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Chapter 7 - The Construction of Malaysia’s Foreign Policy since 1957: An Emerging Middle Power’s Choice to Follow, Challenge or Compromise with the Global Order
- Edited by Sophie Lemière
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- Book:
- Illusions of Democracy
- Published by:
- Amsterdam University Press
- Published online:
- 20 November 2020
- Print publication:
- 27 August 2019, pp 117-136
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Summary
During the sixty years since its independence, Malaysian foreign policy has fluctuated from alignment to antagonism with the global order, towards a more established middle power's diplomacy. This chapter shows that only the combination of successive decision-makers’ idiosyncrasies, domestic constraints and the international context can shed light on the country's apparently wavering diplomatic postures. While foreign policy objectives and methods have fluctuated over time, the search for autonomy has been a recurrent theme in Malaysian foreign policy discourses. The Mahathir era (1981-2003) was a central moment of empowerment for Malaysia's foreign policy. The fourth Prime minister's vocal postures on the international scene have greatly contributed to Malaysia's emergence and recognition as a middle power. The rapid economic growth experienced by the country throughout this period facilitated the achievement of such status. Yet, the decreasing internal legitimacy of Malaysian ruling coalition Barisan Nasional has tempted governments to make greater use of diplomatic tools in the service of Malaysian internal policies since the 1990s. As such, the coherence of the Middle Way sought by Malaysia on the international scene has been hindered by contradictory foreign policy moves designed to serve domestic purposes.
Independent since 1957 and a founding member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) ten years later, Malaysia has tried constantly to assert itself beyond Southeast Asia. The steady increase in staff and number of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ permanent missions abroad demonstrates the commitment of successive governments to be heard globally. From only six embassies in the early 1960s, Malaysia had 111 diplomatic missions worldwide by 2017. In the same year 123 foreign permanent missions were installed in Kuala Lumpur, reflecting the mutual interest of the rest of the world in a country straddling the Malay Peninsula and the north of the island of Borneo.
The meandering course of Malaysian foreign policy, however, is enlightened neither by the political continuity at the government level, nor by the similar general objectives put forth by its national leaders since 1957 – such as national independence, territorial integrity, national survival, economic development, sovereignty. As in a musical score, the use of a tonal system does not predetermine the tune to be played.
Chapter 10 - Life in Limbo: Refugees in Malaysia
- Edited by Sophie Lemière
-
- Book:
- Illusions of Democracy
- Published by:
- Amsterdam University Press
- Published online:
- 20 November 2020
- Print publication:
- 27 August 2019, pp 183-200
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- Chapter
- Export citation
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Summary
Refugees have become a global issue for many governments and civil society around the world, but in Malaysia they remain in the margins. Officially, their legal status is no different from that of illegal or undocumented immigrants. In reality, refugees have been displaced and usually have nowhere to return to safely, whereas undocumented immigrants are able to return to their home countries safely. Yet, in a common posture with several of its ASEAN neighbours, Malaysia has been rejecting international refugee law since the Indochinese refugee crisis (Davies, 2008). More than that, the Malaysian government rarely speaks of refugees, especially those living inside its borders. Malaysia is not a signatory to either the 1951 Geneva Convention or the 1967 New York Protocol Relating to the Status of Refugees. Its national legislation, starting with the Immigration Act 1959/1963 (Act 155), does not mention refugees or asylum seekers. Accordingly, in the eyes of the Malaysian law there is no difference between refugees and undocumented immigrants. As such, Malaysia's legislation provides for the deportation of these populations.
In practice, however, Malaysia is a ‘country of first asylum’, i.e. it temporarily tolerates refugees before they are resettled to a third country – first and foremost the US and Australia. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Malaysia is responsible for the process, even though no formal agreement has been signed with the Malaysian government. The UNHCR conducts the lengthy, selective Refugee Determination Status procedure to register refugees in Malaysia, then is supposed to select those eligible for resettlement before sending them to countries offering resettlement places. However, even though Malaysia has one of the highest resettlement quotas in the world, the pace of resettlement is very slow. The UNHCR occupies a difficult and fraught position as a conflicted arbiter between resettling governments – as it is dependent on being offered resettlement places – and the Malaysian government, which merely tolerates the UNHCR in Malaysia and expects them to resettle refugees quickly. Thus the UNHCR's contested position is often played out at the cost of many refugees who remain trapped in a legal limbo marked by informality for a protracted period of time.