Articles

The lapsing of Myanmar’s direct military rule in 2011 after 26 years of tyranny heralded a new, positive political phase for the peoples of Myanmar. Through democratic consciousness transcending courage and extraordinary struggles, the peoples of Myanmar laboured to achieve a transition from military rule into a democratic nation state. Starting with the victories of the May 1990 elections which the NLD secured, Myanmar’s steady growth towards a functioning democracy amidst crackdowns on the...

Background Pusat KOMAS launched its 10th National Conference: ‘Racism Sparks Extremism?’ on 14th January 2021 from 1530 hrs to 1800 hrs (MYT time). The conference aimed to scrutinise the current status of social cohesion and national harmony of multiracial Malaysia; and engage with stakeholders on the topic of racism and examine if extremism stems from racism directly. It also focused on examining the effectiveness of government bodies set up towards eliminating racism; and endeavoured to...

The CSO Platform for Reform, a coalition of 75 Malaysian civil society organisations (CSOs), is alarmed by the Prime Minister, Muhyiddin Yassin’s announcement of the state of emergency which was proclaimed on 12 January 2021. This was announced in view of the escalated rise in COVID-19 cases and the pressure on the public health system, and is expected to be enforced until 1 August 2021, or earlier if the number of COVID-19 cases decrease. In his statement, the Prime Minister also issued a...

We, the undersigned civil society organisations, condemn the startling declaration made by Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, who has vowed to fight against secularism and liberalism through the Perikatan Nasional (PN) government and the alliance with UMNO and PAS. The Prime Minister, knowing the instability of the PN government which he leads, has mischievously opted for the age-old regressive tactic of trying to retain the support of...

With reference to the two racially insensitive course of actions navigated by Jeram Assemblymen, Shaid Rosli and Kedah Chief Minister, Muhammed Sanusi Md. Nor, Pusat KOMAS strongly condemns both parties for lacking sensitivity and worst of all – common sense in championing a harmonious inter-ethnic relationship. The former’s idea of closing down the selling of alcohol in the non-halal section designated for non-Muslim customers is unequivocally...

Pusat KOMAS applauds the message of unity heralded by the incumbent Sabah state government, led by Dato Seri Shafie Apdal in the campaign trail of the Warisan plus coalition and other like-minded politicians. This step is indeed a way forward from a conservative political campaigning that often times, manipulates race and religion to win the hearts and minds of the voters. Malaysian political arena has been performing under the imaginary clutches...

Selamat Hari Malaysia from Pusat KOMAS! This year will be the 57th year of Malaysia Day – the day that forged the 3 nations into one State of Malaysia. It is on this day we celebrate the formation of this beautiful and diverse country with distinct identities and separate autonomy functions in some aspects of governance. This is what we are proud of, our country, our Malaysia. While the design of our country, based on the Malaysian Agreement 1963,...

Pusat KOMAS is amused and shocked with the suggestions of the Ministry of National Unity to conduct a fresh round of consultations with the aim of consolidating opinions of the public for the purpose of strengthening national cohesion and social unity. Our reactions are motivated by the lack of seriousness of learning lessons from the past and repeating the same type of modus operandi, while lacking seriousness in instituting real changes. The...

The uncalled racist cum sexist slur made by Abdul Azeez Abdul Rahim, the Baling MP in the parliament sitting yesterday (13th July 2020), by telling the Batu Kawan MP, Kasthuri Patto to apply powder because of her dusky skin colour is totally unacceptable and must be reprimanded to prevent the repetition of any likewise incidences. The gruesome death suffered by George Floyd at the knees of racists is a mirage of a society that silently endorses and...

We, the undersigned civil society organisations (CSO), strongly condemn the continued use of repressive laws as tools of suppression by the new Malaysian government to silence dissent and opposing views. We note that since the change of government at the federal level in March this year, the State has been increasingly using Section 233 of the Communications and Multimedia Act (CMA) and laws such as the Sedition Act 1948, the Peaceful Assembly Act 2012 and Sections 504 and 505 of the Penal...