60-455: Government (48) Opposition (8) [REDACTED] [REDACTED] Race and politics The Dewan Negara (English: Senate , lit. 'State Council'; Jawi : ديوان نڬارا ) is the upper house of the Parliament of Malaysia , consisting of 70 senators of whom 26 are elected by the state legislative assemblies , with two senators for each state, while
120-458: A court of law is not forced labour. In the area of criminal laws and procedure, this Article provides the following protections: Article 8 by clause (1) provides that all persons are equal before the law and entitled to its equal protection. Clause 2 states: "Except as expressly authorised by this Constitution, there shall be no discrimination against citizens on the ground only of religion, race, descent, gender or place of birth in any law or in
180-538: A democracy discussion of any issue and in Parliament of all places should be suppressed. Surely it might be said that it is better that grievances and problems about language, etc. should be openly debated, rather than be swept under the carpet and allowed to fester. But Malaysians who remember what happened during 13 May 1969, and subsequent days are sadly aware that racial feelings are only too easily stirred up by constant harping on sensitive issues like language and it
240-492: A full-time profit-making position in the public service are also ineligible. There is no requirement to belong to a political party. Parliament is permitted to increase the number of senators to three per state, reduce the number of appointed senators, or abolish the post of appointed senator altogether. The process of appointment is set out by Article 45 of the Constitution . The Constitution provides for direct election of
300-536: A licence. However the relevant sections of the Police Act dealing with such gatherings have been repealed by the Police (Amendment) Act 2012 , which came into operation on 23 April 2012. The Peaceful Assembly Act 2012, which came into operation on the same day, replaced the Police Act as the principal legislation dealing with public gatherings. Peaceful Assembly Act 2012 The Peaceful Assembly Act gives citizens
360-466: A public authority and whether within or outside Malaysia). Note however that notwithstanding this Article, the Government is required, under Article 153, to implement affirmative action programs such as the reservation of places in tertiary educational institutions for the benefit of Malays and natives of Sabah and Sarawak. In respect of religion, Article 12 provides that (i) every religious group has
420-513: Is a "street protest", it will be banned. If the police say that an assembly being organised by Group B to gather at one place and move to another is a "procession", it will not be banned and the police will allow Group B to proceed. FAQs on Peaceful Assembly Bill 2011. Civil society and The Malaysian Bar "opposes the Peaceful Assembly Bill 2011 ("PA 2011") on the grounds that it imposes unreasonable and disproportionate fetters on
480-666: Is a key provision of Part II of the Constitution, and has been regarded as "of paramount importance" by the judicial community in Malaysia. However, it has been argued that the rights of Part II, in particular Article 10, "have been so heavily qualified by other parts of the Constitution, for example, Part XI in relation to special and emergency powers, and the permanent state of emergency that has existed since 1969, that much of [the Constitution's] high principles are lost." Article 10 (4) states that Parliament may pass law prohibiting
540-803: Is a list of the schedules to the Constitution. *NOTE—This Article was repealed by Act A354, section 46, in force from 27-08-1976—see section 46 of Act A354. Fundamental liberties in Malaysia are set out in Articles 5 to 13 of the Constitution, under the following headings: liberty of the person, prohibition of slavery and forced labour , protection against retrospective criminal laws and repeated trials , equality, prohibition of banishment and freedom of movement , freedom of speech , assembly and association , freedom of religion , rights in respect of education and rights to property . Some of these liberties and rights are subject to limitations and exceptions and some are available to citizens only (for example,
600-641: Is expelled from such political party. The Supreme Court held that the Kelantan anti party-hopping provision was void because the "direct and inevitable consequence" of the provision is to restrict the right of members of the assembly from exercising their right to freedom of association. Furthermore, the Malaysian Federal Constitution sets out a complete list of the grounds on which a member of a State Legislative Assembly can be disqualified (e.g. being of unsound mind) and disqualification on
660-575: Is presented to him again, the bill automatically becomes law. It does not take effect, however, until it is published in the Government Gazette. Although members of Parliament typically have legal immunity when it comes to freedom of discussion, a gag rule forbids discussion about certain articles of the Constitution such as the status of Bahasa Malaysia as the national language and Bumiputra privileges in Article 153 . As of June 2023,
SECTION 10
#1732765560030720-538: Is similar to the English common law definition of sedition, with modifications to suit local circumstances. Conviction may result in a sentence of a fine up to RM 5,000, three years in jail, or both. The Sedition Act in particular has been widely commented upon by jurists for the bounds it places on freedom of speech. Justice Raja Azlan Shah (later the Yang di-Pertuan Agong) once said: The right to free speech ceases at
780-499: Is to minimise racial explosions that the amendments were made [to the Sedition Act]. Article 10(c)(1) guarantees the freedom of association subject only to restrictions imposed through any federal law on the grounds of national security, public order or morality or through any law relating to labour or education (Article 10(2)(c) and (3)). In relation to the freedom of incumbent elected legislators to change their political parties,
840-544: Is where the law passed by Parliament relates to land law (such as the registration of land titles and compulsory acquisition of land) and local government (Article 76). States have legislative power over Islamic matters listed in item 1 of the State List which amongst other things includes the power to: Article 3 declares that Islam is the religion of the Federation but it then goes on to say that this does not affect
900-630: The Democratic Action Party (DAP) Anthony Loke Siew Fook and among others. This marked the first time Anwar had revisited the headquarters of UMNO in over 20 years after his sacking from UMNO and removal from government positions in September 1998 that sparked the Reformasi movement and the first time a DAP leader had visited the headquarters of UMNO. Anwar subsequently announced the formation of three secretariat committees namely
960-886: The Dewan Negara rejects a bill, it can only delay the bill's passage by a maximum of a year before it is sent to the King, a restriction similar to that placed on the House of Lords in the United Kingdom. Like the Dewan Rakyat , the Dewan Negara meets at the Malaysian Houses of Parliament in Kuala Lumpur . Originally, the Dewan Negara was meant to act as a check on the Dewan Rakyat and represent
1020-750: The Parliament , which consists of the House of Representatives ( Dewan Rakyat ) and the Senate ( Dewan Negara ); the executive branch led by the Prime Minister and his Cabinet Ministers and the judicial branch headed by the Federal Court . Constitutional Conference: A constitutional conference was held in London from 18 January to 6 February 1956 attended by a delegation from the Federation of Malaya , consisting of four representatives of
1080-614: The Reid Commission , consisting of constitutional experts from fellow Commonwealth countries and headed by Lord (William) Reid, a distinguished Lord-of-Appeal-in-Ordinary , was appointed to make recommendations for a suitable constitution. The report of the commission was completed on 11 February 1957. The report was then examined by a working party appointed by the British Government, the Conference of Rulers and
1140-458: The 26 senators from the states, but this clause does not take effect until Parliament passes a law bringing it into effect. As of 2024, the power given to the Parliament under Clause (4) of Article 45 was never invoked and the senators remain indirectly elected. Senators can be appointed to ministerial posts in the Cabinet by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong on the advice of the prime minister. However,
1200-462: The Act are punishable by imprisonment for a term not exceeding six months; but for more serious offences the maximum prison sentence is higher (e.g. 10 years for using offensive weapons or explosives) and sentences may include whipping. Another law which previously curtailed the freedoms of Article 10 is the Police Act 1967, which criminalised the gathering of three or more people in a public place without
1260-556: The Constitution of the Federation of Malaya and was amended in 1963 to form the Constitution of Malaysia, is the supreme law of Malaysia and contains a total of 183 articles. It is a written legal document influenced by two previous documents, the Federation of Malaya Agreement 1948 and the Independence Constitution of 1957. The Federation was initially called the Federation of Malaya (Malay: Persekutuan Tanah Melayu ) and it adopted its present name, Malaysia, when
SECTION 20
#17327655600301320-426: The Dewan Negara has 63 senators, most of them are appointed by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong. Anwar Ibrahim cabinet The Anwar Ibrahim cabinet is the current federal cabinet of Malaysia , formed on 3 December 2022, nine days after Anwar Ibrahim took office as the 10th Prime Minister of Malaysia . The composition of the cabinet was announced by Anwar a day earlier on 2 December 2022, consisting of most of
1380-461: The Dewan Negara never supplies the prime minister, as the prime minister must be a member of the Dewan Rakyat. The Dewan Negara is not affected by the elections for the Dewan Rakyat , and senators continue to hold office despite the Dewan Rakyat's dissolution for an election. The Dewan Negara elects a president to preside over sittings of the Dewan Negara, ensure observance of the rules of
1440-404: The Dewan Rakyat. Then it is presented to the Dewan Negara in three readings. At the first, the legislation's proposer presents it to the assembly. At the second, the bill is debated. At the third, a vote is taken whether to pass or reject the bill. The Dewan Negara may not formally reject bills; it is only allowed to delay their passage by one month, or up to a year under certain circumstances. After
1500-693: The Federal Constitution.) These provide for: The Federal Parliament has the power to amend state constitutions if they do not contain the essential provisions or have provisions that are inconsistent with them. (Art. 71(4)) Parliament has the exclusive power to make laws over matters falling under the Federal List (such as citizenship, defence, internal security, civil and criminal law, finance, trade, commerce and industry, education, labour, and tourism) whereas each State, through its Legislative Assembly, has legislative power over matters under
1560-699: The Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur , and one respectively for the Federal Territories of Labuan and Putrajaya on the advice of the prime minister . Another 40 senators, regardless of their states, are appointed by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, also on the prime minister's advice. Federally appointed senators must have "rendered distinguished public service or have achieved distinction in the professions, commerce, industry, agriculture, cultural activities or social service or are representative of racial minorities or are capable of representing
1620-405: The Government of the Federation of Malaya and the Federal Constitution was enacted on the basis of its recommendations. Constitution: The Constitution came into force on 27 August 1957 but formal independence was only achieved on 31 August. This constitution was amended in 1963 to admit Sabah, Sarawak and Singapore as additional member states of the Federation and to make the agreed changes to
1680-766: 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. Reid Commission: The conference proposed the appointment of a commission to devise a constitution for a fully self-governing and independent Federation of Malaya . This proposal was accepted by Queen Elizabeth II and the Malay Rulers . Accordingly, pursuant to such agreement,
1740-530: The State List (List IIA) and the Concurrent List (List IIIA) that apply only to Sabah and Sarawak. These give the two states legislative powers over matters such as native law and customs, ports and harbours (other than those declared to be federal), hydro electricity and personal law relating to marriage, divorce, family law, gifts and intestacy. Residual Power of States: The States have the residual power to make laws on any matter not listed in any of
1800-505: The State List (such as land, local government, Syariah law and Syariah courts, State holidays and State public works). Parliament and State legislatures share the power to make laws over matters under the Concurrent List (such as water supplies and housing) but Article 75 provides that in the event of conflict, Federal law will prevail over State law. These lists are set out in Schedule 9 of the Constitution, where: There are supplements to
1860-697: The Supreme Court of Malaysia in the Kelantan State Legislative Assembly v Nordin Salleh held that an "anti party-hopping" provision in the Kelantan State Constitution violates the right to freedom of association. That provision stipulated that a member of the Kelantan legislative assembly who is a member of any political party shall cease to be a member of the legislative assembly if he or she resigns or
Dewan Negara - Misplaced Pages Continue
1920-722: The Third Schedule of the Act). However, street protests, which consist of "mass" marches or rallies, are not permitted (See section 4(1)(c) of the Act). The following are comments from the Malaysian Bar Council on the Peaceful Assembly Act: PA2011 appears to allow the police to decide what is a "street protest" and what is a "procession". If the police say that an assembly being organised by Group A to gather at one place and move to another
1980-489: The appointment to any office or employment under a public authority or in the administration of any law relating to the acquisition, holding or disposition of property or the establishing or carrying on of any trade, business, profession, vocation or employment". The exceptions expressly allowed under the Constitution includes the affirmative actions taken to protect the special position for the Malays of Peninsular Malaysia and
2040-410: The bill has passed or the requisite period is up, the bill is presented to the Yang di-Pertuan Agong for royal assent. If the Yang di-Pertuan Agong objects or 30 days pass without royal assent, the bill is sent back to Parliament with a list of suggested amendments. The bill must then be reapproved by both houses of Parliament. If the Yang di-Pertuan Agong still does not grant royal assent 30 days after it
2100-473: The compulsory acquisition or use of property without adequate compensation. The Federation is required to guarantee the sovereignty of the Malay Sultans in their respective States. Each State, irrespective of whether it has a Sultan as its Ruler, has its own State constitution but for uniformity, all State constitutions must have a standard set of essential provisions (See Art. 71 and the 8th Schedule of
2160-579: The constitution that were set out in the Malaysia Agreement , which included changing the name of the Federation to "Malaysia". Thus, legally speaking, the establishment of Malaysia did not create a new nation as such but was simply the addition of new member states to the Federation created by the 1957 constitution, with a change of name. The Constitution, in its current form (1 November 2010), consists of 15 Parts containing 230 articles and 13 schedules (including 57 amendments). The following
2220-407: The elections committee, the strategy committee and the government and political agenda monitoring committee. The leaders of the secretariat are: The members of the secretariat are: Constitution of Malaysia [REDACTED] [REDACTED] Race and politics The Federal Constitution of Malaysia ( Malay : Perlembagaan Persekutuan Malaysia ), which came into force in 1957 as
2280-544: The freedom of assembly that is guaranteed under the Federal Constitution." Open letter from Lim Chee Wee, President of Malaysian Bar The Printing Presses and Publications Act 1984 gives the Home Affairs Minister the discretion to grant, suspend and revoke newspaper publishing permits. Up until July 2012, the Minister could exercise "absolute discretion" on such matters but this absolute discretionary power
2340-500: The freedom of speech, assembly and association). Article 5 enshrines a number of basic fundamental human rights: Article 6 provides that no person may be held in slavery. All forms of forced labour are prohibited, but federal law, such as the National Service Act 1952, may provide for compulsory service for national purposes. It is expressly provided that work incidental to serving a sentence of imprisonment imposed by
2400-563: The ground of resigning from one's political party is not one of them. Article 11 provides that every person has the right to profess and practice his own religion. Every person has the right to propagate his religion, but state law and, in respect of the Federal Territories, federal law may control or restrict the propagation of any religious doctrine or belief among Muslims. There is, however, freedom to carry on missionary work among non-Muslims. In respect to education, Article 12 provides that there shall be no discrimination against any citizen on
2460-417: The grounds of religion, race, descent or place of birth (i) in the administration of any educational institution maintained by a public authority, and, in particular, the admission of pupils or students or the payment of fees and (ii) in providing out of the funds of a public authority financial aid for the maintenance or education of pupils or students in any educational institution (whether or not maintained by
Dewan Negara - Misplaced Pages Continue
2520-557: The house, and interpret the Standing Orders of the house should they be disputed. Should the president be absent, his deputy, the vice president, takes his place. The Dewan Negara may initiate legislation, except for financial and fiscal matters – a regulation directly from the Westminster system . It may also amend legislation, provided it does not deal with financial matters. Any proposed legislation must first be passed by
2580-573: The inaugural meeting of the secretariat would pay attention to finding common ground between the manifestos of its different components and strengthening the government. The inaugural secretariat meeting was held at the headquarters of UMNO and attended by Prime Minister , Chairman of the Pakatan Harapan (PH) and President of the People's Justice Party (PKR) Anwar Ibrahim , Minister of Transport , Deputy President of PH and Secretary-General of
2640-411: The indigenous people of Sabah and Sarawak under Article 153 . This Article protects Malaysian citizens against being banished from the country. It further provides that every citizen has the right to move freely throughout the Federation but Parliament is allowed to impose restrictions on the movement of citizens from Peninsular Malaysia to Sabah and Sarawak. Article 10(1) grants freedom of speech,
2700-508: The interests of aborigines ( Orang Asli )". The intent of the original Constitution of Malaysia , which provided for only 16 senators to be appointed by the King (thus placing them in the minority) was to give the states some say over federal policy. However, subsequent amendments have, according to Lord President of the Federal Court Tun Mohamed Suffian Mohamed Hashim , acted "contrary to
2760-518: The interests of the various states, based on the role played by its counterpart in the United States . However, the original constitution, which provided for a majority of state-elected senators, has since been modified to make the vast majority of senators instead appointed by the Agong, thus theoretically providing an avenue for a relatively non-partisan reconsideration of bills, more similar to
2820-680: The ministers of Malaysia. The following are the deputy ministers. From the appointment of Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim to 12 December 2023: Since 12 December 2023: The Unity Government formed a secretariat to coordinate the activities of its component coalitions and parties in February 2023. Deputy Prime Minister , Chairman of the Barisan Nasional (BN) and President of the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) Ahmad Zahid Hamidi added that
2880-640: The other 44 are appointed by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong (King of Malaysia), including four who are appointed to represent the federal territories . The Dewan Negara usually reviews legislation that has been passed by the lower house, the Dewan Rakyat . All bills must usually be passed by both the Dewan Rakyat and the Dewan Negara (the Senate), before they are sent to the Agong for royal assent . However, if
2940-509: The point where it comes within the mischief of the Sedition Act. Suffian LP in the case of PP v Mark Koding [1983] 1 MLJ 111 said, in relation to the amendments to Sedition Act in 1970, after 13 May 1969 riots, which added citizenship, language, special position of bumiputras and sovereignty of rulers to the list of seditious matters: Malaysians with short memories and people living in mature and homogeneous democracies may wonder why in
3000-403: The political coalitions and parties represented in the 15th Parliament . It was the 23rd cabinet of Malaysia formed since independence . Although Perikatan Nasional (PN) was also invited to join the government, it decided to decline the invitation and instead formed the opposition. The government is often referred to as " unity government " ( Malay : Kerajaan Perpaduan ). The following are
3060-563: The questioning of any matter, right, status, position, privilege, sovereignty or prerogative established or protected by the provisions of Part III, Article 152, 153 or 181 of the Constitution. Several acts of law regulate the freedoms granted by Article 10, such as the Official Secrets Act , which makes it a crime to disseminate information classified as an official secret. Under the Public Order (Preservation) Act 1958,
SECTION 50
#17327655600303120-457: The relevant Minister may temporarily declare any area where public order is seriously disturbed or seriously threatened to be a "proclaimed area" for a period of up to one month. The Police has extensive powers under the Act to maintain public order in proclaimed areas. These include the power to close roads, erect barriers, impose curfews, and to prohibit or regulate processions, meetings or assemblies of five persons or more. General offences under
3180-505: The right to assemble peaceably and the right to form associations to every Malaysian citizen but such freedom and rights are not absolute: the Constitution itself, by Article 10 (2), (3) and (4), expressly permits Parliament by law to impose restrictions in the interest of the security of the Federation, friendly relations with other countries, public order, morality, to protect the privileges of Parliament, to provide against contempt of court, defamation, or incitement to any offence. Article 10
3240-486: The right to establish and maintain institutions for the education of children in its own religion, and (ii) no person shall be required to receive instruction in or take part in any ceremony or act of worship of a religion other than his own and that for this purpose the religion of a person under the age of eighteen years shall be decided by his parent or guardian. Article 13 provides that no person may be deprived of property save in accordance with law. No law may provide for
3300-597: The right to organise and participate in peaceful assemblies subject to the restrictions under the Act. Under the law, citizens are allowed to hold assemblies, which includes processions (see the definition of "assembly" and "place of assembly" in section 3 of the Act), upon giving 10 days notice to the police (section 9(1) of the Act). However, no notification is required for certain types of assemblies, such as wedding receptions, funeral processions, open houses during festivals, family gatherings, religious assemblies and assemblies at designated places of assembly (see section 9(2) and
3360-618: The role of the British House of Lords . Members of the Dewan Negara are referred to as "Senators" in English or " Ahli Dewan Negara " ( lit. ' member of the Dewan Negara ' ) in Malay and are accorded the honorific style of Yang Berhormat Senator . The term of office is three years and senators may only be re-appointed once, consecutively or non-consecutively. Each of the 13 state legislative assemblies chooses two senators. The Yang di-Pertuan Agong appoints two senators for
3420-456: The spirit of the original constitution which established the Dewan Negara specially as a body to protect in the federal Parliament, state interests against federal encroachments". To qualify, a candidate must be a Malaysian citizen at least 30 years old, residing in the Federation, must not owe allegiance to any foreign state, must not have received a prison sentence of one year or longer, and must not have been fined RM 2,000 or more. Holders of
3480-500: The states of Sabah , Sarawak and Singapore (now independent) became part of the Federation. The Constitution establishes the Federation as a constitutional monarchy , having the Yang di-Pertuan Agong as the Head of State with largely ceremonial roles. It provides for the establishment and organisation of three main branches of the government : the bicameral legislative branch called
3540-442: The three lists (Article 77). Power of Parliament to make laws for States: Parliament is allowed to make laws on matters falling under the State List in certain limited cases, such as for the purposes of implementing an international treaty entered into by Malaysia or for the creation of uniform State laws. However, before any such law can be effective in a State, it must be ratified by law by its State Legislature. The only except
3600-505: Was expressly removed by the Printing Presses and Publications (Amendment) Act 2012. The Act also makes it a criminal offence to possess a printing press without a licence. The Sedition Act 1948 makes it an offence to engage in acts with a " seditious tendency", including but not limited to the spoken word and publications. The meaning of "seditious tendency" is defined in section 3 of the Sedition Act 1948 and in substance it
#29970