Charles Santiago is a human rights activist, a member of the DAP, former MP for Klang, and a two-time chairman of Malaysia’s National Water Services Commission (SPAN). He first held the SPAN chairmanship from November 2018 until his removal in April 2020 (after Langkah Sheraton), and was reappointed in March 2023, serving until March 2025. 

Beyond these roles, Santiago serves as the co-chair of ASEAN Parliamentarians for Human Rights (APHR), where he has been a vocal advocate against systemic labour exploitation and debt bondage in the region, among other issues. 

In this episode, we speak to Charles Santiago about his tenure at SPAN, the politics of water and labour rights violations in the region. 

Image Credit: Charles Santiago, SPAN

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Sarawak’s Sovereign Wealth Fund was launched in 2022, to “to safeguard and invest the State's funds for the future generations of Sarawak.”

But what exactly is a sovereign wealth fund? How does it work? 

And if it’s a useful tool or institution, would a state like Selangor—Malaysia’s most populous state with the highest GDP — benefit from one too? We speak to Geoffrey Williams, who’s an economist.

Image Credit: Shutterstock

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Over the past couple of decades, far-right parties and leaders have moved from the fringes to the forefront of global politics. Figures like Donald Trump, Marine Le Pen, Giorgia Meloni, and Narendra Modi or parties like the AFD, who were once seen as outliers or shrugged off altogether, now command mass followings, win elections or come close to winning, and shape global political discourse in a big way. They are now in concretely the mainstream. Their rhetoric may differ across borders, but many share common strategies: scapegoating marginalised groups, exploiting economic anxiety, and leveraging democratic institutions to erode them from within. We see similar trends in Malaysia too. 

The question is how did we get here?

The last time we spoke to German political scientist, Dr Frederik Holst, Associate Professor, Albukhary International University (AIU),  we discussed Germany’s right-wing movement specifically. Today, we are once again joined by Dr Frederik to have an in-depth conversation about global far-right movements. In Part 2 we discuss the weaknesses of the left and if left-wing populism is the antidote to right-wing populism. 

Image Credit: Shutterstock

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Over the past couple of decades, far-right parties and leaders have moved from the fringes to the forefront of global politics. Figures like Donald Trump, Marine Le Pen, Giorgia Meloni, and Narendra Modi or parties like the AFD, who were once seen as outliers or shrugged off altogether, now command mass followings, win elections or come close to winning, and shape global political discourse in a big way. They are now in concretely the mainstream. Their rhetoric may differ across borders, but many share common strategies: scapegoating marginalised groups, exploiting economic anxiety, and leveraging democratic institutions to erode them from within. We see similar trends in Malaysia too. 

The question is how did we get here?

The last time we spoke to German political scientist, Dr Frederik Holst, Associate Professor, Albukhary International University (AIU),  we discussed Germany’s right-wing movement specifically. Today, we are once again joined by Dr Frederik to have an in-depth conversation about global far-right movements. In Part 1 we discuss the similarities and differences between various far-right movements and if fascism is the right word to categorise them.

Image Credit: Shutterstock

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you're ethnic-Indian—or if you have friends who are—chances are you've experienced first hand, or heard about racism in Malaysia’s rental market. Landlords rejecting tenants based solely on race. Ads that say “No Indians” or “Chinese only.” There are also instances where rental fee/pricing is clearly discriminatory. 

But what can you do about it?

Right now, the truth is—not much. The rental system in Malaysia is under-regulated, with few protections for tenants.  

So what would it look like to fix this?

So the NGO, Architects of Diversity (AOD) has launched a campaign calling for the enactment of a Residential Tenancy Act (RTA) in Malaysia, aiming to address long-standing issues in the country’s largely rental housing market. 

We speak to Jason Wee, Co-Founder of Architects of Diversity. 

To support the call for a Residential Tenancy Act, sign the petition at: https://chng.it/kHnxhmnR2t

Image Credit: Shutterstock

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Many countries around the world are starting to become aging societies. In other words, there are more old people AND fewer people having babies. This demographic shift has important implications on the economy and politics of a country. The question is, what do we do about it?

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) recently published a report titled ‘The Rise of the Silver Economy: Global Implications of Population Aging.’ In it, they propose that governments consider raising the retirement age and encouraging people to work until the age of 70. They say this is what will help countries sustain economic growth. 

But is that the right approach? 

We speak to Prof Peter Beattie, Political Economist & Political Psychologist, Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK). 

Image Credit: Shutterstock

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Raymon Ram has been appointed the new president of Transparency International–Malaysia. He will be serving in this capacity from 2025 - 2027. He succeeds Dr Muhammad Mohan, who stepped down after completing the six-year term limit. 

In this episode, we chat with Raymon about battling the culture of corruption in Malaysia and what he hopes to achieve as the new President of Transparency International - Malaysia.

Image Credit: Shutterstock

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Building and Wood Workers’ International (BWI), is urging the government of Malaysia to take a firm and principled stance against the ongoing human and labour rights violations in Myanmar by supporting the invocation of Article 33 of the ILO Constitution. 

The organisation, which consists of 12 million workers across 365 trade unions in 111 countries, stresses that Malaysia—as a Deputy Member of the ILO Governing Body and the current ASEAN  chair —has a unique opportunity to demonstrate moral and regional leadership. 

BWI is calling on Malaysia to support a draft resolution at the ILO’s 353rd Governing Body session at the 113th International Labour Conference in June, which seeks to hold the Myanmar military junta accountable for widespread abuses. 

In this episode, we are joined by Apolinar Dong Tolentino, Regional Representative of BWI. We discuss how the Junta is cracking down on workers and what can be done about it.

Image Credit: Shutterstock

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Dr Vilashini Somiah who’s a feminist anthropologist and a senior lecturer at University Malaya has been appointed as the next chair of the Southeast Asia Council (SEAC) of the Association for Asian Studies (AAS). 

This is important in and of itself but also specifically because she will be the first Southeast Asian-based scholar to lead the council since 1970 – that means she’s also the first Malaysian to lead the council, since then. 

In this episode, we speak to Dr Vilashini Somiah about her work, getting elected to chair the council, the challenges faced by marginalised communities in the region and so much more.

Image Credit: Shutterstock

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Suara Rakyat Malaysia (SUARAM) has released their 2024 human rights report. It’s a detailed report on the various human rights violations that have occurred throughout the year, some of the progress made and the changes that should happen moving forward. 

We speak to Jernell Tan, who’s the Documentation & Monitoring Coordinator at SUARAM. Jernell also penned numerous chapters in the report. 

Image Credit: SUARAM

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.