We are all part of a global capitalist system dominated by US hegemony – an imperialist force. This is especially true since the end of the cold war and the fall of the Berlin Wall. It was such a monumental moment that American political scientist Francis Fukuyama wrote a book called The End of History, in 1992. 

Clearly, he was wrong. Fukuyama himself has admitted so.

Today, China’s rise among many other factors has challenged the global dominance of American imperialism and neoliberalism. However, some experts say an empire in decline is at its most dangerous. So, how do we make sense of this changing global political economy?

Our guest in this episode is Vijay Prashad. Vijay is an Indian historian, journalist, commentator, and prominent intellectual. He’s written numerous books, including Red Star Over the Third World, On Cuba and The Withdrawal, the latter two he wrote with Noam Chomsky. And he’s the director of the Tricontinental: Institute for Social Research, which recently published a paper titled Hyper-Imperialism: A Dangerous Decadent New Stage.

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Malaysia has a rich history of student-led movements. If we look at the period of pre-independence and after independence, student movements were radically progressive, vibrant and strong. While the 80s - 2000s saw suffocation of these movements, there was a revitalisation of student movements in the 2010s.

But what about today?

We speak to Ooi Kok Hin, Executive Director of Bersih. Not only is he an activist himself, he’s also someone who has done and continues to do a lot of research and writing on the activism scene in Malaysia.

This episode is done in conjunction with the upcoming Bersih Congress 2024.
The congress is taking place on Saturday, 25th of May 2024 @KLSCAH.

It will bring together civil society leaders, youth activists, and student groups to deliberate on joint reform demands and strategies to agitate for real change.

Click this link if you'd like to sign up for the congress: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScRlH7iETfEbqTA4KLRG-HvN3or8qpH9VHu5Y4wIz_QVbDe6g/viewform

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Early in May, Housing and Local Government Minister Nga Kor Ming announced the 26-year-old housing woes of five estates in Hulu Selangor and Kuala Selangor have been resolved. 245 workers from Ladang Mary, Ldg Sg Tinggi, Minyak, Nigel Gardner, and Ladang Bukit Tagar will receive subsidised affordable landed housing.

But why did these workers have to struggle for 26 years for something that should be a fundamental human right – adequate housing? What can we learn from it?

We speak to S. Arutchelvan, Deputy Chairperson of Parti Sosialis Malaysia.

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The All-Party Parliamentary Group of Malaysia on Integrity, Governance, and Anti-Corruption (APPGM-IGAR) is once again calling on the government to enhance transparency and accountability in Malaysia’s democratic reforms.

What are the specific reforms that we need?

Joining me on the show to discuss this is Dr Tricia Yeoh, CEO of IDEAS – The Institute for Democracy and Economic Affairs. Dr Tricia is also a representative of the APPGM-IGAR.

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Pakatan Harapan retained its Kuala Kubu Bharu state seat at the by-elections which took place over the weekend. Before the elections, many pundits predicted that this would likely be an incredibly tough battle in which either side would win by the slimmest of majorities. Interestingly, Pakatan Harapan’s Pang Sock Tao from the DAP increased their vote share and won relatively comfortably with 57% of the popular vote, while PN’s Khairul Azhari Saut garnered 41% of the vote.

So, what does the KKB by-election result tell us?

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Last Sunday, the Zionist state of Israel voted to shut down Al Jazeera in the country, immediately ordering the closure of its offices and a ban on the company's broadcasts.

Over in the United States of America, peaceful university encampments and protests have been taking place all over the country. The state, the supposed land of the free, has responded to these protests by unleashing armed police officers in riot gear.

So, where does that leave us today?

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In 2020, Malaysia became an ageing society – in other words, people are living longer and having less babies. 

On a separate but related note, women’s participation in the workforce has plateaued at 55%, with most citing “household and care responsibilities” as the primary reason. 

These are big-picture problems that would require comprehensive policy intervention centred around something called the Care Economy. 

But what exactly is the Care Economy? And what can Malaysia learn from other countries with more mature and robust care economies, such as Australia?

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Malaysia dropped 34 places in the Reporters Without Borders (RSF) World Press Freedom rankings placing us at 107 out of 180 countries listed. For the first time in three years, Malaysia does not top the rankings for ASEAN countries as Thailand attained 87th place.

Nalini Elumalai of Article 19 (Malaysia) joins us to discuss this sharp decline in rankings.

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South Africans celebrate “Freedom Day” every April 27, commemorating the country’s first democratic election in 1994. It also marked the official end of racial segregation and apartheid in South Africa. Apartheid and racial segregation meant that there was a huge inequality and inequity gap between the ethnic groups in South Africa, namely the minority white population and the poorer majority black population. To tackle this, South Africa implemented an affirmative action policy which bears some resemblance to Malaysia’s New Economic Policy. 

So, decades on, what has been the result of the affirmative action policy in Malaysia and South Africa?

Dr Lee Hwok-Aun, who’s a Senior Fellow of the Malaysian Studies Programme at the ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute, has spent many years studying the ethnic majority-favouring affirmative action policy in South Africa and Malaysia. He joins us on the show today to share his insights.

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The Kuala Kubu Bharu by-elections will be held on the 11th of May. This comes at the heels of the unfortunate passing of KKB incumbent ADUN, Lee Kee Hiong from the DAP.

The by-election will see a four-cornered fight between Pang Sock Tao from Pakatan Harapan, Khairul Azhari Saut from Perikatan Nasional, Hafizah Zainuddin from Parti Rakyat Malaysia and Nyau Ke Xin running as an independent.

So, how closely contested will this election be? What can the voting trends of the past decade tell us? We speak to Danesh Prakash Chako of Tindak Malaysia.

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