Knowledge-Net for a Better World July 2019   The Changing Nature of Populism in Malaysia Working Paper Series (Populism in Asia) Aira Azhari, Senior Researcher at the Institute for Democracy and Economic Affairs Faiz Abdul Halim, Assistant Researcher at the Institute for Democracy and Economic Affairs   "Is Malaysia Adopting a New Form of Populism from the U.S. and Europe?" With an increase in dissatisfaction of liberal democratic systems around the world, populism has taken the center stage in all facets of life, especially in the discourse of politics and governance. In order to address this global issue, the Asia Democracy Research Network (ADRN) has been conducting research on populism based on country cases since 2017. ADRN was established by the East Asia Institute (EAI) in 2013 with funding from the National Endowment for Democracy (NED) to strengthen civil society in Asia and promote democratic norms and values. As part of ADRN research project, EAI has planned a special working papers series. This series is composed of six working papers, and the publication schedules is as follows: 1) South Korea’s Tamed Populism: Popular Protests From Below and Populist Politics from the Top (Issue on 2nd July 2019) 2) Populism in Taiwan: a Bottom-up Model (Issue on 9th July 2019) 3) Contemporary Populism and Democratic Challenges in the Philippines (Issue on 16th July 2019) 4) The Changing Nature of Populism in Malaysia (Issue on 23rd July 2019) 5) Populism in Contemporary Indian Politics (Issue on 30th July 2019) 6) Populism in Thailand (Issue on 6th August 2019) For the fourth publication of the ADRN special working paper series, Mr. Faiz Abdul Halim and Ms. Aira Azhari of the Institute for Democracy and Economic Affairs discuss the Malaysian populist phenomenon and its role in bringing the current Pakatan Harapan (PH) government into power. They caution that the now-opposition Islamic Party of Malaysia (PAS) and the United Malays National Organization (UMNO) may "adopt the successful platforms from right-wing political parties in Europe and the U.S." and provide a "more populist stance that may combine political Islam and Malay nativist sentiments." Given that the definition of populism has been "inconsistent" in Malaysian politics, they also suggest and conclude that further research is needed as to how the "'people' come to adopt these views and whether there is any factual basis for said views."    Recent Publications Working Paper | Contemporary Populism and Democratic Challenges in the Philippines Working Paper | Populism in Taiwan: a Bottom-up Model Working Paper | South Korea’s Tamed Populism: Popular Protests From Below and Populist Politics from the Top     #909 Sampoong B/D, 158, Eulji-ro, Jung-gu, Seoul, 04548, Republic of Korea Tel 82 2 2277 1683  |  Fax 82 2 2277 1684 | Email EAI Copyright 2019 © EAST ASIA INSTITUTE. All Rights Reserved.