The Emergency Law in Malaysia – Political Security or Liability?
20 Pages Posted: 24 Oct 2010
Date Written: October 21, 2010
Abstract
One of the important elements in Malaysian politics is the enactment and continuation of emergency law and regulation adopted by the government to maintain political order and stability in this country. The fundamental issue in Malaysian politics was the existence of emergency law and the declaration of emergency state. Both provide the government and the authorities under it with exceptional power which decide the shape of politics in this country. The ultimate political power enjoyed by them was nonetheless given by the Constitution of the state. What puzzles us is whether Malaysia is still under a state of emergency and whether such law provide security or liability for the people. Since the state independence in 1957 until the collapse of communism in 1989, the need to protect the state from the communist insurgencies and subversive elements has generated emergency law as a form of extra legal responses towards any acts which were considered prejudicial to national security. This article tries to understand the historical and political development of Malaysian Emergencies by utilising declassified primary data from British National Achieve and various secondary data such as books, journals and newspapers.
Keywords: Emergency Law, Political Security, Political Liability
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