For MALAYSIA – A LAND OF PROGRESS
Malaysia is a multi-racial, multi-religious, multi-lingual and multi-cultural society. It has a population of 23 million people of whom 62% are residing in the urban centres and about 60% are Muslims. Since independence in 1957, Malaysia has developed on a massive scale and the physical progress attained bears testimony to the success achieved thus far.
Poverty has been drastically reduced with only 8.1% or 409 thousand poor households who have been identified as being below the poverty line in Malaysia. Commendable progress has been achieved in addressing poverty eradication and improving the quality of life. However there is income gap between different income categories with the top 20% owning 50.5% of the wealth whereas the middle 40%, 35.5% and the bottom 40%, 14%. Per capita income stands at RM13,450 while the purchasing power parity is USD8,918.
Malaysia is pursuing a vision of becoming a developed nation by the year 2020. The Malaysian government through the National Vision Policy envisions the development of a knowledge-based society that is resilient, united, competitive and equitable.
MALAYSIAN INDIANS –PROGRESSING ALONG OTHER MALAYSIANS
Population Figures
Malaysian Indians comprise 1,680,132 or 7.7% of the Malaysian population. They are a diverse group with a majority Tamils from South India or Jaffna, a smaller number are Malayalees, Telegus, Punjabis and others. Over 79.7% reside in urban centres today along the west coast of Peninsular Malaysia.
The professional Indians represent only about 10.1% of the Indian working population. However the community is well represented in comparison with the other major ethnic groups in certain professional occupations such as doctors (28.4%), lawyers (26.8%), veterinary surgeons (28.5%), and dentists (21%).
Historical contact India-Malaya
There is archaeological evidence in the Bujang valley in the northern state of Kedah to indicate that Indian contact with Malaya dates back to the seventh century. Furthermore the use of Sanskrit words in the Malay language and adoption of Indian epics into the Malay cultural heritage is illustrative of Indo-Malay relations.
Employment Patterns
A majority of Malaysian Indians came to Malaya during the British colonial period to work in the rubber plantations. However a significant number today are urban-based production workers. They comprise 39.4% of the Indian working population, with less that 15% and 12.1% in the agricultural and service sectors respectively.
Poverty, Income Levels & Social Problems
The incidence of poverty among Malaysian Indians reduced from 8.8% in 1990 to 1.5% in 2000. While there are pockets of urban poor Indians who are low income families, overall Indian monthly household income stands at RM2,702 which is slightly higher than the national figure of RM2,472.
As a result of rural-urban migration and impact of urbanisation, a section of Malaysian Indian youths manifest anti-social tendencies with involvement in gang related criminal activities. Efforts are being undertaken through government and voluntary sector involvement in addressing the root issues and concerns.
Educational Advancement
The Indian community has made tremendous contributions in the field of education through academic and teaching staff. Indians played a pioneering role in the establishment of educational institutions.
The overall literacy rate in Malaysia is 93% with 56% of the workforce having secondary education and 15% with tertiary education. In the case of Malaysian Indians over 13% posses post-secondary qualifications posses.
About 50% or 88,805 of primary school going children are enrolled in primary Tamil vernacular schools. These schools have remained the cultural heritage of the community and efforts are being undertaken by government and the MIC to ensure that the facilities and standards of education is in par with national schools.
Indian Business & Equity
There is a striving Indian business community and a majority are involved in the service industry such as restaurants, recycling of metal, provision stores, textile sales. However in comparison with the Malaysian Chinese community our overall business involvement is small. This is further indicative of the small share of the Malaysian equity which remains at 1.5%.
Religious Freedom
While Islam is the official religion of the nation all other religions enjoy constitutional freedom. Over 84% of Malaysian Indians are Hindus with 4.1% Indian Muslims and 7.8% Indian Christians.
Political Representation
Politically, Malaysian Indians through the Malaysian Indian Congress (MIC) have been part of the ruling government since independence, having fought for national freedom alongside Malays and Chinese. The MIC is a member the ruling Barisan National government. The MIC is represented at the Cabinet by one senior Minister and in the federal government with two deputy Ministers and two parliamentary secretaries. At the State government level there are seven State Ministers across seven States of Malaysia.
The Indian community is therefore well represented political. In addition the MIC has initiated self-help programmes in the educational and social dimensions through the setting up of a private University, two technical colleges and a funding agency to assist students with educational loans. In so doing the MIC has enlarged to scope of party politics to incorporate alongside advocacy, self-help community based programmes for upward social mobility of the community.
(Submitted on 30th December 2002)
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