counting and integration: the experience of malaysia

counting and ethnicity Malaysia 1

Counting and Integration:

The Experience of Malaysia


Outline of Talk

Objectives Motivation: Malaysia Truly Asia Measurement Measurement and Integration Concluding Remarks


Multi-ethnic, multi-lingual, multi-cultural and Multi-ethnic, multi-lingual, multi-cultural and multi-religiousmulti-religious nation nation


Ethnic Fractionalization Index (EFI), Selected Countries (Yeoh 2001)

Country EFI

Republic of India 0.876

Republic of the Philippines 0.838

Republic of Indonesia 0.754

Canada 0.714

Malaysia 0.694

Kingdom of Thailand 0.535

United States of America 0.395

United Kingdom of Great Britain & N. Ireland 0.325

Solomon Islands 0.133

Source: Table 1, Yeoh (2001)


Geographical Location of Malaysia


Economic Development and Measurement of Ethnicity

National unity main objective of economic, National unity main objective of economic, social and national development social and national development

NEP – an ethnic based economic policy toNEP – an ethnic based economic policy to Reduce poverty irrespective of raceReduce poverty irrespective of race Reduce identification of race with economic Reduce identification of race with economic

functionfunction


In 2006, Malaysia ranked 37th in GDP; 19th largest In 2006, Malaysia ranked 37th in GDP; 19th largest exporter, and 23rd largest importer in the worldexporter, and 23rd largest importer in the world


Data on Ethnicity

Very important for monitoring and Very important for monitoring and strengthening public policystrengthening public policy

Measurement important element of census Measurement important element of census as well as official statisticsas well as official statistics

Also collected by public and private Also collected by public and private institutions that provide such feedback to institutions that provide such feedback to government (eg. Banks, educational government (eg. Banks, educational institutions, etc)institutions, etc)


Measurement of Ethnicity in Census

1 in 3 of the 147 countries surveyed which had done a census in year 2000 had not included a question on national and/ or ethnic group (UNSD, 2003)

In contrast, experience for Malaysia can be traced back to 1871 despite difficulties of “so many races speaking

different tongues” (Hare, 1902: 4) Need to have questionnaires in and enumerators

speaking many languages Priority in release of information


Measurement: Word used

Started with ‘nationality’ in 1871Moved to ‘race’ beginning 1901

“a wider and more exhaustive expression than ‘nationality’ and gives rise to no such ambiguous question in classifying people” (1901)

“enumerators could not distinguish between nationality and race” (1951)


Measurement: Word used

Moved to ‘Community’ in 1972 a group “bound by a common language/ dialect, religion

and customs Since 1980, ‘ethnic / dialectic/ community group’ Although terms changed, generally enumerators

have been since 1902 instructed to capture race/ dialect group (religion is captured in a separate question)

Since 1980, published data on ethnicity has been presented along with citizenship


Measurement: How?

By self-identification (ethnicity & citizenship) ‘An individual’s answer to the question on race should be

accepted without question, for there would be many persons descended from at least two of the tribes listed who would claim one as their own for their own private reasons and with whom it would be quite improper to discuss or dispute these reasons.’ (Jones, 1962)

For persons of mixed parentage, the 1970 census sought to identify the ethnic group to which the person felt he or she belonged failing which father’s community was used (Chander, 1977)


Population of Malaysia, 2000

Total: 22.2 million (in order of size):Malaysian Citizens (94.4%): Malays,

Chinese, Indians, Other Bumiputera, Iban, Kadazan Dusun, Bajau, Other Malaysian Citizens, Bidayuh, Melanau, Murut

Non-Malaysian Citizens (5.6%): Indonesia, Philippines, Other Foreign Citizens, Bangladesh, Thailand, India, Singapore


Measurement: Number of Categories

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

SS Malaysia NB S



Criteria: size in population, importance of a group for public policy

Aim: “classification should be as scientifically accurate as possible, the groups must be reasonably balanced in size, and it should be in sufficient detail to provide a sound basis for future scientific investigations” (Harrison in Noakes 1948)



Role of politics (eg. Sabah)Difficulties when it comes to defining

‘Malay’ (impact of religion, and constitutional definition)

Changes in society, a natural phenomenon but difficult to capture (eg Sino-Kadazan, Kadazan-Dusun)



Table 6: Ethnic Fractionalization Index, Malaysia, 2000 Based on ethnic and Religious Groups measured in Population)

Region EFI Percentage of Total Population

Sabah 0.889 11.2

Sarawak 0.874 8.9

Peninsular Malaysia

0.655 79.9

All Malaysia 0.701 100


Measurement Outside the Census

Areas: education, scholarships and training, employment in public service and business licenses (related to NEP)

Major ethnic groups captured; degree of fineness based on purpose and need

Terms used vary, eg. NationalityInfluenced by census categorisation


Measurement: Summary Census an important leader in measurement of

ethnicity Underscored by the careful efforts by the various

Superintendents of Census to define a diverse population

Language is not the principal criteria as concluded by UNSd (2003)

Nevertheless still confusion in understanding of race, dialect group, language group, nationality, ethnicity by man in street and even man in office

But individual knows who he or she is


Measurement and Integration

Many Malaysians likely able to trace ancestry from more than one ethnic group

For the young especially, being forced to select one reference group can be an issue

Individual need for self-identity vs need for comparable data (Sawyer 1997)



Issue of who is a Bumiputera? (Kessler 1992) the Bumiputera could be Malays who are Muslim,

Malays who are not Muslim (e.g., certain aboriginal groups), Muslims who are not Malay (e.g., the Melanau of Sarawak), or persons who are neither Muslim nor Malay (e.g., ethnic Thai Buddhists and some indigenous groups in East Malaysia).



Young people of the nation have grown up “bred under the NEP…in a stable [Malaysia]…perceivably more integrated…highly conscious of their ethnicity…more Islamised…more polarised.” Lee (2003)

Issue of race relations more important in less fragmented P.M. compared to more fragmented E.M.



Education system promotes segregation by ethnicity in Peninsular Malaysia

The measurement by self-identification, the definition of Malay and the difficulty of separating race and religion suggest that there will be great difficulty in measuring certain groups of the population - evidenced by comparing 1991 and 2000 census data (Figure 3)



Seemingly easy shifts between ‘Malays’, ‘Other Bumiputera’ and ‘Other Malaysians’

Reflect in part the commonalities in origin from neighbouring but politically different regions, Indonesia, Philippines and Thailand

Movement of such peoples across the region in search of economic prosperity is not new, and continues to occur



Has this now entered the social realm so that we can consider the ‘Bumiputera’ community as an ethnic group?

Yes, by criteria of Yinger, Sawyer, Statistics Canada

Then, there is integration among the diverse cultures and communities that comprise the Bumiputera group

Especially for those who become Muslim and accept Malay customs more integrated



However, policy based on a group which is growing not just from natural increase, will likely fail to address growing intra-ethnic inequalities as observed in the case of income

Intra-ethnic inequalities can arise from the inadequate measurement of ethnic groups within the Bumiputera category to receive special benefits (“second-class Bumiputera”)


Concluding Remarks

Not easy to collect data on ethnicityData collection agencies have been

creative in trying to capture the diversity against odds of “different tongues” and remote locations of peoples

How have ethnic data been used for policy design and has it contributed to integration?


Concluding Remarks

Confidentiality of ethnic data Assessment of achievement of NEP

targets varyMaybe targets cannot be met as the target

Bumiputera group is a shifting oneOr is the measurement of Bumiputera

group not detailed enough to identify groups that need special attention?


Concluding Rematks

Should we continue to measure ethnicity?Yes, but to meet specific policies that use

our diversity to advantageThe problem is not the data but how they

are used to formulate, implement and monitor policies

Thank You

counting and integration: the experience of malaysia

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