scholarly journals ETHNIC RELATIONS IN MULTI-ETHNIC MALAYSIA

2014 ◽  
Vol 53 (2) ◽  
pp. 1-11
Author(s):  
Naureen Nazar Soomro ◽  
Aslam Pervez Memon ◽  
Aslam Pervez Memon
Keyword(s):  
Immigration Policy ◽  
Ethnic Relations ◽  
Colonial Period ◽  
Ethnic Communities ◽  
Political Roles ◽  
Multiethnic States ◽  
Divide And Rule ◽  
Professional Fields ◽  
The Way

Abstract The Malaysian society, one of the successful and managed multi-ethnic societies, is replete of imbalances and there still underlie the racial and ethnic disproportions in geographical dwellings, educational and professional fields, and economic and political roles. The modern racial relation in Malaysia is the legacy of pre-colonial and colonial period of history dating back to fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. The unstable demographic balance, the unrestricted immigration policy or the policy of divide and rule by the colonial masters contributed besides other reasons toward the troubled relations between ethnic communities of Malaysia- Malays, Chinese, Indians, and others. But the way the respective Malaysian governments have managed such sour relationship in their socio-economic and political spheres is the lesson that all multiethnic states can learn from.

ETHNIC RELATIONS IN MULTI-ETHNIC MALAYSIA

2014 ◽  
Vol 53 (2) ◽  
pp. 1-11
Author(s):  
Naureen Nazar Soomro ◽  
Aslam Pervez Memon
Keyword(s):  
Immigration Policy ◽  
Ethnic Relations ◽  
Colonial Period ◽  
Ethnic Communities ◽  
Political Roles ◽  
Multiethnic States ◽  
Divide And Rule ◽  
Professional Fields ◽  
The Way

The Malaysian society, one of the successful and managed multi-ethnic societies, is replete of imbalances and there still underlie the racial and ethnic disproportions in geographical dwellings, educational and professional fields, and economic and political roles. The modern racial relation in Malaysia is the legacy of pre-colonial and colonial period of history dating back to fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. The unstable demographic balance, the unrestricted immigration policy or the policy of divide and rule by the colonial masters contributed besides other reasons toward the troubled relations between ethnic communities of Malaysia- Malays, Chinese, Indians, and others. But the way the respective Malaysian governments have managed such sour relationship in their socio-economic and political spheres is the lesson that all multiethnic states can learn from.

Of Whales and Dugongs: Examining the Rise of Colonial Conservation as Development in Madagascar’s Marine History

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Merrill Baker-Médard
Keyword(s):  
Conservation Policy ◽  
Marine Conservation ◽  
Colonial Period ◽  
Marine Resources ◽  
Current Conservation ◽  
Dual Purpose ◽  
Local Resource ◽  
Conservation And Development ◽  
The Way

This work explores how colonial marine conservation policy in Madagascar had the dual purpose of facilitating the expansion of capital and ‘civilising’ the way Malagasy fishers used marine resources. I analyse how the legacy of narratives that emerged to bolster state-led conservation intervention during the colonial period are still present in current conservation and development narratives, perpetuating in some cases the coloniser–colonised relationship between conservation organisations and local resource users. These findings indicate a need to revamp certain aspects of marine conservation legislation in Madagascar and the need for conservation organisations to explicitly acknowledge this history when working with local resource users in order to avoid reproducing historical injustices.

World Visions in Swahili Literature

2019 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 129-144
Author(s):  
Xavier Garnier
Keyword(s):  
Local Level ◽  
Colonial Period ◽  
Epic Poetry ◽  
Art Of Living ◽  
Literary Forms ◽  
Crime Novel ◽  
The World ◽  
The Way

Abstract Probably because of its relationship with a coastal culture, Swahili literature seems very aware of its position in the world. Through a reading of Swahili poems and novels across a range of genres, this paper explores the ways in which Swahili writers have engaged in a dialogue with the whole world, from the colonial period to the contemporary era. The evolution of well-identified literary forms such as epic poetry, ethnographic novel or crime novel will also pave the way for identifying the specificities of a Swahili cosmopolitanism anxious to cultivate an art of living in the age of a kind of globalization whose effects are often harshly felt at the local level. Because it has long developed an awareness of the world, Swahili literature has often pioneered the invention of literary forms that are able to translate locally the movements of the world.

Lower Strata, Older Races, and Aboriginal Peoples: Racial Anthropology and Mythical History Past and Present

1998 ◽  
Vol 57 (2) ◽  
pp. 423-441 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sumit Guha
Keyword(s):  
Twentieth Century ◽  
National Culture ◽  
South Asians ◽  
Colonial Period ◽  
Aboriginal Peoples ◽  
Self Knowledge ◽  
The Way

As K. Sivaramakrishnan has pointed out in a paper published in 1993, one of the persistent ironies of postcoloniality “has been the way elites assuming the task of building a national culture and providing it with a liberatory/progressive history have turned to modes of knowledge and reconstruction produced in the colonial period.” And of the varied strands that have constituted the twentieth-century knowledge and self-knowledge of India, none is more central than the notion of the timeless, conservative caste, and its antediluvian ancestor, the unchanging primitive tribe (Sivaramakrishnan 1993; Inden 1990, 70–72). In this view South Asians, like other unprogressive people, did not change—they merely accumulated, with the latest addition to the population overlaying its predecessor, much as geological strata did. This paper will attempt to expose the historic roots and explore the contemporary ramifications of this model.

Intermarriage in colonial Malaya and Singapore: A case study of nineteenth- and early twentieth-century Roman Catholic and Methodist Asian communities

2012 ◽  
Vol 43 (2) ◽  
pp. 302-323 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marc Rerceretnam
Keyword(s):  
Roman Catholic ◽  
Colonial Period ◽  
Migrant Communities ◽  
British Rule ◽  
Grassroots Level ◽  
British Colonial ◽  
Divide And Rule ◽  
First And Second Generation ◽  
Generation Migrant

Colonial race relations are regularly portrayed in light of the attempts to divide and rule colonialised Asian communities. While this article does not challenge this view, it attempts to uncover a hitherto hidden level of interaction and even intermarriage at the grassroots level in colonial Malaya and Singapore. With the exception of the various Peranakan communities that predated British rule, little to no evidence exists to show that interaction and especially intermarriage existed within early first- and second-generation migrant communities during the British colonial period. The findings show how colonial attempts to encourage a heightened sense of race and its frailties may have fallen short among some sections of the Asian community.

Autochtonie, Libéralisation Politique, et Construction d'une Sphère Publique Locale au Cameroun

2011 ◽  
Vol 54 (3) ◽  
pp. 71-99
Author(s):  
Ibrahim Mouiche
Keyword(s):  
Public Space ◽  
Political Representation ◽  
Public Spaces ◽  
The Political ◽  
Ethnic Communities ◽  
Political Liberalization ◽  
Public Spheres ◽  
Plural Form ◽  
Political Roles ◽  
Emerging Democracy

Abstract:This study focuses on the hegemonic struggles between two ethnic communities, the Mbo and the Bamiléké, in Santchou, West Cameroon. At issue is the sharing of political roles in this locality, which point to issues of political representation. In this district, these roles (mayor, representative, etc.) were under the single party rule of the ethnic minority Mbo, who are a majority in this area but a minority in the rest of the district, where the Bamileke are the majority. In this monolithic context, where all protests were banned, the Bamileke had given up and accepted this arrangement. With the advent of the multiparty system and democracy, in which mayors are now elected and no longer simply nominated, uncertainty has been hovering over this political stronghold of the Mbo. Nevertheless, the Mbo have been able to hold onto the post of mayor and acquire other political posts as well. However, unlike during the single party era, the situation created by the political liberalization has offered to the Bamileke a public space where they can discuss the allocation of local political positions, and manifest their disagreement with the hegemonic trend. In the footsteps of Habermas and many other authors such as Cottereau, this study underlines the need to talk about public spaces in a plural form, instead of a single public space, in order to put in context the internal dynamics of popular cultures engendering subcultural public spheres or places of emerging democracy.

scholarly journals VITALITY OF LANGUAGE AND CULTURE IN MALAYSIAN WEDDING CARDS: A MULTIETHNIC PERSPECTIVE

2017 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 48-66
Author(s):  
Siti Rohana Mohd Thani ◽  
Kuang Ching Hei
Keyword(s):  
Ethnic Identity ◽  
Cultural Identity ◽  
Ethnic Groups ◽  
Extensive Study ◽  
Symbolic Language ◽  
Ethnic Communities ◽  
Language And Culture ◽  
Year 2000 ◽  
Cultural Features ◽  
The Way

The way language is used within a certain community reflects the culture of its users but is it possible to accommodate the culture of others when different communities live within one country as citizens? This paper examined thirty Malaysian wedding cards gathered from the three dominant ethnic groups of Malay, Chinese and Indian. It focussed on the vitality of language and culture presented in current day wedding cards issued by modern day couples, that is, from the year 2000 onwards. Data extracted for analysis comprised the language printed on the cards followed by the symbolic and cultural features noted on and within the cards. Leech’s (1981) framework of making meanings from printed language was applied. Findings suggest that current day wedding cards of the three ethnic communities have adapted to modernisation in terms of design, colour and information. However, symbolic language and traditional and cultural features reflecting each of the respective community were still prevalent. The findings imply that despite the advancement of technology and globalisation, Malaysia’s diverse ethnic groups remained faithful to their cultures with each group retaining and promoting its respective symbolic features and cultural identity. This indicates that one’s ethnic identity and culture are important particularly when expressed through wedding cards. Our claim is confined to the analysis of a small portion of wedding cards, hence, a more extensive study may be necessary to verify this claim. 

Refugee Returns in Croatia: Contradictions and Reform

Politics ◽  
2003 ◽  
Vol 23 (3) ◽  
pp. 181-191 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brad K. Blitz
Keyword(s):  
Housing Policy ◽  
Ethnic Communities ◽  
Post Conflict ◽  
Tier System ◽  
The Law ◽  
Conflict Reconciliation ◽  
The Way

The principle of refugee returns has been cited as a means of resolving crises and paving the way for post-conflict reconciliation. However, return does not necessarily entail reconciliation and, in practice, the return of refugees has contributed to new tensions between ethnic communities, as well as within them. In Croatia, laws introduced by the former Tudjman regime which discriminated against non-ethnic Croats have exacerbated tensions and frustrated the process of return in war-torn areas. Discrimination against non-Croats is discussed with reference to housing policy, the law on amnesty, and the workings of judicial institutions. In spite of recent reforms, there are many barriers to return, including the costs of reconstruction, non-compliance, and the enduring effects of previous laws that created a two-tier system.

France and Fragmentation in West Africa: 1945–1960

1967 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 317-333
Author(s):  
W. A. E. Skurnik
Keyword(s):  
World War Ii ◽  
West Africa ◽  
Colonial Period ◽  
Political Life ◽  
World War ◽  
French West Africa ◽  
Public Investments ◽  
Colonial Policy ◽  
Divide And Rule ◽  
Political Units

The term ‘balkanization’, as applied to colonial policy in Africa, frequently suggests a European ‘divide and rule’ policy, intended to fragment pre-existing African unity. An examination of the policy of France towards the former federation of French West Africa indicates that the term is inaccurate to describe French policy.The federation was created by the French for the French. It served to streamline French administration during the period of expansion, to help develop the component territories' economies, and to guarantee the security of French private investments. France conceived of the territories as the basic political units and hence modern political life was implanted there rather than in the federation. Post World War II French public investments flowed chiefly to the territories, common federal services were decentralized as territories acquired expertise and funds to run their own, and the quasi-federal Senate called the Grand Conseil was allowed to expire. Other aspects of French policy had unintended centrifugal effects, such as the metropolitan party structure and consequent dispersal of African representatives in Paris, and the influence of some French parties in Africa. Since 1956, France logically responded to African leaders' demands for more power and eventual autonomy in the territories, and left it to the Africans to decide whether or not to continue their federal relationship.By 1956, the federation had outlived its usefulness to France. It is improbable that the metropole could have ‘saved’ it, because political territorial roots were too strong, the Africans were not agreed, and relations between France and Africa had already become mainly bilateral with the territories directly. Consequently it appears that the federation, a purely French creation, was simply permitted to fade away once its functions were no longer relevant to French needs. It is true that France preferred eight small, powerless states to a strong federation when national independence approached, but ‘powerless’ and ‘strong’ in this context are but relative terms. The story of the federation of French West Africa suggests that such political structures can survive the colonial period only if they are anchored in fundamental African needs; this was not the case with that federation.

The Voice to Parliament proposal and ‘the people’ of the Constitution

2021 ◽  
pp. 1037969X2110108
Author(s):  
Elisa Arcioni
Keyword(s):  
Representative Government ◽  
High Court ◽  
The People ◽  
Political Roles ◽  
The Many ◽  
The Voice ◽  
The Way

The concept of ‘the people' in the Australian Constitution is at the heart of our system of representative government. The Voice proposal in the Uluru Statement from the Heart is consistent with the way in which ‘the people’ have been understood by the High Court – both their identity and their political roles under the Constitution. This consistency is one of the many reasons to support constitutional enshrinement of the Voice.

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