surrender on the basis of a new Malayan Union constitution, extending equal citizenship to the Chinese and Indian minorities. This was opposed by the newly formed United Malays National Organisation (UMNO). The MCP was not about to give way either and a communist insurgency was soon under way, resulting in the declaration of Emergency in 1948 and the end of the Malayan Union experiment. The insurgency was suppressed with the help of British and Commonwealth forces. Fighting subsided from 1955 although the Emergency’s end was not declared until 1960. The provinces of Sabah and Sarawak on the island of Borneo became British colonies in 1946.

The Federation of Malaya achieved independence in 1957 under its first Prime Minister, Tunku Abdul Rahman, who oversaw the introduction of the country's multi-ethnic coalition style of government, led by the majority Malays with a Westminster style of constitution.

The Federation of Malaysia, formed in 1963, comprises the Malay Peninsula and the Borneo territories of Sabah and Sarawak. The country embodies a mixture of races and cultures resulting from successive migrations and exposure to external religious and cultural influences. Immediately after its formation, the Federation faced hostility from Indonesia (known as the period of 'Confrontation') and British, Australian and New Zealand help was again called upon. Relations thereafter improved notably after Soeharto’s assumption of power in Indonesia, assisted by the formation in 1968 of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) of which Malaysia was a founder member.

BBC News Country Timeline: Malaysia