A former Malaysian prime minister was charged on Tuesday with sedition over campaign remarks he made about the nation’s previous king that critics said were insulting, Al Jazeera reported. Muhyiddin Yassin, who led Malaysia for 17 months from 2020 to 2021, pleaded not guilty to the...
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The government of Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim faces instability after a parliamentary speaker ruled this week that six opposition lawmakers can retain their seats, a ruling that critics say contradicts the constitution’s “anti-party hopping law” (APHL), the South China Morning Post reported. On Tuesday, Speaker...
Read full story →Malaysia unveiled plans this month for “orangutan diplomacy,” intending to gift the critically endangered apes to countries purchasing its palm oil, a proposal that drew criticism from conservation groups, CNN reported. Last week, Johari Abdul Ghani, Malaysia’s minister for plantations and commodities, announced the plan during...
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The top court of majority-Muslim Malaysia this month invalidated Islamic criminal laws enacted in a state run by the opposition for offenses including sodomy and incest, arguing that they overstepped the central government’s authority – a verdict decried by Islamists, the Associated Press reported. The court...
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McDonald’s Malaysia filed a $1.3 million lawsuit against a pro-Palestinian group promoting boycotts against companies allegedly supporting Israel, saying that movement has hurt its business, Reuters reported this week. The licensee of McDonald’s in Malaysia, Gerbang Alaf Restaurants Sdn Bhd, sued the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions...
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Malaysia has a unique form of constitutional monarchy. Every five years, nine sultans convene at the Conference of Rulers – each sultan is also the sovereign of a state in the Southeast Asian country – to elect a new king called the Yang di-Pertuan Agong,...
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Malaysia’s lower house of parliament on Monday voted to abolish the mandatory death penalty for certain offenses, including drug-related crimes, a move that bucks regional trends as the country’s neighbors see a rise in public executions, Al Jazeera reported. The new amendments would apply to 34...
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Malaysia’s king appointed anti-graft politician and opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim as prime minister Thursday, ending the political deadlock that had gripped the multi-ethnic country following weekend elections that produced the nation’s first hung parliament, CNBC reported. Anwar’s appointment came after a meeting between state-level rulers and...
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Malaysia’s king will pick the country’s next prime minister after Saturday’s general elections produced a hung parliament, Reuters reported Tuesday. The monarch, Sultan Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah, said the decision came after the two main contenders did not secure a majority in parliament. He added that...
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Will the biggest group of young voters in Malaysian history decide whether or not a nonagenarian will become the Southeast Asian country’s prime minister? That’s the lingering question in Malaysia these days following a recent announcement by the country’s 97-year-old former prime minister, Mahathir Mohamad, that he...
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Malaysia’s Court of Appeal on Friday overturned a landmark decision that would allow women to automatically pass their citizenship to children born overseas, a case that has sparked criticism over the government’s inability to ensure gender equality, Al Jazeera reported. The case centers on a constitutional...
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Malaysia will abolish the mandatory death penalty, a move that many human rights groups applauded as bucking a trend in a region where capital punishment is rising, CNN reported. The government said over the weekend that mandatory death sentences for serious crimes would be replaced by...
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