Does Democracy Have a Future?

The book is a compilation of selected papers presented at the Third International Conference on Elections and Democracy (E & D) on April 19-20, 2017, Kuching, Sarawak with the theme "Does Democracy Have a Future?" organised by the Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities, UNIMAS. The seven papers selected in this book merit a closer look. They were written by academics and political observers based in Indonesia, the Philippines, and Malaysia

Political Development in Sabah, 1985-2012 : Challenges in Malaysian Federalism and Ethnic Politics

Sabah is one of the thirteen states in the Federation of Malaysia. It was a former British crown colony. Sabah was incorporated into the Federation of Malaysia in 1963 together with Singapore and Sarawak. Singapore, however, was expelled from the Federation in 1965. Prior to the formation of Malaysia and its integration into the new federal State, Sabah – as multi-racial and multi-religious space – did not have official religion and language. According to the Sabah Yearbook of Statistics, Kadazan/Dusuns1 accounted for 514,400 or 17.97 per cent of Sabah’s total population in 2004, closely followed by other bumiputeras2 (indigenous people) totalling 421,000 or 14.73 per cent, Bajaus totalled 381,500 or 13.32 per cent, Malays totalled 330,600 or 11.55 per cent, Chinese totalled 277,300 or 9.68 per cent, Muruts totalled 94,000 or 3.28 per cent and other ethnic groups totalled 138,000 or 4.82 per cent.3 Non-Malaysian citizens made up 704,800 or 24.62 per cent of Sabah’s total population (Table 1). In terms of religious beliefs, 359,210 or 74.84 per cent of the Kadazan/Dusuns professed Christianity while 303,497 or 100 per cent of the Malays were Muslims. Muslim Bajaus accounted for 342,421 or 99.78 per cent as opposed to Christian Bajaus 383 or 0.11 per cent. Other ethnic groups and their religious affiliations are presented in Table 2

Sarawak dan Federalisme Di Bawah Kepimpinan Adenan Satem, 2014-2017

Artikel ini meneliti perubahan dalam amalan federalisme di Malaysia dengan merujuk kepada Sarawak di bawah pentadbiran Adenan Satem (2014-2017) sebagai rujukan utama. Penelitian ini dibuat dengan membuat analisa terhadap tuntutan autonomi dan pengembalian semula hak-hak negeri Sarawak seperti yang termaktub dalam Perjanjian Malaysia 1963 (MA63). Artikel ini juga menilai respons kerajaan persekutuan terhadap perjuangan MA63 negeri Sarawak dan implikasi tindakan negeri terhadap hubungan persekutuan-negeri. Artikel ini adalah bersifat kualitatif sepenuhnya. Ia menggunakan gabungan kaedah kajian desktop, arkib dan perpustakaan secara intensif untuk mendapatkan data yang sedia ada. Temu bual mendalam juga dilaksanakan dengan individu-individu tertentu yang mempunyai pengetahuan tentang topik kajian. Dapatan penting kajian dapat dirumuskan seperti berikut: 1) impak tuntutan MA63 Sarawak di bawah Adenan adalah lebih mendalam ekoran daripada kejayaan tindakan populis beliau, prestasi elektoral beliau yang mengagumkan dan pendekatan pragmatik kepimpinan negeri di dalam menguruskan hubungan persekutuan-negeri 2) kerajaan persekutuan memilih untuk memberi respon secara progresif berbanding regresif kepada tuntutan Sarawak kerana Sarawak memiliki pengaruh untuk mengimbangi kuasa politik yang memanfaatkan kerajaan persekutuan 3) terakhir, perubahan dalam sistem federalisme Malaysia sepanjang tahun 2014-2017 memperlihatkan desentralisasi fungsi-fungsi administratif dan pemerkasaan Sarawak dalam pembuatan keputusan

The Understanding, Perception And Receptiveness Of Globalisation Amongst Rural East Malaysians

Globalisation has become an emerging concern to many parties. It is a catchphrase in the international arena and a rather new phenomenon to local communities. To date, only the urban people have the tenacity and capability in confronting globalisation because they have been exposed to the process almost everyday. For the rural people, globalisation seems to be a new phenomenon. Globalisation is believed to benefit Malaysia in terms of economic development and political stability. This is evident through the massive flow of Foreign Direct Investments (FDls) and diplomatic ties Malaysia has established with other countries. However, globalisation is also believed to have caused irreparable consequences to certain countries embracing it; and this is equated with the serious damage the process has caused to local cultures and traditional values. The rural people are the ones who will greatly be at the disadvantage. As globalisation becomes inevitable, it is important to determine how far have the rural people been affected by the process and their responses towards the coming of the global social phenomenon. This study was conducted purposely to determine the rural East Malaysians' understanding, perception and receptiveness towards globalisation. It was also carried out to determine the impacts of the process on the social practices, political and civil rights of the rural people in East Malaysia. This study had employed multidisciplinary methods in order to collect quantitative and qualitative data from the respondents. Nonprobability sampling method such as purposive sampling was used to gather information from the respondents. This was done through a general survey based on a structured and closed-ended questionnaire. In-depth and casual interviews as well as tape-recorded conversations were also conducted for data collection. All data gathered from the study was analysed by two means: (a) content analysis based on the data derived from taped in-depth interviews, and (b) analysis of data using the standard SPSS (Social Package for Social Science). This study had managed to conduct a survey on 605 rural East Malaysians from various ethnic backgrounds in Sabah and Sarawak. This study had shown that most of the respondents were familiar with the concept of globalisation and that they understood what the process is meant. However, their understanding was limited or rather influenced by their educational attainment and exposure to the mass media. This probably indicate that they were not able to elaborate and discuss more about globalisation - such as how the process began and what it really entailed. In terms of perception towards globalisation, most of the respondents seemed to give a very positive response. They agreed that globalisation contributed massively towards Malaysia's economic and sociocultural progress. Only a small number of the respondents were against the process. Most of the respondents were also receptive towards globalisation. This was shown through their readiness in using global tools, watching global movies and listening to global songs. Apparently, they were also aware of their political and civil rights which must be given due attention by the government. In terms of social practices, globalisation had caused very minimal effects to the respondents. This was due to the fact that the process happened much slower in terms of its intensity, rapidity, multiplicity, and accessibility in the rural areas. In conclusion, this study had shown that the respondents were willing to learn and be involved in various developments implemented by the government. Moreover, in the name of progress and modernity, the rural people in East Malaysia seemed to give a very important message to convey: They wanted to be involved in globalisation and play their role as well. It is obvious that even though most of the rural people in East Malaysia are not technologically literate but they have the aspiration to develop themselves and contribute something to Malaysia's rapid modernity and progress

Sarawak : quest for autonomy

Sarawak came undel the Brunei sultanate's rule in the early nineteenth century. The British adventr:rer Jan-res Brooke arrived in Kuchingr in 1839 to stop a local rebellion against the Brr-rnei sultanate. Blooke managed to thwart the rebellion and rvas installed as the rajah of Sararvak,2 starting the Brooke family\ reign over Sararvak for more than 100 years