10 Things You Should Know About Malaysia Before Going There

Hey all! Meant to get this pumped out a week ago (almost 2 now)-–eesh..have been BUSY! Spent some time again in Malaysia (my first time being back since March 2020, when I nearly got stuck there during the pandemic!) and am going to pass on a bit about my trip.

The country has largely come back to ‘normal,’ but I couldn’t help but feel that there is a silent tension in the air between Malaysians of all races. Looks like they are going through more growing pains and domestic political tensions as most countries are nowadays. (see point 2)

Anyway, here are 10 things to note about Malaysia and what is happening in their neck of the woods. As always, if anything is wrong or if you feel differently, let me know below :)??

1. If you go, try to blend in and be mindful.?

Malaysia has a lot of moving parts, from being several different British colonies that bound together to form a federation in 1957, losing Singapore in 1965, rebuilding its economy and social structure, suffering in the 1997 Asia Financial Crisis, and (maybe) potentially pulling itself out of the middle-income trap. Socially, historically, and politically, Malaysia is fascinating; the country has tons to offer in terms of local foods, languages, and adventures. Keep in mind though that the country is VERY conservative in public; PDA is highly frowned upon and the LGBT (and-according to Bruce Gilley-Jewish) communities should be very careful. I did see a lot of outward support for Palestine, but Malaysia does not recognize Israel.?

Dress, behavior, and appearance are important to show respect to locals. You don’t need to wear your Sunday best, but looking like a slob + smelling like a bum will not win you any points. (I took a shower and shaved while there…and did laundry!)?

2. Malaysia is still building a national identity among its many ethnicities. I saw a lot of push for a shared Malaysian identity, but I don’t see one yet. I saw three (and that’s just on the surface).?

Malaysia is multiethnic, multiracial, and multicultural. In comparison to 5-10 years ago, it has swung more to the extremes. In public, I would argue people now behave more conservatively than when I visited in the past. At the same time, Bukit Bintang and parts of Chow Kit have pretty wild nightlife scenes with lots of people partying in the bars (I walked thru, but no wild nights this trip!)?

The government is pushing for more accountability and the use of fintech to clean up some of the public corruption (if anyone is interested at the level of it previously, check out the 1MDB scandal).?

Malaysia’s far right (in particular the PAS or the Malaysian Islamic party) has more firmly entrenched itself in the government and society, and I believe this is an example of how... A few weeks ago, a local convenience store chain called KK Mart had hundreds of stores ransacked and destroyed for selling socks that said “Allah”. The store has repeatedly stated the socks were misprinted and it was unaware of the supplier’s mistake. (The store also ended its relationship with the supplier over the socks). Conservative Muslim Malays have been largely up in arms since the socks were discovered and posted on social media. The Chinese Malaysian founder, his wife, and two reps from the sock supplier have been charged with damaging religious feelings.?

I visited KK Mart several times during this trip and in the past; it’s just like a 7-eleven, Family Mart, CU, or convenience store. In my opinion, the store did what it could to get the socks off the shelves and limit damage control; charging the owner, who is not Muslim will further divide the country on racial and ethnic lines, divides that have plagued Malaysia since it was founded (and largely why Singapore left).?

3. Malaysia doesn’t take criticism lightly?

The country is still dealing with/reeling from the 1MDB scandal. (Najib is still in the news down there). If you’ve not heard of it, there’s a Netflix series about it and tons of news reports. If you visit, bringing up something like this will embarrass the hell out of Malaysians, so it’s better to just note it + move on.???

Malaysians in the public eye are conservative and are very much against PDA as well as do not support the LGBT community. Last year, the 1975, a well-known British alternative band had planned to perform in Kuala Lumpur at a major festival. During the band’s performance, their lead singer criticized Malaysia’s strong laws against LGBT behavior, then kissed their bassist in protest, causing a massive uproar. The band was promptly kicked off stage and banned from returning to the country.?

Last week, Bruce Gilley, an American China scholar, gave a lecture, titled “Will Malaysia become an Active Middle Power?” at Universitas Malaysia (UM). During his lecture, Gilley said (paraphrasing) a Malaysia that is pushing for a second Holocaust against the Jewish people will never be a leader, nor a partner, nor a friend of the US. Immediately after, there was a lot of student outcry, UM canceled all events with Prof. Gilley, and he whisked himself out of Malaysia. (He also started a GoFundme to pay for his plane ticket and accommodation because UM refused to do so).

4. Sarawak + Sabah are notably different

The two eastern states of Malaysia (Sarawak and Sabah) are geographically and culturally separate from Peninsular Malaysia and historically have more in common with Brunei and parts of Kalimantan, Indonesia. Sabah (the Easternmost state) is home to Kota Kinablu, Malaysia’s largest city in the east, and was run as a British Protectorate until the outbreak of WWII. Then, the Japanese invaded and took over for nearly 3 years, ransacking the area for badly needed resources. After WWII, it became a Crown Colony and eventually joined Malaysia in 1962.?

Sarawak was colonized by the British as well and had a white rajah; one family, the Brookes, ran the entire territory from 1941-1946 (apart from when the Japanese took it during WWII). After the war ended, Sarawak also became a Crown Colony and folded into Malaysia in 1963.

5. Malaysia is unique in the IR Realm

Malaysia’s got some weird relationships in the IR realm; Malaysia does not recognize Israel, resolutely supports Palestine, and will not allow Israeli passport holders entry. However, recently a HUGE story broke of the national police arresting an Israeli (who supposedly entered on a French Passport) for weapons trafficking. Locals want to see the man rot in prison or get the death penalty.??

Up until Kim Jong Nam was assassinated in 2017 at the KL Airport (there are no signs or any way you would know), Malaysia was one of the few countries that allowed NK passport holders to visit visa-free. Consequently, Malaysians (and Indonesians) could also travel to NK quite easily. If you’re interested about life in NK 10 years ago, get on YouTube + search JakaParker (or click this link ). There was a lot of NK organized crime in both of these countries (money laundering, weapons/drug/human trafficking) from NK that’s largely died down on the surface since Kim Jong Nam was assassinated.?

6. Malaysia is chock full of migrant workers from all over SE Asia.?

Malaysia (and KL + Penang in particular) have a lot of migrant workers from South and Southeast Asia; many of them do not speak a lot of English. While having dinner in KL, I met a woman from Myanmar who said she was from the Western part of the country. She told me about her family, her kids back home, schools being bombed, and civilians being shot by the Burmese military in the ongoing civil war. We didn’t have this conversation in English…we had it in Bahasa. I spoke Bahasa Indonesia, and she spoke Bahasa Malaysia. Granted these languages are not the same, but we had enough of a common language to communicate.

Ramble: I can’t stress this enough…foreign languages open doors, and we Americans have to do better to cross these linguistic divides and not depend on major umbrella languages (Indonesian, French, Spanish, Mandarin); we need to learn dialects.?

7. Malaysia is critical to the flow of computer chips and has lots of expats in engineering + chipmaking.?

Malaysia is critically (and increasingly) important to the world as a major hub of chipmaking and computer technology. A lot of this is located up in Penang and George Town, in Northern Malaysia, which is culturally and linguistically very different from KL. Penang and George Town are largely Chinese and Indian, with lots of foreign workers and expats in the area. Chips that are manufactured and tested in Malaysia are a critical part of the supply chain for computer technology in the world today.?

8. KL is pushing to be the launch pad of ASEAN

Malaysia wants ASEAN to grow in scope as its economies grow i.e. a shared visa policy for all ASEAN nations. All over KL, there are signs displaying the vision for ASEAN 2045: an economically powerful, co-dependent, green, and peaceful region. In my opinion, KL is setting itself up to be the main entry point for MNCs to ASEAN. The city is well-connected to the rest of the region through Kuala Lumpur Itnl. Airport (which, by the way, is a good alternative to transit if you are visiting SE Asia and want to spend much less money but still have a generally positive experience!), but it still is not nearly as encompassing as nearby Singapore (nor does Malaysia at this time have the robust legal system that Singapore does).

Kuala Lumpur, in my words, is still a boomtown; there are massive residential and office construction projects going on in the city; Merdeka 118 (Freedom 118), the tallest building in the country, has shot up in the southern part of downtown near KL Sentral. I remember walking around there, Bukit Bintang, Chinatown, and Chow Kit in 2009 during my first trip to Malaysia and remember food vendors, garbage, a sick gut, and light chaos on the streets. Since then, the city has cleaned up and is worth a visit, if nothing else to see the architecture and try the local food. The Malaysia Ringgit is also very low, so it is a good value economically.????

Geographically, the country has some key real estate in the South China Sea and the Strait of Malacca. It’s literally a crossing of east-meets-west, and has a diverse economy of manufacturing and services. Major chip manufacturers, oil/energy companies, distribution/logistics companies, and Western, Asian, and Syariah banks have growing operations in the country,?

9. It can be a great value for tourists, if you are willing to adjust--and put up with lots of other tourists in touristy areas.?

The Malaysian Ringgit has been struggling to gain traction for years; this helps Intel, Micron, AMD, and Seagate which do manufacturing in the country, (cheaper exports) as well as the major hotel chains, shopping malls, and resorts to attract tourists (and Singaporeans). When I was down there, there were large busloads of Chinese tourists (not as many as about 2018-2019), but still tons of them taking photos around KLCC and the Petronas Towers.

If you want to visit all of Asia (without the snow), and are willing to adjust, Malaysia is probably the place I would recommend; there are Hindu temples, Buddhist temples, hikes, and beaches. If you decide to go, there is food for every palate (including Western), cold beer, hot coffee, and durian ice cream. Peninsular Malaysia is incredibly different from Sarawak and Sabah on Borneo culturally and administratively, which both have their own local entry requirements for Malaysians from other parts of the country.

10. People are friendly, but you’ve got to put in work and be mindful.

A lot of this is probably pushing you away from visiting the country. Overall, if you decide to go, you will find Malaysians inviting and friendly (in my opinion, more the Chinese, Indians, and local ethnicities). Even though English is largely the lingua franca of interethnic communication, Malays, Chinese, and Indians sincerely appreciate any form of using a local language from their diaspora (selamat pagi / tenggah hari / petang / malam / assalaamalaikum + terima kasih, namaste / vannekum + danihavad, ni hou + xiexie) and will always respond with a big smile. The main things to note are being respectful in public, and being mindful of locals’ opinions on controversial topics. I was there during Ramadan, yet places were still open in KL (it's likely different in smaller regional cities which are predominantly Malay).?

If you’re looking for a busy place to keep you asking questions, look no further—Malaysia is it! Selamat Jalan!