Malaysia vote exposes race issue

By Robin Brant
BBC News, Kuala Lumpur

Malaysians go to the polls on Saturday in a general election which has highlighted the country's fragile ethnic mix.

Opposition parties wield very little power in Malaysia's system

Tucked away in the corner of a housing estate in the Damansara suburb of Kuala Lumpur, a group of men are doing their bit for the campaign.

They are Malaysian Indians - who make up about 8% of the population.

For decades these men voted for the National Front - the coalition which will win this election, as it has done in all previous general elections.

But this time they are holding posters of the opposition PKR.

About 10,000 Malaysian Indians took to the streets last November to protest over what they see as years of government policies which have denied them fair access to government jobs, education, and new housing. Riot police used tear gas to break up the illegal march.

On Saturday, many Malaysian Indians are expected to express their anger at the ballot box. But it is unlikely to have much impact on the result.

Little 'shared space'

Politics, religion and race are inseparable in this country, where Malay Muslims are the majority. The party which most of them support, the United Malay National Organisation, dominates.

In the fight for their votes, the politicians are trying to prove Islamic credentials.

Yet Malaysia is often cited as a country where people of different races and religions live alongside each other, enjoying equality and peace.

Ethnic Indians were outraged at the treatment of protesters last year

A radio advert for the National Front has people talking about tolerance for the country's three main racial groups - Malay, Chinese and Indian.

A woman in the ad says: "People have a lot of love for each other."

Many of the 35% of the population who are non-Malay are sceptical about such claims.

There are even some linked to the coalition who reject it.

Khoo Kay Peng is in charge of the think-tank Sedar, which was set up by Gerakan - one of the parties in the coalition.

"It is definitely very fragile," he says.

"If you look at the various social areas that the people share, you will see that there is just very narrow space.

"I don't think we have one national education system that people can share."

Lacking spark?

Malaysia's Deputy Prime Minister Najib Razak told the BBC race relations were "better than they had ever been before".

Aside from his immediate future, Mr Razak has a vested interest in limiting any damage to the National Front coalition at this election.

The main parties have been competing to show Islamic values

He is in charge of the campaign. It was what some might say an astute appointment by his boss, Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi, who is currently facing much criticism.

Just a year into his premiership, in 2004, Mr Badawi won a stunning mandate - the coalition taking 91% of the seats in parliament.

Much of the explanation for the euphoric wave of support was put down to his appeal as a new face after 23 years of rule by his predecessor, Mahathir Mohamad.

This time it is different. In spite of high-profile projects to bring development to huge areas of the country, the prime minister is seen by some as a leader lacking spark and decisiveness.

There is a perception that promises he made in 2004 to tackle corruption have come to nothing.

Like other areas of Asia the cost of living is on the up, and many people in Malaysia's rural areas see that alone as reason to be angry at the government.

The same side will win the election on Saturday - as it has done on 11 previous occasions - but support will almost certainly be down.

Some ethnic Chinese and Indian voters are expected to go to the opposition parties. The Islamic party PAS is fighting hard to tempt Malays.

The benchmark for the National Front will be the size of its majority - two-thirds is the crucial number, the level past which it can change the constitution.

Malaysia is enjoying rapid growth and, for some, huge wealth - much of it from oil.

Stability is the key to ensuring that continues.

More than anything else, keeping a lid on ethnic tension is vital.