Islam and Democracy: Malaysia after 50 Years

Abstract

This paper describes and analyzes outcomes of the first World Values Survey for Malaysia, an upper-middle income country that was not yet included in the four previous Surveys. I look at results for tolerance, interest in democracy and other survey questions, and find that the Malaysian Chinese are more satisfied with their life than the Singapore Chinese. Dissatisfaction with the political culture in Malaysia is strongest for the rural poor, both Chinese and Malay. The paper also discusses some political developments in Malaysia up to the March 2008 election.