Democratic Breakthrough in Malaysia – Political Opportunities and the Role of Bersih

Abstract

The 14th general election (GE14) in Malaysia saw a democratic breakthrough as the Barisan Nasional's uninterrupted rule since independence finally came to an end. This article seeks to analyse the role and impact of the Bersih movement in GE14 by examining the political context of GE14 via three key political opportunities: the 1MDB scandal; electoral fraud and manipulation; and the re-delineation of electoral boundaries. Bersih's core campaigns, actions, and strategies in response to these political opportunities will be analysed based on information and insights generated from the author's involvement as a member of Bersih's secretariat. The political opportunity resulting from the 1MDB scandal gave room for civil society and the opposition to go on the offensive; Bersih took the lead and continued the tradition of coalition-building between civil society and opposition forces, and brought focus to cross-ethnic issues. At the same time, Bersih held firm in its agenda for electoral reform by continuing to consistently monitor and mobilise against electoral fraud and manipulation leading up to GE14. Via the re-delineation exercise, it mobilised and coordinated resistance by increasing civic participation in the constitutional process and created new areas of contestation via the judiciary. In parallel, Bersih's efforts and strategies towards these political opportunities had created conditions that contributed towards Pakatan Harapan's victory in GE14.

Is Malaysian democracy backsliding or merely staying put?

“…Starting prior to the 2008 elections, in which a precursor coalition to Pakatan Harapan made significant headway, the Movement for Clean and Fair Elections (aka Bersih, “Clean”) started to rouse increasing interest in and concern for reforms to the electoral process, then to the political system overall. Drawing in or allying with activists from a host of “progressive” movements, Bersih—and Pakatan directly—benefited from the resources and sensibility civil society could offer; civic engagement, especially via Bersih, was critical to 2018's “breakthrough” (Chan, 2018). Meanwhile, Malay-rights CSOs, aligned similarly with UMNO, PAS, and/or Bersatu, also ramped up their efforts as the political context shifted.…”

“… 1. That reading dominated analyses at the time, notwithstanding recognition of the challenge consolidation still posed: for instance, Wong and Ooi (2018), introducing a journal special issue on “Regime Change in Malaysia”, Abdullah (2019), Chan (2018), or Selvanathan and Lickel (2021).…”

Social Media Visual Framing towards Political Participation: An Analysis on BERSIH 2.0

“…The first four items were put forth in 2007 while the remaining were presented in 2011. Several scholars including Chong (2018) assert that BERSIH was Malaysia's biggest people's movement and is well recognised for having orchestrated five big rallies over the past decade to seek democratic reform and greater independence for Malaysia. The protests sparked numerous "acts of citizenship" and citizen participation in political affairs past the voting act once in five years.…”

The representation of Bersih 4.0 and Red Shirt Rallies in a Malaysian newspaper: A comparative analysis

“…Kaur, Yee and Lean, 2011;Lim, 2017;Radue, 2012) and the role of the Bersih movement in the country's democratic processes (e.g. Chong, 2018;Lee, 2014). Very few look at its media representation and how this may work to shape public opinion regarding the movement.…”