Malaysia’s Responses to Issues Pertaining to Palestine
Malaysia’s Responses to Issues Pertaining to Palestine

Author: Mohd Faizal Musa

Publisher: ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute

Published: 2024-05-15

Total Pages: 36

ISBN-13: 9815203584

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Malaysia’s support for Palestinian independence has always been based on religion. Historically, Malaysia has had warm relations with Palestinian leaders including the Palestine Liberation Organization—during Hussein Onn’s and Mahathir Mohamad’s administrations—and Hamas since Najib Razak’s administration. However, Malaysia’s support is not just based on their affinity to Palestinians as fellow Muslims but is also a matter of domestic politics. Support for Palestine has been used as a political tool for various quarters to prove that they are more Islamic than the other. Malaysia is now led by Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, a former student leader who rose to prominence in the 1970s for his activism on issues regarding the Muslim ummah, including Palestinian independence. Over the years, Anwar has demonstrated consistency in his support for Palestinians, and this has especially been the case since the outbreak of Israeli aggression against Gaza which began on 7 October 2023. As a result, Malaysia has gained global prominence for its aggressive stand against Israel. Thus, this paper discusses the Malaysian government’s responses to issues pertaining to Palestine over the years. In doing so, it illustrates that while Islam has been a crucial rallying point in supporting the rights and independence of the Palestinians, it is also arguable that Malaysia’s foreign policy outlook is also influenced by domestic politics and the need for the government of the day to maintain its support from the Muslim voter base.

The Unrealized Mahathir-Anwar Transitions
The Unrealized Mahathir-Anwar Transitions

Author: Boo Teik Khoo

Publisher:

Published: 2021

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13: 9789815011005

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The failure of two expected transitions of leadership from Dr Mahathir Mohamad to Anwar Ibrahim (in 1998 and 2020) are traceable beyond their personal entanglements to the social divides and political currents of their time. The unrealized transitions are symptomatic of UMNO's dynamic of 'dysfunctional succession'. Under Mahathir, the party split. Under Najib, it was defeated. The condition persists as the current prime minister, Muhyiddin Yassin, has not even appointed a deputy prime minister after being in power for fifteen months. The unrealized transitions were a setback for a 'reform agenda', which Anwar Ibrahim articulated, but which emerged from dissident movements for diverse reforms. These movements helped the multiethnic, socially inclusive, opposition to win the 14th General Election. They are only seemingly dormant because of the pandemic. The Pakatan Harapan regime had the best chance to supply a fresh vision, deeper social understanding, and commitment to reform. The present Perikatan Nasional regime's fixation on 'Malayness' overlooks twenty years of intense intra-Malay conflicts that began with the failure of the first transition. As the '7th Prime Minister', Mahathir had a rare chance to redeem himself from major errors of his first twenty-two-year tenure. He squandered his chance by not honouring the Pakatan Harapan transition plan. Anwar Ibrahim's opponents mock him for being obsessed with wanting to be prime minister. Yet they obsessively fear his becoming prime minister. Anwar may be twice loser in political succession but 'the spectre of Anwar' still haunts Malaysian political consciousness.

Stories from Palestine
Stories from Palestine

Author: Marda Dunsky

Publisher: University of Notre Dame Pess

Published: 2021-03-01

Total Pages: 292

ISBN-13: 0268200351

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Stories from Palestine profiles Palestinians engaged in creative and productive pursuits in their everyday lives in the West Bank, Jerusalem, and the Gaza Strip. Their narratives amplify perspectives and experiences of Palestinians exercising their own constructive agency. In Stories from Palestine: Narratives of Resilience, Marda Dunsky presents a vivid overview of contemporary Palestinian society in the venues envisioned for a future Palestinian state. Dunsky has interviewed women and men from cities, towns, villages, and refugee camps who are farmers, scientists, writers, cultural innovators, educators, and entrepreneurs. Using their own words, she illuminates their resourcefulness in navigating agriculture, education, and cultural pursuits in the West Bank; persisting in Jerusalem as a sizable minority in the city; and confronting the challenges and uncertainties of life in the Gaza Strip. Based on her in-depth personal interviews, the narratives weave in quantitative data and historical background from a range of primary and secondary sources that contextualize Palestinian life under occupation. More than a collection of individual stories, Stories from Palestine presents a broad, crosscut view of the tremendous human potential of this particular society. Narratives that emphasize the human dignity of Palestinians pushing forward under extraordinary circumstances include those of an entrepreneur who markets the yields of Palestinian farmers determined to continue cultivating their land, even as the landscape is shrinking; a professor and medical doctor who aims to improve health in local Palestinian communities; and an award-winning primary school teacher who provides her pupils a safe and creative learning environment. In an era of conflict and divisiveness, Palestinian resilience is relatable to people around the world who seek to express themselves, to achieve, to excel, and to be free. Stories from Palestine creates a new space from which to consider Palestinians and peace.

Anti-Semitism in Contemporary Malaysia
Anti-Semitism in Contemporary Malaysia

Author: Mary J. Ainslie

Publisher: Springer

Published: 2019-06-21

Total Pages: 213

ISBN-13: 9811360138

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Offering an empirical study into anti-Semitism and anti-Israel attitudes in Malaysia, this book examines the complicated nature and function of such beliefs within the contemporary context, mapping these discourses onto different ethnic and economic divisions. Based largely upon qualitative interviews with thirty Malaysian participants who detail their own experiences with and perceptions of this phenomenon, the project reveals how political actors and organizations in Malaysia achieve political success and maintain political power through investing in the Palestinian cause, simultaneously demonizing Israel and Jews to an astounding degree. However, the book also reveals how, in contrast to this state-led agenda, challenging anti-Semitism and pushing for dialogue with Israel has become a means by which progressive citizens can critique authorities and reassert their desire for a liberal and heterogenic Malaysia. The book therefore argues that both interest in and even support for Judaism and Israel may be more prominent than the official Malaysian position may suggest, with citizens holding far more complex opinions and views upon this subject matter.

World Report 2021
World Report 2021

Author: Human Rights Watch

Publisher: Seven Stories Press

Published: 2021-02-02

Total Pages: 910

ISBN-13: 1644210290

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The best country-by-country assessment of human rights. The human rights records of more than ninety countries and territories are put into perspective in Human Rights Watch's signature yearly report. Reflecting extensive investigative work undertaken by Human Rights Watch staff, in close partnership with domestic human rights activists, the annual World Report is an invaluable resource for journalists, diplomats, and citizens, and is a must-read for anyone interested in the fight to protect human rights in every corner of the globe.

Gaza Writes Back
Gaza Writes Back

Author: Refaat Alareer

Publisher:

Published: 2014

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13: 9781935982357

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Gaza Writes Back is a collection of short stories from fifteen young writers in Gaza, members of a generation that has suffered immensely under Israel's siege and blockade. Their experiences, especially during and following Israel's 2008-2009 offensive known as "Operation Cast Lead", have fundamentally impacted their lives and their writing. Indeed, many of these writers saw the war as a catalyst for their writing, as they sought an outlet and a voice in its aftermath. They view the book as a means of preserving Palestinian memories and presenting their narratives to the world without filters. Their words take us into the homes and hearts of moms, dads, students, children, and elders striving to live lives of dignity, compassion, and meaning in one of the world's most embattled communities. These stories are acts of resistance and defiance, proclaiming the endurance of Palestinians and the continuing resilience and creativity of their culture in the face of ongoing obstacles and attempts to silence them. Whether tackling the tragedy that surrounds missile strikes and home raids, or the everyday indignities encountered by Palestinian refugees, Gaza Writes Back brings to life the real issues that the people of Gaza face. One prominent theme in many of the stories is the wisdom of parents and grandparents. A sense of longing pervades the book, as the characters in the stories reveal desires ranging from the mundane to the complex--including, in several of the stories, a strong yearning to return to the characters' family homes and properties after many decades in exile. Social differences within Gaza are also sensitively explored. Readers will be moved by the struggles big and small that emerge from the well-crafted writing, and by the hope and courage that radiates from the authors' biographies. Five years after Operation Cast Lead, these stories remind us that the pain lingers on and the people of Gaza will be forever scarred by the attack. Yet, the call for justice remains forceful and persistent, and these young Gazan writers refuse to let the world forget about them--their land, their people, and their story.

Conflict And Violence In Singapore And Malaysia, 1945-1983
Conflict And Violence In Singapore And Malaysia, 1945-1983

Author: Richard Clutterbuck

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2019-04-02

Total Pages: 333

ISBN-13: 042971789X

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Is there a risk that Malaysia's racial mixture and its weighted political and economic structures could again explode into the kind of violence which, in 1969, was only just prevented from setting the whole country on fire? And has Singapore's success been bought at a price in civil liberties too high for its health in the future? Four years of th

Two Worlds of Islam
Two Worlds of Islam

Author: Fred R. Von der Mehden

Publisher:

Published: 1993

Total Pages: 128

ISBN-13: 9780813012094

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In this assessment of the changing nature of relations between the two Islamic regions of Southeast Asia and the Middle East, von der Mehden investigates the degree to which a common religion has influenced economic ties. He further examines the extent of Southeast Asian political involvement in the Middle East and of Middle Eastern interest in Southeast Asia, and the character and amount of foreign religious thought reaching Muslims in Southeast Asia.

The Ethnic Cleansing of Palestine
The Ethnic Cleansing of Palestine

Author: Ilan Pappe

Publisher: Simon and Schuster

Published: 2007-09-01

Total Pages: 471

ISBN-13: 1780740565

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The book that is providing a storm of controversy, from ‘Israel’s bravest historian’ (John Pilger) Renowned Israeli historian, Ilan Pappe's groundbreaking work on the formation of the State of Israel. 'Along with the late Edward Said, Ilan Pappe is the most eloquent writer of Palestinian history.' NEW STATESMAN Between 1947 and 1949, over 400 Palestinian villages were deliberately destroyed, civilians were massacred and around a million men, women, and children were expelled from their homes at gunpoint. Denied for almost six decades, had it happened today it could only have been called 'ethnic cleansing'. Decisively debunking the myth that the Palestinian population left of their own accord in the course of this war, Ilan Pappe offers impressive archival evidence to demonstrate that, from its very inception, a central plank in Israel’s founding ideology was the forcible removal of the indigenous population. Indispensable for anyone interested in the current crisis in the Middle East. *** 'Ilan Pappe is Israel's bravest, most principled, most incisive historian.' JOHN PILGER 'Pappe has opened up an important new line of inquiry into the vast and fateful subject of the Palestinian refugees. His book is rewarding in other ways. It has at times an elegiac, even sentimental, character, recalling the lost, obliterated life of the Palestinian Arabs and imagining or regretting what Pappe believes could have been a better land of Palestine.' TIMES LITERARY SUPPLEMENT 'A major intervention in an argument that will, and must, continue. There's no hope of lasting Middle East peace while the ghosts of 1948 still walk.' INDEPENDENT