I posted yesterday about what was looking like a difficult moment for Malaysian democracy.
You will have seen, read or heard since then of the astonishing result: although the ruling party won enough seats to form a government, by usual standards, it only scraped through. The opposition went from 19 to 82 seats of the 222 seat parliament. An opposition coalition thought-up by Anwar Ibrahim that stitched together urban middle classes, Chinese and Malay Muslims represents a turning point for Malaysian --- and maybe Muslim --- democracy. Ethnic divisions appear to have been transcended, and a united front against corruption and mis-management by the ruling Barisan Nasional mobilised voters.
Las time the ruling party lost its super-majority was 1969, and the election led to Malay/Chinese violence. The prospect this time is that the election will give the opposition coalition the power and the legitimacy to be a democratic check on the Barisan Nasional. Malaysia's federal structure has taken power out of the BN's hands in 4 out of 13 states.
There are interesting reports in Al Jazeera, Financial Times, and I was reminded of this article by Simon Jenkins on democracy promotion in last week's Guardian. MalaysiaToday is very up-to-date and close to events, fascinating.
This was the message that Anwar Ibrahim put out:
A NEW DAWN FOR MALAYSIA
My fellow Malaysians,
Today at the ballot box, you listened to your heart with the firm conviction that the time for change has arrived.
The people of Malaysia have spoken. This is a defining moment, unprecedented in our nation’s history.
Today a new chapter has opened. The people have voted decisively for a new era where the government must be truly inclusive and recognize that all Malaysians, regardless of race, culture and religion are a nation of one.
The people have expressed in no uncertain terms that they want accountability, transparency and the rule of law.
Today unity, consensus, and mutual respect triumphed.
Tomorrow, we start working to build a brighter future, hand in hand, shoulder to shoulder. This is a new dawn for Malaysia.
ANWAR IBRAHIM
Simon Zadek, oD author and friend, and also someone with close links to Anwar Ibrahim, was thrilled when I contacted him: “Anwar is an inspiration and guide to all of us at AccountAbility, and has now brought his passion and commitment to bear on profound changes in Malaysia. We are honoured to have him as AccountAbility's President.”
Aasil Anwar has blogged for us before about the situation in Malaysia. I'll see if we can get an update from him.
