According to ehistorylib, in 2005, Malaysia had an estimated population of 25 million people with a population growth rate of 1.9%. The majority of the population was concentrated in the western coast, while the eastern states were less densely populated. The economy in 2005 was largely based on industrial and services sectors, with manufacturing contributing significantly to the country’s GDP. Major exports included electrical and electronic products, petroleum products, palm oil and rubber. Foreign relations in 2005 were largely focused on development assistance with Malaysia receiving aid from a number of countries including Japan, United States and China. The politics of Malaysia in 2005 were dominated by Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi who had been elected to office in 2003 after a highly contested election which had resulted in violence between supporters of different candidates. Badawi’s government implemented major economic reforms aimed at improving living standards for all Malaysian citizens as well as encouraging foreign investment.
Yearbook 2005
Malaysia. At the beginning of the year, it was clear that Malaysia had eased slightly from the tsunami disaster of December 26, 2004, compared to other countries in the region. The death toll was 68 and the number injured nearly 300. According to countryaah, Kuala Lumpur is the capital and one of the major cities within the country of Malaysia. More than 4,200 Malaysians had lost their homes, but as early as January only half of them remained in the temporary camps built for the homeless. The cost of material damage was estimated to exceed US $ 26 million. Malaysia contributed quickly to the worst affected countries Indonesia and Sri Lanka.
- Also see abbreviationfinder.org for how the acronym MY stands for the country of Malaysia and other meanings of this two-letter abbreviation.
A tense conflict with Singapore got its solution in January. The crowded Singaporeans had begun to extract land in the narrow strait separating the states without waiting for approval from the neighbor. In 2003, Malaysia drew the case before a special court in Hamburg urging the countries to settle for good. An agreement was signed that gave Singapore the right to continue with its dry-cleaning project, but also forced the country to cooperate with Malaysia to ensure that shipping was not disturbed and that environmental considerations were taken into account.
Malaysia showed an ambivalent attitude towards the hundreds of thousands of foreigners who were illegally in the country to work during the year. After a four-month amnesty, when immigrants were able to return home legally without penalties, the authorities began to arrest illegal immigrants on March 1. The raids were carried out by police, military and immigration authorities at various workplaces.
It was unclear how many were arrested during the strike. However, at least 200,000 illegal immigrants were estimated to remain in the country after the purges, while hundreds of thousands went home during the amnesty or later expelled.
Most of the workers came from Indonesia and the Philippines where governments were critical of deportations. Human rights groups also appealed to the government of Malaysia to stop the rejections and instead try to reach the employers who exploit the illegal labor force.
However, screaming labor shortages after the mass rejections forced Malaysia to make a full reversal after only a few weeks. Executed workers were now welcome to enter the country with only tourist visas to apply for a job.
Former Deputy Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim received an apology in August and damages from the police officer who beat him in the 1998 arrest. In the same month he was awarded $ 1.2 million in damages for the suffering publication ” Prime Minister “caused him. The script contained allegations of corruption and sodomy and contributed to his political case.
Anwar ended up in conflict with the then Prime Minister Mahathir bin Mohamad on economic policy in the late 1990s. He was kicked in 1998 and then sentenced to six years in prison for corruption and nine years for sodomy. The latter judgment has since been annulled. Anwar was released from prison in the fall of 2004 after serving a prison sentence which he said was constantly politically motivated.
Malaysians were upset when a video showing how a police officer humiliated a arrested Chinese woman came to the public’s notice in October. Since China made protests, an investigation into the incident was added. The police stated that the treatment of the woman, including was forced to undress naked, followed the routine of body visitation. It was unclear whether the woman was a tourist from China or Malaysians of Chinese origin.
