Racial dilemmas in Malaysia: A message for South African development

The article addresses aspects of Malaysia's development. The economic policies of the Malaysian government have been influenced significantly by political, economic and cultural factors resulting from the racial composition of the country. The government which is effectively controlled by the Malays, as distinct from the large Chinese and Indian communities, has tried since independence from the United Kingdom in 1957 to satisfy the aspirations of different racial and cultural groups. The policies implemented for over thirty years, including racial power‐sharing, and the problems that have been encountered, may offer valuable insights and lessons for the framers of economic development policy in South Africa. The experience of Malaysia demonstrates the immense difficulty of reconciling the conflicting claims of different racial groups and the effects that particular policies may have on development

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Senior lecturer, Department of Ethnology, University of Port Elizabeth