Friday, November 13, 2009

Malaysia Offers Wonders To The Tourist

By Joseph Archibald

The name "Malaysia" came to be in'63 when the Federation of Malaya, Singapore, North Borneo (now called Sabah) and Sarawak (the largest state) joined up to make-- states in all. Various names were considered at the time including Langkasuka which was one of the historical names for part of the land mass of Malaysia.

In the year 1511 the Portuguese took over the port of Malacca which lies on the east coast of Malaysia. There was however, constant turmoil about the port from both the Sultanate of Aceh and the Sultanate of Johor. Finally in 1641 control of the port was taken over by the Dutch who sided with the Sultanate of Johor against the Portuguese.

Taking a leap forward in time to'63, Malaysia came into existence. At that time the Sultanate of Brunei had also wished to join the federation but due to their own political issues and some other problems with regards to oil duties they pulled out.

Throughout the early years of the Federation being formed troubles continued on. Indonesia tried to lay clay to Sarawak in an "undeclared war" and this was quelled by the British. Then just 2 years after the Federation took place, Singapore withdrew.

Then the Philippines laid a claim for the state of Sabah, although up till now this claim has not been recognized. Further problems have continued to vent due to the multi racial population of Malaysia.

The Chinese people of the country feel that the government favors the Malays too much at the expense of all other races and they are not slow to show their feelings either.

The governmental system is modeled in part upon the old colonial British style, being a legacy of the style. Since independence from Britain in'57 the government has been made up of a multi-party coalition called Barisan Nasional.- states make up Malaysia, including the largest - Sarawak, and also 3 federal territories. Each state is then subdivided into various districts which are called mukim. The governance of the country is held between both federal and state governments, which is indeed how the British system is run.

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