ABSTRACT
In 2013, the Federation of Malaysia celebrated the half-centenary of its founding. When formed in 1963, the federation comprised four territories: Malaya (which had been made independent in 1957), Singapore, North Borneo (now called Sabah), and Sarawak. At the time, these territories had little in common other than the fact that they had all been colonised by the British, directly or indirectly. Yet there were high hopes for Malaysia. The new nation had inherited a system of constitutional monarchy with universal suffrage. And in patterning its institutions after Westminster, it formed two houses of parliament, the Dewan Raykat (House of Representatives) and Dewan Negara (Senate). The three major ethnic groups in the country – the Malays, Chinese, and Indians – while unintegrated, avoided open conflict. The ruling coalition, the Malayan Alliance (later Barisan Nasional or National Front), provided representation for these communities and, for the most part, perpetuated accommodation between them. The non-indigenous Chinese and Indian population, brought into the country as economic migrants by the British, were given citizenship. The path to independence was based on negotiation with the Colonial Office rather than armed struggle. Malaysia was widely regarded at the time as one of only a few newly independent countries with working democratic institutions.
