Beyond the Ballot Box

Malaysia’s labour force participation rate among females has plateaued at around 55% for many years now, while the male labour force participation rate is more than 80%. But why is this the case and what can we do about it? With the tabling of Budget 2025 around the corner, on today’s episode, we will be talking about what Budget 2025 can do to address gender disparities in the Malaysian workforce. We ask Anis Farid from Women’s Aid Organisation (WAO) and Abinaya Dhivya from the Gender Budget Group, for their Budget 2025 wishlists.

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The death penalty not only impacts those on death row, but their families as well, causing emotional, psychological and economic strain as they navigate the uncertainties and stigma surrounding their loved ones’ fates. Malaysia has abolished the mandatory death penalty but the death penalty remains in its discretionary form.  We speak to Hayati Mohamad, a founder of Pertubuhan Keluarga Kasih (KeKasih) and a family member of someone on death row, Norlia, also a member of KeKasih, and Tham Jia Vern, Research Lead of HAYAT.

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It’s been a year since Palestinian resistance fighters, led by Hamas, broke through the siege of Gaza and the beginning of the ongoing genocidal campaign in Gaza by Israel. More than 41 000 Palestinians have been killed by Israel – which is 1 out of every 55 people. Hospitals have been bombed. Mosques and schools too. According to reports, more than 120 journalists have been killed. Israel doesn’t seem interested in stopping these attacks. In fact, they have only expanded their military campaign to other areas of the region, including bombing Lebanon, killing civilians in the process.

So, where are we right now and what can we expect moving forward?

Joining us to discuss is Muslim Imran, Founding Director, Asia Middle East Center for Research & Dialogue (AMEC).

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Azra Sayeed is a feminist from Pakistan. She’s an academic and activist known for her advocacy on issues related to the rights of marginalised communities, particularly women, peasants and farmers. 

She’s the founder and executive director of the Roots for Equity, an NGO based in Karachi that focuses on working with communities at the grassroots level to attain political, economic, social, and environmental justice. Azra has also served as the Chair of the International Women's Alliance (IWA) and APWLD - Asia Pacific Forum on Women, Law and Development, in various capacities since 1999. 

She’s been fighting the good fight for decades. And for the longest of time, she has argued that to be a feminist is to be anti-capitalist and anti-imperialist. 

In this episode, we discuss her political-economic views, organising women in farming communities and more.

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Last week, Parti Sosialis Malaysia (PSM) and the Jaringan Pekerja Kontrak Kerajaan (JPKK) submitted a memorandum to the Human Resource Minister, Steven Sim, urging the government to increase the minimum wage to RM 2000. Currently, the minimum wage is set at RM 1500. 

Earlier in March, Steven Sim mentioned that the government will review the minimum wage this year, but there have been no updates on the matter since. 

We speak to Saratbabu Raman, chief of PSM’s Worker’s Bureau about their push for a higher minimum wage.

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Malaysia will be the chair of ASEAN in 2025. 

Many have argued that this is an exhilarating time for the Asian region, particularly Southeast Asia. But while there is excitement and opportunities, there are also plenty of real challenges. One such challenge that ASEAN will have to continue navigating is the crisis in Myanmar. 

As we know, Myanmar has been in turmoil since 2021 following a military coup that overthrew the democratically elected government, leading to a civil war between the Junta and various pro-democracy and liberation forces. Some have even called it a revolution. 

So, what should ASEAN’s role be in this crisis?

In this episode, we speak to Thomas Daniel, who’s a Senior Fellow at the Institute of Strategic & International Studies (ISIS) Malaysia. He recently wrote an article arguing that with Malaysia as chair, ASEAN should approach the situation in Myanmar much differently than the past few years. 

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We often use the word Empire to describe colonial or imperial powers such as the British Empire pre-World War II. Today, more and more people are starting to use the word to describe the United States of America. Some also use the term to describe China. But what exactly does “empire” mean? How do they form? And how does the existence of an empire impact the common working person? We discuss this with Associate Professor Peter Beattie, Political Economist, Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK). 

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Malaysia is quite a polarised nation right now, especially across racial and religious lines. The results of the 2022 General Elections tell us as much. While we cannot and shouldn’t place the blame of the polarization on our electoral system alone, we have to ask if our electoral system does more to bring people together or encourage further polarization. And if we change the system, what would it look like? Separately but on a related note, many have argued that Sabah & Sarawak should have 1/3 Parliamentary Seats or more than that. But how would that actually work in reality?

We speak to Wong Chin Huat who’s a political scientist with Sunway University and is also part of an initiative to advocate for institutional reforms to advance political stability and accountability called Projek SAMA. He has been a champion of moving away from the First Past the Post Electoral System.

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Syed Husin Ali's A People’s History of Malaysia is a brilliant book which offers an alternative narrative of Malaysia's history, centred on the experiences and struggles of ordinary people. The book challenges traditional, elite-centric historical accounts by highlighting the role of workers, peasants, and anti-colonial movements in shaping Malaysia’s development.
In this episode, we discuss the lessons that can be drawn from this book with Emeritus Prof. Abdul Rahman Embong, Sociologist and Anthropologist from UKM. 

On a related note, there is an upcoming event by co-organised by Pusat Sejarah Rakyat & Gerakbudaya in memory of the late Syed Husin Ali and his contributions to Malaysian politics over the years. It’s happening on the 21st of September 2024. 

Check out their Instagram page for more information and links to register:

https://www.instagram.com/p/DADXXk3p-wr

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It’s been slightly more than a month since the riots in the UK which happened from 30 July to 5 August 2024. The riots were far-right and targeted immigrants, Muslims and refugees, among others. Throughout the riots, there were racist attacks – both verbal and physically violent – arson and looting. This was considered to be the worst instance of social unrest in the UK in over a decade. 

So, why did it happen? And what can we learn from it?

Katy Brown is an expert in far-right movements in the UK and Europe. In this episode, we speak to her about the root causes that ultimately triggered the riots, and what can be done to prevent this from happening again. 

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