Rahman Embong - Academia.edu (original) (raw)

Papers by Rahman Embong

Research paper thumbnail of Ethnicity and Class: Divides and Dissent in Malaysian Studies

Southeast Asian studies, 2018

Ethnicity and class, two major paradigms constructed during the British colonial period, have sha... more Ethnicity and class, two major paradigms constructed during the British colonial period, have shaped Malaysian studies until the present. Very few concepts other than ethnicity and class have triggered as much polemics among scholars, public intellectuals, policy makers, and activists in Malaysia. This is especially so in debates over political economy, state power, social change, and the perennial question "Who rules, who gets what, who wins, and who loses?" Ethnicity has become the dominant paradigm in academic analysis, and it shapes government policies, public opinion, and people's thinking. Ethnic preferences are so entrenched that they form a major cause of divides and dissent in society, and a millstone that constrains social cohesion and progress. Adopting a historical/retrospective approach, this article identifies four defining episodes or watersheds in post-World War II Malaysia that have a significant bearing on the complex relationship and contestation between ethnicity and class. Those episodes are: (1) postwar agenda of crafting the state and envisioning the nation, 1946-48; (2) social engineering under the New Economic Policy and nation building, 1969-71; (3) envisioning a multiethnic developed nation through Vision 2020 and Bangsa Malaysia; and (4) post-2008 transition trap: reining in ethno-nationalist resurgence and moving toward a new Malaysia. It is suggested that the ethnic paradigm, being a social construct, may change and can be changed. However, efforts to change it should be guided by a non-ethnic, inclusive, and class-based paradigm that is sensitive to the complexity of the mediation between ethnic consciousness and cross-ethnic class solidarity.

Research paper thumbnail of Akademika 30 Tahun: Berpegang pada Visi, Memantapkan Mutu

Research paper thumbnail of New Middle Classes in Asia

The Blackwell Encyclopedia of Sociology, 2017

Research paper thumbnail of Penyataan Belasungkawa Atas Pemergian Ke Rahmatullah Profesor Datuk Dr. Syed Hussein Alatas (1928-2007) (Message of Condolence on the Passing of Professor Datuk Dr. Syed Hussein Alatas (1928-2007))

Research paper thumbnail of Introduction: Community, identity, politics and healthcare in Malaysia

This special issue of Kajian Malaysia is concerned with "Community, identity, politics and h... more This special issue of Kajian Malaysia is concerned with "Community, identity, politics and healthcare" with a focus on Malaysia. It consists of 11 refereed articles, 7 of which were originally presented at the 7th International Malaysian Studies Conference (MSC7) organised by the Malaysian Studies Association at Universiti Sains Malaysia, Pulau Pinang in March 2010 while the other 4, though presented elsewhere, have also been included because of their relevance to the overall theme. The three sub-themes of this special issue, while seemingly unconnected, maybe linked to each other through both direct and indirect ways. Community and identity, as analytical constructs and empirical realities, are both of analytical value as well as of practical significance. As analytical constructs and empirical reality, both have become important foci of study and analysis. The community—be they a fishing community, an indigenous community, or other types of small-scale groups of people b...

Research paper thumbnail of The Question of Culture, Identity and Globalisation

The question of culture, identity and the media constitutes an intellectually challenging theme g... more The question of culture, identity and the media constitutes an intellectually challenging theme given the porosity of borders in the era of globalisation as well as the opposition between the demands for openness and the assertion of state control and media monopoly. In an environment in which the media is under tight control, this theme could certainly become a hot topic, especially if it is examined in relation to the political power play and 'horse trading' that occurs between different contending forces – namely government agencies and other entities etc. – and how the media positions itself under the circumstances. However, when the media is examined in relation to culture and identity, the issue may appear to be much 'softer' and innocuous, but it does not by any means make it any less complex or challenging. Media, culture and identity in the era of globalisation are intricately intertwined, each impacting the other in complex ways, requiring scholars and rese...

Research paper thumbnail of Globalization and National Autonomy: The Experience of Malaysia

Globalization and National Autonomy: The Experience of Malaysia Preliminary pages 1. Introduction... more Globalization and National Autonomy: The Experience of Malaysia Preliminary pages 1. Introduction, by Joan M Nelson 2. Developmentalist State in Malaysia: Its Origins, Nature, and Contemporary Transformation, by Abdul Rahman Haji Embong 3. The Look East Policy, the Asian Crisis, and State Autonomy, by Lee Poh Ping 4. The Malaysian Success Story, the Public Sector, and Inter-ethnic Inequality, by Jacob Meerman 5. Poverty Eradication, Development, and Policy Space in Malaysia, by Ragayah Haji Mat Zin 6. Trade Liberalization and National Autonomy: Malaysia's Experience at the Multilateral and Bilateral Levels, by Tham Siew-Yean 7. Malaysia's Education Policies: Balancing Multiple Goals and Global Pressures, by Joan M Nelson 8. Malaysia's Healthcare Sector: Shifting Roles for Public and Private Provision, by Joan M Nelson 9. Globalization, Islamic Resurgence, and State Autonomy: The Response of the Malaysian State to 'Islamic Globalization', by Norani Othman 10. The ...

Research paper thumbnail of Peranan orientasi sains sosial

Research paper thumbnail of State, Development and Inequality in Selected ASEAN Countries: Internal and External Pressures and State Responses

Research paper thumbnail of Micro perspectives: Ideas, practices and challenges

Research paper thumbnail of 3. Knowledge Construction, the Rakyat Paradigm and Malaysia’s Social Cohesion

Transforming Malaysia, 2014

Research paper thumbnail of Changing Constellations of Southeast Asia

Changing Constellations of Southeast Asia, 2017

Research paper thumbnail of Responding to Globalization and the State: Negotiations and Contestations by the Middle Class in Malaysia

Globalization and Social Transformation in the Asia-Pacific, 2013

The discourse on globalization and its interactions with states and societies including the middl... more The discourse on globalization and its interactions with states and societies including the middle class, has undergone a marked shift in the last 20 years. This shift has occurred not only in the West but also in many developing countries especially those that have strong state systems. One major strand of thought was that globalization — unleashed by neoliberal or free market forces ‘charging like a juggernaut’ — holds states and societies captive so they became ‘losers’. This means that inequalities within and between states were entrenched. The ‘winners’ were owners of capital and their associates. Neoliberal globalization thus should be opposed or rejected, a school of thought that has been very much associated with the anti-globalizers, as well as those highly critical of globalization. However, of late, variations of this argument have emerged.

Research paper thumbnail of The role of social sciences in Malaysia national development

Research paper thumbnail of Transforming Malaysia:Dominant and Competing Paradigmsedited by Anthony Milner, Abdul Rahman Embong, and Tham Siew Yean, Singapore, Institute of Southeast Asian Studies, 2014, ix + 239 pp

The Developing Economies, 2016

There was great excitement in the Malaysian scholarly community and among many politically minded... more There was great excitement in the Malaysian scholarly community and among many politically minded people over the results of the 12th General Elections of 2008 when the ruling alliance lost its two-thirds majority in Parliament for the first time. 1 This shook the bedrock of racial politics in Malaysia, where UMNO, a Malay party, dominated all the other racially oriented non-Malay component parties, as there has always been a belief that the ruling party must have a two-thirds majority for it to be a legitimate government, even if the constitution allows the party that has a simple majority to form a government. The 13th General Elections in 2013 confirmed that this result was no fluke. The ruling alliance lost not only their two-thirds majority but also the majority of the popular votes, although it managed to obtain a simple majority of parliamentary seats through a system that has been politically gerrymandered. For the first time in many years, the racial paradigm as the dominant paradigm in Malaysian politics and in many other aspects of Malaysian life could be questioned, and competing paradigms could be realistically considered. This book attempts to do this. It is the latest in a series of collaborative book projects from Pok Rafeah, Chair of the Institute of Malaysian and International Studies (IKMAS) of the National University of Malaysia. The lead editor of the book is Anthony Milner, who once held the Chair of the Institute, and the two other editors are Rahman Embong and Tham Siew Yean who are Fellows of the Institute. The book examines the origin and influence of the racial paradigm and alternative paradigms in various aspects of Malaysian life. It consists of eight chapters, including the Introduction, all of which are written by Fellows of the Institute.

Research paper thumbnail of The New Malay Middle Class and Melayu Baru

State-led Modernization and the New Middle Class in Malaysia, 2002

In the preceding chapters, I have analysed the phenomenon of the new Malay middle class, using a ... more In the preceding chapters, I have analysed the phenomenon of the new Malay middle class, using a combination of quantitative data from my own survey and official statistics. I have shown that the new Malay middle class, although relatively affluent, is of recent origin and still in the process of formation. Mostly products of the NEP, members of the new Malay middle class — managers, professional and administrators — have appeared on the historical scene during the last three decades of Malaysia’s rapid economic growth. A considerable number of individuals from this class have ‘graduated’ to become big Malay capitalists, heading a number of public listed companies. The presence of the Malay capitalist and new middle classes has had a significant impact on the course of contemporary Malaysian history. Their presence has not only redefined the class structure and altered the class map, but has also promoted the agenda of modernization and transformation of Malay society, and, by extension, Malaysian society. To complement the earlier discussion of middle-class formation and the character of the new Malay middle class in this study, I propose, in this chapter, to take another route to examine the phenomenon of the new Malay middle class by presenting a qualitative analysis regarding issues of the formation of this class from the viewpoint of the redefined agenda of modernization and transformation of Malay society expressed in the concept of Melayu Baru (the New Malay).1

Research paper thumbnail of A Critical Review of Malaysian Middle-Class Studies

State-led Modernization and the New Middle Class in Malaysia, 2002

Academic discussion and analysis of the middle class in Malaysia is fairly recent, starting in th... more Academic discussion and analysis of the middle class in Malaysia is fairly recent, starting in the late 1960s, but only really gathering momentum in the late 1990s. During the last three decades, Malaysian social science research has justifiably focused more on those pressing issues faced in the immediate post-independence years — such as development and under-development (with particular emphasis on factors impeding development of the Bumiputera), culture, Islam, ethnic relations, inter-ethnic imbalances, national unity, and so on. Most of these studies made only passing references to the middle class. The proliferation of studies on some of these themes — particularly of peasants, factory women, ethnicity and Islam — led some scholars to label it as ‘an outpouring’, suggesting that these studies ‘in their distribution (are) far from fully representative of current trends in the Malay community’ (Kahn 1996b: 49). However, the claim that ‘the growth of the middle class is... largely ignored’, that ‘there has been remarkably little interest among social scientists in the phenomenon’, so much so that there has existed a ‘yawning gap’ (Kahn 1996b: 49, 67), and that the advertising industry had discovered the middle class before the academics (Kahn 1996a), has to be examined critically against the available evidence. While the middle class has not been given prominent attention by scholars in studies of the preceding decades, there was no such yawning gap, for there had been several studies of the new middle class in Malaysia even during these years. A review of the literature will bear this out.

Research paper thumbnail of Concluding Remarks: The New Malay Middle Class and Social Transformation

State-led Modernization and the New Middle Class in Malaysia, 2002

In the preceding chapters, we have argued that although the beginnings of the modern classes — th... more In the preceding chapters, we have argued that although the beginnings of the modern classes — the capitalist, the middle and the working classes — in Malaysia could be traced to socio-economic developments since the turn of the twentieth century, their rapid expansion and development are recent phenomena, closely tied up with the policies of state-led modernization and industrialization together with capitalist expansion in post-independence Malaysia. Through the New Economic Policy (NEP) (1971–1990), the UMNO-controlled Malaysian state has sought to create a Bumiputera commercial and industrial community (BCIC), a euphemism for the Bumiputera capitalist and new middle classes, and, in the process, has also developed a Bumiputera working class. Unlike the earlier Malay middle class, which was made up mostly of administrators and school-teachers, the new Malay middle class, comprised largely of professionals and managers working in both the state and the private sectors, has emerged and expanded in the last 30 years, becoming a conspicuous presence in Malaysian cities and towns. The NEP’s affirmative action programmes, however, have not precluded the growth of the non-Malay capitalist and middle classes. Nevertheless, the state’s role in the formation of the non-Malay capitalist and new middle classes has been indirect. Since the state has generally been market-friendly, even when implementing the NEP’s action programmes, its policies have enhanced the growth of capitalism, which provided the economically stronger Chinese community with rich opportunities to produce their own new middle class.

Research paper thumbnail of New Malay Middle-Class Lifestyles and Culture

State-led Modernization and the New Middle Class in Malaysia, 2002

This chapter examines several interrelated issues pertaining to the new Malay middle-class lifest... more This chapter examines several interrelated issues pertaining to the new Malay middle-class lifestyles and culture, such as living conditions, asset ownership, consumption patterns, and leisure activities. At the same time, it also discusses an important issue in class analysis — that is, the self-evaluation by members of the new Malay middle class of their own class positions — to see if their subjective evaluations match our objective definition of the new middle-class. This chapter aims to show that the new Malay middle class lifestyles and cultural preferences are not homogenous; and that while the more affluent sections of the new Malay middle class have developed distinct high-status lifestyles and cultural preferences, many still have lifestyles and cultural preferences that do not differentiate them as a social category distinct from the lower classes.

Research paper thumbnail of The New Malay Middle-Class Family

State-led Modernization and the New Middle Class in Malaysia, 2002

São estes os meus sentimentos e jamais concederei aos homens vis maiores honras que as merecidas ... more São estes os meus sentimentos e jamais concederei aos homens vis maiores honras que as merecidas tão-somente pelos justos. Só quem quiser o bem de Tebas há de ter a minha estima em vida e mesmo após a morte". Creonte (Sófocles, 1996, p. 204) * Professor Titular do Programa de Pós-Graduação em Direito da Unisinos (RS). Doutor e Pós-Doutor em Direito; Ex-Procurador de Justiça (MP/RS). Presidente de Honra do Instituto de Hermenêutica Jurídica (IHJ). <lenio@unisinos.br>. ** Professor de Teoria Geral do Estado. Doutorando e Mestre em Direito Público pela Unisinos/RS. Bolsista Capes/Prosup. Membro do Grupo "Dasein-Núcleo de Estudos Hermenêuticos" (Unisinos).

Research paper thumbnail of Ethnicity and Class: Divides and Dissent in Malaysian Studies

Southeast Asian studies, 2018

Ethnicity and class, two major paradigms constructed during the British colonial period, have sha... more Ethnicity and class, two major paradigms constructed during the British colonial period, have shaped Malaysian studies until the present. Very few concepts other than ethnicity and class have triggered as much polemics among scholars, public intellectuals, policy makers, and activists in Malaysia. This is especially so in debates over political economy, state power, social change, and the perennial question "Who rules, who gets what, who wins, and who loses?" Ethnicity has become the dominant paradigm in academic analysis, and it shapes government policies, public opinion, and people's thinking. Ethnic preferences are so entrenched that they form a major cause of divides and dissent in society, and a millstone that constrains social cohesion and progress. Adopting a historical/retrospective approach, this article identifies four defining episodes or watersheds in post-World War II Malaysia that have a significant bearing on the complex relationship and contestation between ethnicity and class. Those episodes are: (1) postwar agenda of crafting the state and envisioning the nation, 1946-48; (2) social engineering under the New Economic Policy and nation building, 1969-71; (3) envisioning a multiethnic developed nation through Vision 2020 and Bangsa Malaysia; and (4) post-2008 transition trap: reining in ethno-nationalist resurgence and moving toward a new Malaysia. It is suggested that the ethnic paradigm, being a social construct, may change and can be changed. However, efforts to change it should be guided by a non-ethnic, inclusive, and class-based paradigm that is sensitive to the complexity of the mediation between ethnic consciousness and cross-ethnic class solidarity.

Research paper thumbnail of Akademika 30 Tahun: Berpegang pada Visi, Memantapkan Mutu

Research paper thumbnail of New Middle Classes in Asia

The Blackwell Encyclopedia of Sociology, 2017

Research paper thumbnail of Penyataan Belasungkawa Atas Pemergian Ke Rahmatullah Profesor Datuk Dr. Syed Hussein Alatas (1928-2007) (Message of Condolence on the Passing of Professor Datuk Dr. Syed Hussein Alatas (1928-2007))

Research paper thumbnail of Introduction: Community, identity, politics and healthcare in Malaysia

This special issue of Kajian Malaysia is concerned with "Community, identity, politics and h... more This special issue of Kajian Malaysia is concerned with "Community, identity, politics and healthcare" with a focus on Malaysia. It consists of 11 refereed articles, 7 of which were originally presented at the 7th International Malaysian Studies Conference (MSC7) organised by the Malaysian Studies Association at Universiti Sains Malaysia, Pulau Pinang in March 2010 while the other 4, though presented elsewhere, have also been included because of their relevance to the overall theme. The three sub-themes of this special issue, while seemingly unconnected, maybe linked to each other through both direct and indirect ways. Community and identity, as analytical constructs and empirical realities, are both of analytical value as well as of practical significance. As analytical constructs and empirical reality, both have become important foci of study and analysis. The community—be they a fishing community, an indigenous community, or other types of small-scale groups of people b...

Research paper thumbnail of The Question of Culture, Identity and Globalisation

The question of culture, identity and the media constitutes an intellectually challenging theme g... more The question of culture, identity and the media constitutes an intellectually challenging theme given the porosity of borders in the era of globalisation as well as the opposition between the demands for openness and the assertion of state control and media monopoly. In an environment in which the media is under tight control, this theme could certainly become a hot topic, especially if it is examined in relation to the political power play and 'horse trading' that occurs between different contending forces – namely government agencies and other entities etc. – and how the media positions itself under the circumstances. However, when the media is examined in relation to culture and identity, the issue may appear to be much 'softer' and innocuous, but it does not by any means make it any less complex or challenging. Media, culture and identity in the era of globalisation are intricately intertwined, each impacting the other in complex ways, requiring scholars and rese...

Research paper thumbnail of Globalization and National Autonomy: The Experience of Malaysia

Globalization and National Autonomy: The Experience of Malaysia Preliminary pages 1. Introduction... more Globalization and National Autonomy: The Experience of Malaysia Preliminary pages 1. Introduction, by Joan M Nelson 2. Developmentalist State in Malaysia: Its Origins, Nature, and Contemporary Transformation, by Abdul Rahman Haji Embong 3. The Look East Policy, the Asian Crisis, and State Autonomy, by Lee Poh Ping 4. The Malaysian Success Story, the Public Sector, and Inter-ethnic Inequality, by Jacob Meerman 5. Poverty Eradication, Development, and Policy Space in Malaysia, by Ragayah Haji Mat Zin 6. Trade Liberalization and National Autonomy: Malaysia's Experience at the Multilateral and Bilateral Levels, by Tham Siew-Yean 7. Malaysia's Education Policies: Balancing Multiple Goals and Global Pressures, by Joan M Nelson 8. Malaysia's Healthcare Sector: Shifting Roles for Public and Private Provision, by Joan M Nelson 9. Globalization, Islamic Resurgence, and State Autonomy: The Response of the Malaysian State to 'Islamic Globalization', by Norani Othman 10. The ...

Research paper thumbnail of Peranan orientasi sains sosial

Research paper thumbnail of State, Development and Inequality in Selected ASEAN Countries: Internal and External Pressures and State Responses

Research paper thumbnail of Micro perspectives: Ideas, practices and challenges

Research paper thumbnail of 3. Knowledge Construction, the Rakyat Paradigm and Malaysia’s Social Cohesion

Transforming Malaysia, 2014

Research paper thumbnail of Changing Constellations of Southeast Asia

Changing Constellations of Southeast Asia, 2017

Research paper thumbnail of Responding to Globalization and the State: Negotiations and Contestations by the Middle Class in Malaysia

Globalization and Social Transformation in the Asia-Pacific, 2013

The discourse on globalization and its interactions with states and societies including the middl... more The discourse on globalization and its interactions with states and societies including the middle class, has undergone a marked shift in the last 20 years. This shift has occurred not only in the West but also in many developing countries especially those that have strong state systems. One major strand of thought was that globalization — unleashed by neoliberal or free market forces ‘charging like a juggernaut’ — holds states and societies captive so they became ‘losers’. This means that inequalities within and between states were entrenched. The ‘winners’ were owners of capital and their associates. Neoliberal globalization thus should be opposed or rejected, a school of thought that has been very much associated with the anti-globalizers, as well as those highly critical of globalization. However, of late, variations of this argument have emerged.

Research paper thumbnail of The role of social sciences in Malaysia national development

Research paper thumbnail of Transforming Malaysia:Dominant and Competing Paradigmsedited by Anthony Milner, Abdul Rahman Embong, and Tham Siew Yean, Singapore, Institute of Southeast Asian Studies, 2014, ix + 239 pp

The Developing Economies, 2016

There was great excitement in the Malaysian scholarly community and among many politically minded... more There was great excitement in the Malaysian scholarly community and among many politically minded people over the results of the 12th General Elections of 2008 when the ruling alliance lost its two-thirds majority in Parliament for the first time. 1 This shook the bedrock of racial politics in Malaysia, where UMNO, a Malay party, dominated all the other racially oriented non-Malay component parties, as there has always been a belief that the ruling party must have a two-thirds majority for it to be a legitimate government, even if the constitution allows the party that has a simple majority to form a government. The 13th General Elections in 2013 confirmed that this result was no fluke. The ruling alliance lost not only their two-thirds majority but also the majority of the popular votes, although it managed to obtain a simple majority of parliamentary seats through a system that has been politically gerrymandered. For the first time in many years, the racial paradigm as the dominant paradigm in Malaysian politics and in many other aspects of Malaysian life could be questioned, and competing paradigms could be realistically considered. This book attempts to do this. It is the latest in a series of collaborative book projects from Pok Rafeah, Chair of the Institute of Malaysian and International Studies (IKMAS) of the National University of Malaysia. The lead editor of the book is Anthony Milner, who once held the Chair of the Institute, and the two other editors are Rahman Embong and Tham Siew Yean who are Fellows of the Institute. The book examines the origin and influence of the racial paradigm and alternative paradigms in various aspects of Malaysian life. It consists of eight chapters, including the Introduction, all of which are written by Fellows of the Institute.

Research paper thumbnail of The New Malay Middle Class and Melayu Baru

State-led Modernization and the New Middle Class in Malaysia, 2002

In the preceding chapters, I have analysed the phenomenon of the new Malay middle class, using a ... more In the preceding chapters, I have analysed the phenomenon of the new Malay middle class, using a combination of quantitative data from my own survey and official statistics. I have shown that the new Malay middle class, although relatively affluent, is of recent origin and still in the process of formation. Mostly products of the NEP, members of the new Malay middle class — managers, professional and administrators — have appeared on the historical scene during the last three decades of Malaysia’s rapid economic growth. A considerable number of individuals from this class have ‘graduated’ to become big Malay capitalists, heading a number of public listed companies. The presence of the Malay capitalist and new middle classes has had a significant impact on the course of contemporary Malaysian history. Their presence has not only redefined the class structure and altered the class map, but has also promoted the agenda of modernization and transformation of Malay society, and, by extension, Malaysian society. To complement the earlier discussion of middle-class formation and the character of the new Malay middle class in this study, I propose, in this chapter, to take another route to examine the phenomenon of the new Malay middle class by presenting a qualitative analysis regarding issues of the formation of this class from the viewpoint of the redefined agenda of modernization and transformation of Malay society expressed in the concept of Melayu Baru (the New Malay).1

Research paper thumbnail of A Critical Review of Malaysian Middle-Class Studies

State-led Modernization and the New Middle Class in Malaysia, 2002

Academic discussion and analysis of the middle class in Malaysia is fairly recent, starting in th... more Academic discussion and analysis of the middle class in Malaysia is fairly recent, starting in the late 1960s, but only really gathering momentum in the late 1990s. During the last three decades, Malaysian social science research has justifiably focused more on those pressing issues faced in the immediate post-independence years — such as development and under-development (with particular emphasis on factors impeding development of the Bumiputera), culture, Islam, ethnic relations, inter-ethnic imbalances, national unity, and so on. Most of these studies made only passing references to the middle class. The proliferation of studies on some of these themes — particularly of peasants, factory women, ethnicity and Islam — led some scholars to label it as ‘an outpouring’, suggesting that these studies ‘in their distribution (are) far from fully representative of current trends in the Malay community’ (Kahn 1996b: 49). However, the claim that ‘the growth of the middle class is... largely ignored’, that ‘there has been remarkably little interest among social scientists in the phenomenon’, so much so that there has existed a ‘yawning gap’ (Kahn 1996b: 49, 67), and that the advertising industry had discovered the middle class before the academics (Kahn 1996a), has to be examined critically against the available evidence. While the middle class has not been given prominent attention by scholars in studies of the preceding decades, there was no such yawning gap, for there had been several studies of the new middle class in Malaysia even during these years. A review of the literature will bear this out.

Research paper thumbnail of Concluding Remarks: The New Malay Middle Class and Social Transformation

State-led Modernization and the New Middle Class in Malaysia, 2002

In the preceding chapters, we have argued that although the beginnings of the modern classes — th... more In the preceding chapters, we have argued that although the beginnings of the modern classes — the capitalist, the middle and the working classes — in Malaysia could be traced to socio-economic developments since the turn of the twentieth century, their rapid expansion and development are recent phenomena, closely tied up with the policies of state-led modernization and industrialization together with capitalist expansion in post-independence Malaysia. Through the New Economic Policy (NEP) (1971–1990), the UMNO-controlled Malaysian state has sought to create a Bumiputera commercial and industrial community (BCIC), a euphemism for the Bumiputera capitalist and new middle classes, and, in the process, has also developed a Bumiputera working class. Unlike the earlier Malay middle class, which was made up mostly of administrators and school-teachers, the new Malay middle class, comprised largely of professionals and managers working in both the state and the private sectors, has emerged and expanded in the last 30 years, becoming a conspicuous presence in Malaysian cities and towns. The NEP’s affirmative action programmes, however, have not precluded the growth of the non-Malay capitalist and middle classes. Nevertheless, the state’s role in the formation of the non-Malay capitalist and new middle classes has been indirect. Since the state has generally been market-friendly, even when implementing the NEP’s action programmes, its policies have enhanced the growth of capitalism, which provided the economically stronger Chinese community with rich opportunities to produce their own new middle class.

Research paper thumbnail of New Malay Middle-Class Lifestyles and Culture

State-led Modernization and the New Middle Class in Malaysia, 2002

This chapter examines several interrelated issues pertaining to the new Malay middle-class lifest... more This chapter examines several interrelated issues pertaining to the new Malay middle-class lifestyles and culture, such as living conditions, asset ownership, consumption patterns, and leisure activities. At the same time, it also discusses an important issue in class analysis — that is, the self-evaluation by members of the new Malay middle class of their own class positions — to see if their subjective evaluations match our objective definition of the new middle-class. This chapter aims to show that the new Malay middle class lifestyles and cultural preferences are not homogenous; and that while the more affluent sections of the new Malay middle class have developed distinct high-status lifestyles and cultural preferences, many still have lifestyles and cultural preferences that do not differentiate them as a social category distinct from the lower classes.

Research paper thumbnail of The New Malay Middle-Class Family

State-led Modernization and the New Middle Class in Malaysia, 2002

São estes os meus sentimentos e jamais concederei aos homens vis maiores honras que as merecidas ... more São estes os meus sentimentos e jamais concederei aos homens vis maiores honras que as merecidas tão-somente pelos justos. Só quem quiser o bem de Tebas há de ter a minha estima em vida e mesmo após a morte". Creonte (Sófocles, 1996, p. 204) * Professor Titular do Programa de Pós-Graduação em Direito da Unisinos (RS). Doutor e Pós-Doutor em Direito; Ex-Procurador de Justiça (MP/RS). Presidente de Honra do Instituto de Hermenêutica Jurídica (IHJ). <lenio@unisinos.br>. ** Professor de Teoria Geral do Estado. Doutorando e Mestre em Direito Público pela Unisinos/RS. Bolsista Capes/Prosup. Membro do Grupo "Dasein-Núcleo de Estudos Hermenêuticos" (Unisinos).