RACE-BASED POLICIES A PUSH FACTOR?
Another achievable push factor designed for Malaysia’s brain drain is perceived discrimination, especially among cultural minorities.
In an interview with The Advantage Markets earlier this year, mouthpiece national unity minister Wah Ahmad Fayhsal Wan Ahmad Kamal was asked for their views on human brain drain and the emigration of Malaysians that are disgruntled with the way the nation is run.
“I can be sympathetic towards that, especially the non-bumis, as they feel oppressed or (treated in an) unjust (manner), as they are not given proper chances to flourish, ” he stated.
He added: “For example, the federal government cannot give scholarship grants for everyone from each race equally, meant for reasons of equitability. So , the Malays have to be given a bit more than the Chinese plus Indians.
“But are such efforts the sole responsibility of the government? I don’t believe so. The private sector should be given the mandate to help the government in addressing this gap. ”
Malaysia’s Constitution safeguards the special position of Malays in the country, the ethnic group which produces a majority of the population. There are various benefits for Malays and bumiputeras, like reserved admission locations in local educational institutions, bank loans and abroad scholarships.
In 2013, then mouthpiece president of the Malaysian Chinese Association (MCA) Liow Tiong Lai was quoted by Malay Mail as saying that race-based insurance policies has been a factor in many people leaving the country.
MCA is a component party within the Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition. At that time, the government was led by BN.
“I will certainly say in the past the issue of Ketuanan Melayu (Malay supremacy) in fact caused some to emigrate from the country yet we want to emphasise that Malaysia is a multiracial country and we protect harmony and oneness in this country.
“So we don’t want to see any competition dominant against some other races, ” additional Mr Liow, who had been then the health minister.
In 2016, then home matters minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said in parliament that of the particular 56, 576 Malaysians who renounced their own citizenship over the past decade, more than 90 per cent, or 49, 864 people, were ethnic Chinese.
Meanwhile the rest comprised 1, 833 Indians, 834 Malays and 4, 044 who were classified under the “others” category.
“Those who gave up their citizenship do so after getting citizenship from other countries, ” he reportedly mentioned.
A few who were interviewed simply by CNA claimed that within certain industrial sectors, career progression tended to favour cultural Malays.
Microsoft Heng, the economist based in the UK, told CNA that she felt like a “second class citizen” living and growing up within Malaysia.
She added that these affirmative action procedures have dissuaded her from coming back to work in Malaysia.
Malaysian Nancy Neo, who has been based in Australia to get more than a decade, suggested that these race-based procedures were unjust.
“I don’t want my kids to grow up within an environment where they may not be judged based on advantage, ” the management consultant told CNA.
EMIR Research’s Dr Peredaryenko noted that in line with the think tank’s analysis, the relationship between mind drain and race-based policies is not a new one.
“This is not a new concern, this has been presently there for decades – ethnic polarisation, segregation plus tension at every degree in society, establishments and family units, ” she stated.