Malaysia 2022 Elections
Malaysia is a federal constitutional monarchy. It has a parliamentary system of government selected through regular, multiparty elections and is headed by a prime minister. The king is the head of state, serves a largely ceremonial role, and has a five-year term. The kingship rotates among the sultans of the nine states with hereditary Malay rulers. Malaysia is a multi-ethnic, multi-religious country where most people are ethnic Malay Muslim, but there are significant numbers of people of Chinese and Indian origin as well as Indigenous communities.
There were no significant changes in the human rights situation in Malaysia during the year 2023. Significant human rights issues included credible reports of: cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment by government entities; arbitrary arrest or detention; serious problems with the independence of the judiciary; arbitrary or unlawful interference with privacy; serious restrictions on freedom of expression and media freedom, including censorship or enforcement of criminal libel laws to limit expression; serious restrictions on internet freedom; substantial interference with the freedom of peaceful assembly and freedom of association; restrictions on freedom of movement within the country and on the right to leave the country; refoulement of refugees to a country where they would face torture or prosecution; serious government corruption; serious government restrictions on or harassment of domestic human rights organizations; extensive gender-based violence, including female genital mutilation/cutting; substantial barriers to reproductive health services; trafficking in persons; laws criminalizing consensual same-sex sexual conduct between adults, which were enforced; and violence targeting lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, or intersex persons.
More than 60 offenses were subject to caning, sometimes in conjunction with imprisonment, and judges routinely mandated caning as punishment for crimes, including kidnapping, rape, and robbery, and nonviolent offenses, such as narcotics possession, criminal breach of trust, migrant smuggling, immigration offenses, and others. Civil and criminal law exempted men older than 50, unless convicted of rape, and all women from caning. Boys between ages 10 and 18 could receive a maximum of 10 strokes of a “light cane” in a public courtroom.
Police could detain persons suspected of terrorism, organized crime, gang activity, and trafficking in drugs or persons without a warrant or judicial review for two-year terms, renewable indefinitely. Within seven days of the initial detention, however, police had to present the case for detention to a public prosecutor. Authorities sometimes used their powers to intimidate and punish opponents of the government. Activists and government critics were sometimes subjected to late-night arrests, long hours of questioning, and lengthy remand periods, even if they were not ultimately charged with an offense.
The judiciary frequently deferred to police or executive authority in cases deemed to be affecting their interests. Members of the Malaysian Bar Council, NGO representatives, and other observers expressed serious concern regarding significant limitations on judicial independence, citing several high-profile instances of arbitrary verdicts, selective prosecution, and preferential treatment of some litigants and lawyers.
Under national security laws, police could enter and search the homes of persons suspected of threatening national security without a warrant. The government monitored the internet and threatened to detain anyone sending or posting content the government deemed a threat to public order or security. Islamic authorities could enter private premises without a warrant to apprehend Muslims suspected of engaging in offenses such as gambling, consuming alcohol, or having sexual relations outside marriage. The government did not recognize marriages between Muslims and non-Muslims and considered children born of such unions illegitimate.
The law prohibited sedition and public comment on topics defined as sensitive, including racial and religious matters or criticism of the king or ruling sultans. The law prohibited speech “with deliberate intent to wound the religious feelings of any person.” In August 2023 the Ministry of Home Affairs banned rainbow-colored Swatch watches for being “prejudicial to morality” by “normalizing the LGBTQI+ movement.” The ban came after Ministry of Home Affairs officials seized more than 100 watches bearing the rainbow flag from several Swatch stores in May.
The Ministry of Communications and Digital cancelled the remaining two days of the Good Vibes music festival after two members (both men) of the band entitled The 1975 kissed on stage on the first night of the festival, and lead singer Matt Healey criticized the country’s anti-homosexuality laws during their 21 July 2023 performance in Kuala Lumpur. The Royal Malaysia Police (RMP) told media on July 23 they would investigate The 1975 for “insulting the modesty of a person” with the intent to “provoke a breach of the peace.”
The government restricted the expression of unapproved political views in schools and universities and enforced restrictions on teachers and students who expressed dissenting views. Although faculty members sometimes publicly criticized the government, public university academics whose career advancement and funding depended on the government practiced self-censorship. Self-censorship took place among academics at private institutions as well, spurred by fear the government might revoke the licenses of their institutions. Students were prohibited from “expressing support or sympathy” for an unlawful society or organization.
The government maintained the ability to control news content, including the ability to censor, and at times exerted such control of both print and broadcast media. The government banned, restricted, or limited circulation of some publications it considered a threat to public order, morality, or national security. The law required a permit to own a printing press, and printers often were reluctant to print publications critical of the government due to fear of reprisal. Such policies inhibited independent or investigative journalism and resulted in self-censorship in print and broadcast media. Online media outlets were more independent but were more likely to be the target of legal action and harassment.
Criminal defamation was punishable by a maximum two years’ imprisonment, a fine, or both. True statements could be considered defamatory if they contravened the “public good.” The government and its supporters used these laws, along with provisions against sedition, to punish and suppress publication of material critical of government officials and policies.
The constitution provided for the right of association; however, the government placed significant restrictions on this right, and certain statutes limited it. By law only registered organizations of seven or more persons could legally function. The government often resisted registering organizations deemed particularly unfriendly to the government or imposed strict preconditions. The government could revoke registrations for violations of the law governing organizations. The government banned membership in unregistered political parties and organizations. Outside the political and human rights fields, the government generally allowed NGOs to register and function independently.
Despite strong objections by opposition political parties and civil society, in 2018 the Barisan Nasional coalition government approved redrawn parliamentary districts that critics contended unfairly advantaged Barisan Nasional through gerrymandering and malapportionment. Those districts were used in the November 19 general election; by law the government is not allowed to redraw the electoral boundaries until 2026 unless parliament amends the federal constitution, a process that requires a two-thirds majority vote. The constitution fixed the number of seats in parliament assigned to each state to the advantage of rural states and regardless of population shifts over time. Moreover, it did not require equal populations in electoral constituencies in any given state. Each constituency elected one member of parliament.
Constituencies had widely varying populations, further advantaging rural populations. The 2021 implementation of automatic voter registration exacerbated these differences, as it led to a higher concentration of voters in urban areas, which “minimized the influence” of urban voters, according to think tank Merdeka Center. For example, the rural district of Igan had 18,000 registered voters in the 2018 election and 28,290 in the 2022 federal election. The urban district of Bangi had 178,790 registered voters in 2018 but in 2022, that number rose to 295,000.
In 2018 parliamentary elections, the Pakatan Harapan coalition defeated the ruling Barisan Nasional coalition, resulting in the first transfer of power between coalitions since independence in 1957. Before and during that campaign, opposition politicians and civil society organizations alleged electoral irregularities and systemic disadvantages for opposition groups due to a lack of media access for the opposition and malapportioned districts favoring the then ruling coalition. In February 2020 the Pakatan Harapan coalition collapsed, and power transferred to the Malay-dominated Perikatan Nasional coalition which included the main Barisan Nasional components, headed by Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin. In August that coalition lost its majority in the lower house of parliament, resulting in a transfer of power to a Barisan Nasional-led coalition headed by the new prime minister, Ismail Sabri.
On 28 July 2022, parliament unanimously passed constitutional amendments that cause members of parliament to lose their parliamentary seats if they switch to a different political party. The switching of parties for political expediency was considered destabilizing to the political environment. Prime Minister Ismail Sabri, who introduced the amendments in parliament after months of consultations with members from both sides of the aisle and civil society to draft the language, described the overwhelming vote for the amendments as “historic” and “a victory for parliamentary democracy.”
The political environment was hostile towards women. Attacks on women politicians and women who were critical of the country’s politics were common, including sexist remarks in parliament targeting women members, technology-facilitated gender-based violence like threats of rape and murder via Facebook and other social media platforms, and stereotyping women political candidates.
In the 19 November 2022 general election, no party or coalition won a majority in parliament. The election was generally free and fair. Official figures from the election showed a record number of Malaysians casting their ballots, with PH securing 5.81 million votes, PN 4.67 million and BN 3.43 million. The electoral roll had been enlarged after a constitutional change to give 18-year-olds the right to vote and for automatic voter registration, which further increased uncertainty over the outcome.
Malaysia’s king took a central role as rival coalitions try to form a new government after the election ended in a hung parliament. The Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition had 23 seats in the new parliament. The Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) had 23 representatives in the new parliament, and Gabungan Parti Rakyat (GPR), which is based in Sabah, had six. The opposition Pakatan Harapan (PH) coalition led by Anwar Ibrahim has won 82 seats, leaving it 30 seats short of a 112-seat majority in parliament. The Perikatan Nasional (PN) coalition under former Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin got 73 seats. Both Anwar and Muhyiddin tried to reach a majority, and King Sultan Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah held meetings with both. “Let me make a decision soon,” he told reporters outside the national palace, asking Malaysians to accept any decision about the government formation.
The king proposed a “unity” government between the multiethnic PH and the conservative Malay Muslim PN. Muhyiddin said he had declined that suggestion. Anwar, meanwhile, told reporters he wanted to form a strong government “that is more inclusive in terms of race, religion, or region”. The Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition, which dominated Malaysian politics until 2018, has emerged as the kingmaker since the election, even though it was roundly rejected by many voters. Its 30 seats would give PH the majority it needs to form a government. But if they aligned with PN it would go some way towards helping that coalition get into Putrajaya, the administrative capital.
Anwar was announced as the leader because the king was convinced he had the support of the majority of Malaysia’s 222 members of parliament. There are “no absolute winners and no absolute losers,” King Sultan Abdullah said in the statement, urging all politicians to work together for the benefit of the country.
Pakatan Harapan coalition chairman Anwar Ibrahim became prime minister after creating a coalition of parties including Barisan Nasional and several parties from the Borneo States of Sabah and Sarawak. His appointment came after a turbulent election, which saw an unprecedented hung parliament, large gains by a conservative Muslim party and heightened racial tensions. The election exposed Malaysia’s deepening fault lines, notably an electorate polarised between factions that support multiculturalism and religious conservatism. Anwar now faces the uphill task of delivering on long-pledged reforms, while reconciling the nation and maintaining political stability.
Under Anwar, Malaysia embarked on a series of incremental reforms to address competitiveness issues related to subsidies, transparency in public procurement, and an overreliance on foreign workers. Malaysia’s unity government passed a revised budget in 2023 with $88.1 billion in allocations that boost public spending and revenue collection and prioritize debt management. Among the investment incentives included in the budget are an extension of tax incentives for manufacturing companies that relocate to Malaysia and extensions of income tax incentives and investment tax allowances for the aerospace sector.
When Anwar Ibrahim became Malaysia’s prime minister, he faced a choice: target political opponents who oppressed him for years or usher in his long-promised era of democratic reforms. Roughly two years into his term, it’s increasingly looking like he’s opted for revenge and, his critics say, is using the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission to probe his adversaries.
Former Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad sued Prime Minister Anwar in June 2023 over press comments Anwar made in 2021 implying Mahathir used his position as prime minister to enrich himself and his family. Mahathir claimed Anwar’s comments marred his reputation as a respected statesman. The case was ongoing as of November. In July Prime Minister Anwar obtained a court order to stop Kedah State Chief Minister Muhammad Sanusi Md Nor from repeating alleged defamatory remarks claiming Anwar did not obtain a royal pardon according to proper procedure in 2018. The court order remained in effect pending the hearing for a defamation lawsuit which Anwar filed in December 2022 against Sanusi.
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