Portal:Malaysia/Intro

Map of Malaysia

Malaysia is a country in Southeast Asia. A federal constitutional monarchy, it consists of 13 states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two regions: Peninsular Malaysia and Borneo's East Malaysia. Peninsular Malaysia shares a land and maritime border with Thailand and maritime borders with Singapore, Vietnam, and Indonesia. East Malaysia shares land borders with Brunei and Indonesia, as well as a maritime border with the Philippines and Vietnam. Kuala Lumpur is the national capital, the country's largest city, and the seat of the legislative branch of the federal government. Putrajaya is the administrative centre, which represents the seat of both the executive branch (the Cabinet, federal ministries, and federal agencies) and the judicial branch of the federal government. With a population of over 34 million, the country is the world's 43rd-most populous country. Malaysia is tropical and is one of 17 megadiverse countries; it is home to numerous endemic species. Tanjung Piai in the Malaysian state of Johor is the southernmost point of continental Eurasia.

The country has its origins in the Malay kingdoms, which, from the 18th century on, became subject to the British Empire, along with the British Straits Settlements protectorate. During World War Two, British Malaya, along with other nearby British and American colonies, was occupied by the Empire of Japan. Following three years of occupation, Peninsular Malaysia was briefly unified as the Malayan Union in 1946 until 1948 when it was restructured as the Federation of Malaya. The country achieved independence on 31 August 1957. On 16 September 1963, independent Malaya united with the then British crown colonies of North Borneo, Sarawak, and Singapore to become Malaysia. In August 1965, Singapore was expelled from the federation and became a separate, independent country.

The country is multiethnic and multicultural, which has a significant effect on its politics. About half the population is ethnically Malay, with minorities of Chinese, Indians, and indigenous peoples. The official language is Malaysian Malay, a standard form of the Malay language. English remains an active second language. While recognising Islam as the official religion, the constitution grants freedom of religion to non-Muslims. The government is modelled on the Westminster parliamentary system, and the legal system is based on common law. The head of state is an elected monarch, chosen from among the nine state sultans every five years. The head of government is the prime minister.

The country's economy has traditionally been driven by its natural resources but is expanding into commerce, tourism, and medical tourism. The country has a newly industrialised market economy, which is relatively open and state-oriented. The country is a founding member of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), the East Asia Summit (EAS), and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), and a member of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM), the Commonwealth, and the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC). (Full article...)

The Sultan Abu Bakar Museum (Malay: Muzium Sultan Abu Bakar) is a museum in Pekan, Pahang, Malaysia. It showcases the native people relics found in the country. (Full article...)

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Anwar bin Ibrahim (Jawi: انور بن ابراهيم, IPA: Malay pronunciation: [anwar ɪbrahɪm] ; born 10 August 1947) is a Malaysian politician who has been the 10th and current Prime Minister of Malaysia since 2022. He served as the 12th and 16th Leader of the Opposition from 2008 to 2015, and again from 2020 to 2022. He has been the chairman of the Pakatan Harapan (PH) coalition since 2020, the second President of the People's Justice Party (PKR) since 2018 and the Member of Parliament (MP) for Tambun since November 2022. He also served as Deputy Prime Minister and in many other Cabinet positions in the Barisan Nasional (BN) administration under former Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad from 1982 to his removal in 1998.

A University of Malaya graduate, Anwar served as president of the National Union of Malaysian Muslim Students as well as Angkatan Belia Islam Malaysia (ABIM) or Muslim Youth Union of Malaysia before joining the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) then the dominant party in the long-ruling Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition. Anwar held several cabinet positions in successive governments in the 1980s and 1990s. He was the deputy prime minister as well as finance minister during the 1990s and was prominent in Malaysia's response to the 1997 Asian financial crisis. In 1998, he was removed from all posts by prime minister Mahathir Mohamad and went on to spearhead the Reformasi movement against the government. Anwar was jailed in April 1999 on charges of corruption and sodomy until his release in 2004 after his conviction was overturned. He made a comeback as leader of the opposition from 2008 to 2015. He merged opposition parties into the Pakatan Rakyat (PR) coalition, which unsuccessfully contested in the 2008 and 2013 general elections. He disputed the results of the 2013 elections and led a protest in response. (Full article...)

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Mount Kinabalu view from Kundasang
Mount Kinabalu view from Kundasang

A view of Mount Kinabalu from Kundasang

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The following are images from various Malaysia-related articles on Wikipedia.

Wiki Loves Malaysia

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Parliament of Malaysia
Parliament of Malaysia
  • ... that Article 10 of the Constitution of Malaysia guarantees citizens certain rights on condition that these rights are not restricted by the government?


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Zahir Mosque Square
Zahir Mosque Square
Credit: Chongkian (13 April 2019)
Alor Setar is a city and the capital of Kedah. It is a major transportation hub in northern Peninsular Malaysia. Two of Malaysia's Prime Ministers were born here.


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