No Topic
1 Constitution of Malaysia
2 The Drafting History of The Constitution of Malaysia
3 Articles in Constitutions of Malaysia
- Article 150
- Article 152
- Article 153
4 Islamic Religions
5 Who is Malay?
6 Conclusion –lesson from this topic
7 Appendix
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8-10
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CONSTITUTION OF MALAYSIA
The Constitution is a document that contains all of the order of rules and regulations constitute an important policy for removing a country's governance and administration. Determining the constitution of the Kingdom, a form of government and the rights of the people.
The Constitution also contains principles that form the national institutions like the executive, legislative and judicial with the powers and role of each institution within the framework of governance and administration of the nation.
Constitutions are designed to be guidelines on the pattern of political and administrative system of governance of a country, as well as provide protection to the people. The Constitution also states that the responsibility and duty of every citizen against the government and the nation.
Constitution of Malaysia, known as the Federal Constitution contains 183 items, is the supreme law in Malaysia. It is a written legal document that has been developed based on the two previous documents, namely the Federation of Malaya
Agreement 1948 and the 1957 Independence Constitution.
Constitution of Malaysia also consists of 15 sections and 13 tables. Malaysian constitution touch on the jurisdiction of the executive, legislative, judiciary, the
Islamic religion, nationality, national language, the special position of Malays and natives in Sabah and Sarawak and the like.
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THE DRAFTING HISTORY OF THE CONSTITUTION OF MALAYSIA
Constitution of Malaysia now is affected by a series of Malaysian history.
History of resistance against colonialism and the emergence of Malay nationalists realize them about the efforts for their independence from Western colonialism.
After that, the struggle for independence after the Second World War and the introduction of the Constitution of the Malayan Union and Federation of Malaya by the British in Malaya.
In addition, the preparation for self-government through Member System and election in Malaya also bring it to the formation of Malaysian Constitution.
The establishment of the “Parti Perikatan” where from this “Parti”, the closer cooperation formed between the Malays and the non-Malays to fulfill the condition that was set by the British that is “independence can only be given if the people of this country can be united and work together”.
The important part that brings us to the formation of this constitution is when the independence delegation went to London in the constitutional conference that was held from 18 January to 6 February 1956 attended by a delegation from the
Federation of Malaya, consisting of four representatives of the Rulers, the Chief
Minister of the Federation (Tunku Abdul Rahman) and three other ministers and also by the British High Commissioner in Malaya and his advisers.
The constitution of Malaya was drafted based on the advice of the Reid
Commission, which conducted a study in 1956. The constitution came into force on 27 August 1957. Formal independence was only achieved on 31 August 1957 however.
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The Constitution of Malaya (with significant amendments) was used as the basis for the Constitution of Malaysia when Malaya, Sabah, Sarawak, and Singapore merged to form Malaysia in 1963.
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ARTICLES IN CONSTITUTION OF MALAYSIA
Article 150
This article permits the Yang di-Pertuan Agong to issue a Proclamation of
Emergency and to govern by issuing ordinances that are not subject to judicial review if the Yang di-Pertuan Agong is satisfied that a grave emergency exists whereby the security, or the economic life, or public order in the Federation or any part thereof is threatened.
Article 152
Article 152 states that the national language is the Malay language. However, the
Constitution guarantees the freedom of learning and using of other languages, except on official purposes. Official purposes here means any purpose of the
Government, whether Federal or State, and includes any purpose of a public authority. To this effect, all court proceedings and parliamentary documents and meetings are conducted in Malay.
[ citation needed ]
The official script for the Malay language is determined by Parliament. The current orthography is the Latin alphabet or Rumi ; however, use of Jawi is not prohibited.
Article 153
Main article: Article 153 of the Constitution of Malaysia
Article 153 grants the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, or King of Malaysia, responsibility for safeguarding the special position of the Malay and other indigenous peoples of Malaysia, collectively referred to as Bumiputra and the legitimate interests of all the other communities. The article specifies how the King may
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protect the interest of these groups by establishing quotas for entry into the civil service, public scholarships and public education.
Originally there was no reference made to other indigenous peoples of Malaysia
(then Malaya) such as the Orang Asli, but with the union of Malaya with Singapore, Sabah and Sarawak in 1963, the Constitution was amended so as to provide similar privileges for the indigenous peoples of East
Malaysia (Sabah and Sarawak), grouping them with the Malays as Bumiputra.
The scope of Article 153 is limited by Article 136, which requires that civil servants be treated impartially regardless of race. Clause 5 of article 153 specifically reaffirms article 136 of the constitution which states: All persons of whatever race in the same grade in the service of the Federation shall, subject to the terms and conditions of their employment, be treated impartially.
Clause 9 of article 153 states Nothing in this Article shall empower Parliament to restrict business or trade solely for the purpose of reservations for Malays.
The Reid Commission suggested that these provisions would be temporary in nature and be revisited in 15 years, and that a report should be presented to the appropriate legislature (currently theParliament of Malaysia) and that the "legislature should then determine either to retain or to reduce any quota or to discontinue it entirely."
Under Article 153, and due to the 13th May 1969 riots, the New Economic
Policy was introduced. The NEP aimed to eradicate poverty irrespective of race by expanding the economic pie so that the Chinese share of the economy would not be reduced in absolute terms but only relatively. The aim was for the Malays to have a
30% equity share of the economy, as opposed to the 4% they held in 1970.
Foreigners and Chinese held much of the rest.
[7]
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The NEP appeared to be derived from Article 153 and could be viewed as being in line with its wording. Although Article 153 would have been up for review in
1972, fifteen years after Malaysia's independence in 1957, due to the May 13
Incident it remained unreview. A new expiration date of 1991 for the NEP was set, twenty years after its implementation.
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However, the NEP was said to have failed to have met its targets and was continued under a new policy called the National Development Policy.
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ISLAM RELIGION
Islam is the official religion of Malaysia, and the Government actively promotes the spread of Islam in the country and its friendship with other Muslim countries. Government has the liberty, power and privilege to form/ organize/ help formation of Islamic Institution and conduct teaching of Islam and to fund for it.
The Census in 2000 show approximately 60.4 percent of the total population are Muslims in Malaysia. All ethnic Malays are Muslim (100%) as defined by Article 160 of the Constitution of Malaysia, there are also substantial numbers of Indian Muslims and a few numbers of ethnic Chinese converts. As required by Malaysian law and defined in the Constitution of Malaysia, a Malay would surrender his ethnic status if he were not Muslim. However the reverse is not legally true; one does not legally become a Bumiputra by converting to Islam.
Malaysia is one of the most religious countries in the Muslim world.
Islam is central to and dominant in Malay culture. A significant number of words in the Malay vocabulary can trace their origins to Arabic which is the chosen language of Islam. This is, however, not exclusive and words from other cultures such as Portuguese, Chinese, Dutch, Sanskrit,Tamil, English, and French can also be found in the Malay language. Islam is so ingrained in
Malay life that Islamic rituals are practiced as Malay culture. Muslim and Malays are interchangeable in many daily contexts. Hari Raya Aidilfitri (Eid ul-Fitr) is an important festival celebrated by Malaysian Muslims. Muslim women generally wear the tudung (hijab or headscarf) over their heads. However, Malay women not wearing any head gear are not reprimanded or penalized. Prominent Malaysian female examples are Datuk Seri Rafidah Aziz, International Trade and Industry
Minister and Tun Dr Siti Hasmah Mohd Ali, wife of former Malaysian Prime
Minister Tun Dr Mahathir bin Mohammad. However, with the influx of Arabic
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travelers, foreign Muslim women (Arabs) wearing hijab that leave only their eyes exposed are often spotted in tourist attractions, not the least at the shopping malls.
At certain Malaysian institutions such as the International Islamic University, wearing of the tudung is mandatory; however for non-Muslim students this usually amounts to a loosely worn piece of cloth draped over the back of the head.
The tudung, or the hijab, is a symbol of a Muslim woman. This is such because according to the Islamic religion it represents the modesty of a woman's way, as described by the religion, according to the verses from the Holy Quran itself:
"O Prophet! Tell thy wives and thy daughters and the women of the believers to draw their cloaks close round them (when they go abroad). That will be better, so that they may be recognized and not annoyed. Allah is ever Forgiving, Merciful."
Al-Ahzab:59
"And tell the believing women to reduce [some] of their vision and guard their private parts and not expose their adornment except that which [necessarily] appears thereof and to wrap [a portion of] their head covers over their chests and not expose their adornment except to their husbands, their fathers, their husbands' fathers, their sons, their husbands' sons, their brothers, their brothers' sons, their sisters' sons, their women, that which their right hands possess, or those male attendants having no physical desire, or children who are not yet aware of the private aspects of women. And let them not stamp their feet to make known what they conceal of their adornment. And turn to Allah in repentance, all of you, O believers, that you might succeed." An-Nur:31
Some regard the tudung to be an indication of Arabic influence in Malay Muslim culture, and point to incidents such as the banning of the traditional Malay wayang
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kulit in the state of Kelantan (which was ruled by the Islamist PAS) to be "un-
Islamic".
Also, principles of modesty apply not only to accepted dress codes but public behavior in general. Similar to the expectations in most Muslim nations, males and females are dicouraged from meeting in social situations without a chaperone unless the meeting conforms to proper Islamic pre-marital arrangements that culminate in marriage. This injunction not only precludes "small talk" but also precludes ostentatious behavior such as PDA(Public Displayes of Affection) and egregious flirtation. In conservative states where PAS has more influence, such as
Kelantan, different genders are at least theoretically segregated in public places like the cinema and supermarket.
Malaysia's top Islamic body, the National Fatwa Council has ruled against
Muslims practicing yoga, saying it had elements of other religions that could corrupt Muslims. The same body has ruled against ghosts and other supernatural beings.
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WHO IS MALAY?
In Constitution of Malaysia, the characteristics of Malay are typically speak in Malay, embrace Islam and adpot Malay customs while Bumiputera in Sarawak are consists of any one of the “Asli” race, that is Bukitan, Bidayuh, Dusun, Dayak
Laut, Dayak Darat, Kadayan, Kalabit, Kayan, Kenyah, Kajang, Lugat, Lisum,
Melayu, Melanau, Murut, Penan, Sian, Tagal, Tabun and Ukit or mixed descent from above and those who born in Sabah and someone from “Kaum Asli Sabah” are known as Bumiputera in Sabah.
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CONCLUSION
Lesson from this topic
From this chapter, we have learnt some lessons. One of the lesson is spirit of tolerance. Each ethnic shows their spirit during the progress of Constitution of
Malaysia. So that the progress was running smoothly. Besides, everyone ready to share power to help each other and solve the current problems. Other than that, some of them ready to sacrifice their time and money to help the poverty people.
Therefore, the understanding and unity among various ethnic is very important. A group of society with high understanding among various ethnic will contribute high unity in a country and vice versa.
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APPENDIX
Anak Bangsa Orang Melayu dan Bangsa
Malaysia
Wasiat Raja-raja Melayu
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Perlembagaan
Persekutuan
Malaysia
Characteristic of
Islamic Religion
Masjid
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