Response to the EIU 2010 Report

The Economic Intelligence Unit 2010 report boldly confirms the fact that all Malaysians already knew, which is the deterioration of our civil liberties and our political culture. We do not have true democracy. For the past 50 years out of 53 years of independence, we have been living under emergency declarations that are conveniently used to maintain anti-democratic laws in the name of national security of an era gone past.

Malaysia needs more democracy in order to continue prospering economically, socially, and culturally in this highly competitive borderless world. The only reason that we can find why democracy continues to be suppressed is to benefit and maintain the hegemony of the ruling elite.

Our solution is for the government to pass the Democracy Rehabilitation Act, a bipartisan bill which my Pakatan Rakyat colleagues and I would propose to the Barisan Nasional federal government to move during the next parliamentary sitting. This Bill would restore our nation’s confidence and would bring us back on the path towards a developed nation by year 2020.

The Democracy Rehabilitation Act aims to achieve the six principal requisites for a thriving democracy which include revoking all emergency declarations, repealing all anti-democratic laws such as the ISA, UCCA and PPPA, fulfilling all agreements with Sabah and Sarawak, ensuring a free and fair election process, restoring local government elections and guaranteeing a free media.

A one million signature campaign for a memorandum of the Act shall be conducted beginning January 2011 which will subsequently be submitted to His Highness the Yang Di Pertuan Agong.

Indeed, both our National Economic Advisory Council and foreign investors have stated that the lack of confidence is among the primary concern that is hindering our progress towards a developed nation. I hope that the federal government would work together with my Pakatan Rakyat colleagues and I to pass the Democracy Rehabilitation Act to restore democracy and confidence among the rakyat so that together we can work towards a Better Malaysia.

Nurul Izzah Anwar