MINDA MUDA Quantitative Survey National Unity Study on Young Malaysians

MINDA MUDA Quantitative Survey

National Unity Study On Young Malaysians

The Centre for Public Policy Studies (CPPS) National Young Lawyers’ Committee (NYLC)

18th April 2008 Background

• Vision 2020: United Malaysian nation with a sense of common and shared destiny. “empower national unity and integration through a Malaysian way amongst its diversified races amidst rapid development of the country” (Datuk Maximus Ongkili, JPNIN)

• ‘National unity’ is defined by the Department of National Unity and Integration in Malaysia as ‘a situation in which all citizens from the various ethnic groups, religions, and states live in peace as one united nationality, giving full commitment to national identity based upon the Federal Constitution and the Rukunegara’.[2] (Translated from) Mesyuarat Panel Penasihat Perpaduan Negara, February 1992

• Citizenship & Identity • Social Contract • NEP/NDP/NVP Introduction: Development of Project

• Stage I: In-Depth Qualitative Research - Young Urban Malaysians’ Study – Urban youth in Klang Valley, research findings used to formulate the Questionnaire and Dimensions for the Stage II Quantitative Research

• Young Malaysians’ Roundtable Discussion (CPPS-NYLC) – CPPS-NYLC 1st Young Malaysians’ Roundtable Discussion – Platform to discuss key findings from Stage 1 & to further explore dimensions – Ethno-religious politics, education policies and young Malaysian identity in national unity

• Consensus Document – Views and feedback were collated throughout the Roundtable and formed the Consensus Document, a set of 20 points presented at Parliament to Dato’ Dr. Maximus Ongkili, the Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department in charge of National Unity.

• Stage II: MINDA MUDA QUANTITATIVE STUDY - Quantification of Key Dimensions outlined Introduction: Research Objectives – To unearth young Malaysians’ life values, hopes and aspirations for the present and future

– To understand attitudes towards and aspirations for national unity in Malaysia, inclusive of racial, religious and social integration.

– To understand attitudes towards the education system in Malaysia, and how this contributes positively or negatively to national unity in Malaysia Research Methodology

• Target : Young Malaysians Aged 18 to 35 yrs old

• Quota-controlled Sampling via Intercept Interviews

– Tight quota controls that reflect the National distribution by representative by Strata, States, Age, Race & Gender – Well spread out locations covering different segments of the week / day times – Random Intercept e.g. every 1 in 5 persons – Length of Interview Approx. 25 mins – Same-race interviewers to avoid Interviewer bias

• Supervision & Validation

– One team leader per team for on-site supervision & verification – Average of 50% telephone validation conducted by independent QC team. Research Methodology

• Sample Size, N=1000 – N=700 Urban cities – N=300 Rural Areas – Quota controls by Region, Strata, Gender, Age & Ethnic Group. – Quota breakdown were derived based on 18-35 yrs old population data extracted from the Population & Housing Census of Malaysia Y2000 Research Methodology: Areas Surveyed

CENTRAL Urban Rural Kuala Lumpur Bukit Bintang None Bangsar NORTH Urban Rural Pudu raya / Kota Raya Penang Vantage Point None Damansara Uptown Farlim Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman Beach Street Prangin Mall Selangor Puchong Jaya Ulu Yam Lama Komtar Kelana Jaya SS2 Perak Jalan Gopeng, Ipoh Tanjong Rambutan SS15 Jalan Silibin, Ipoh Jelapang Sunway Pyramid Jalan Tasek, Ipoh Taipan USJ Sect 27 Shah Alam Kedah City Point, Alor Setar Kuala Kedah Port Klang / Klang Town Plaza Sentosa, Alor Setar Padang Serai

N. Sembilan None Mantin

EAST Urban Rural SOUTH Urban Rural Pahang Jalan Air Putih Pekan Johore Jalan Wong Ah Fook Saleng Jalan Bukit Ubi Temerloh Jalan Pelangi Kuantan Jalan Dato Sulaiman Sri Tebrau Kota Bharu- Pasar Besar Kelantan Machang Jalan Dobi Siti Khatijah KB Mall Malacca Sentral bus station Jasin Bandar Hilir Mahkota Terengganu K. Trengganu Kuala Berang

Demographic Profile of Respondents

Variable Percentage Gender Male 50.4 Female 49.6 Age (in years) 18-19 13.8 20-24 29.9 25-29 26.0 30-35 30.3 Race Malay 63.6 Chinese 27.1 Indian/Others 9.3 Strata Urban 70.0 Rural 30.0 Region North 25.5 Central 38.5 South 19.2 East 16.7 Level of Education No formal schooling 0.1 Up to primary school 1.2 Up to lower secondary school 8.8 Up to upper secondary school 51.4 Form 6/ Pre University/ 9.3 Matriculation/Foundation Diploma 18.1 Degree 9.8 Postgraduate and above 1.4 Household monthly income Below RM1500 10.7 RM1500 – RM2500 25.8 RM2501 – RM3500 24.2 RM3501 – RM4500 14.2 RM4501 – RM5500 8.3 RM5501 – RM6500 5.7 RM6501 – RM7500 2.8 Above RM7500 3.5 (Don’t Know/Refused to answer) 4.7 Executive Summary

• Across the study, certain trends were apparent. First, there were significant differences in responses between urban and rural areas. Rural respondents were more optimistic about unity in the country, and gave generally higher scores and ratings to perceptions of harmony and peace. Urban respondents showed a greater level of dissatisfaction. The National Unity Model indicates that people rate unity as improving in the next 10 years, but by only a slight increase.

• Second, significant differences were clear between responses of the ethnic groups, the pattern being Malays giving highest scores, followed by Indian/others, and finally Chinese. Regional differences were not as stark, but nevertheless respondents within Central and Southern regions seemed to be less optimistic about unity in Malaysia as did those in the East and West Peninsular. The younger age group prefers to mix more within their own ethnic and religious groups, relative to the older age group, indicating increasing racial and religious polarisation. Executive Summary

• There were numerous suggestions given to improve national unity by respondents themselves, showing that policies had a direct relationship with perception of national unity. Specifically, Government policies that were perceived to be unfair within education, economic and religious issues need to be addressed.

• Research findings have revealed underlying currents of inter- ethnic tension, made clear within their differentiated ratings across the questionnaire. Despite efforts of addressing unity issues through a number of activities and programmes, challenges still remain.

• In order to truly deal with root causes of disunity in the country, Government departments should be encouraged to boldly examine public policies that adversely affect the socio-economic and socio-political fabric, especially those related to provision of equal opportunity and equal access to all, where the National Unity Model indicates personal inter-ethnic relationships being strong but shows up national policies as the potential problem. 5-Dimensional Chart: Ethnic Breakdown

Economic Policies & NU Malays 4.2 4.1 4.5 Chinese

4.0 3.5

3.5 Indians

3.0

2.5

2.0

4.2 1.5 4.24.3 3.8 3.5 National Unity 3.2 Education Policies & NU 1.0

0.5

0.0

3.4 3.8 4.1 4.2 4.3 Racial Harmony4.5 Religious Harmony 5-Dimensional Chart: Strata Breakdown

Economic Policies & NU Urban 4.3 4.2 4.2 Rural 4.1 4.0 4.0 3.9 3.8 National Unity4.2 3.7 Education4.3 Policies & NU 3.6 4.0 3.7 3.5 3.4

3.9 4.1

Racial Harmony4.3 4.2Religious Harmony 5-Dimensional Chart: Regional Breakdown

Economic Policies & NU Nor th 4.5 Centr al 4.2 Sout h 3.9 4.03.9 East

National Unity4.2 3.5 4.2Education Policies & NU 4.03.73.7 3.94.0 3.0

3.94.0 4.14.1 4.14.2 Racial Harmony4.2 Religious Harmony I. Five Policy Areas to be urgently addressed:

1. Economic Policies 2. Education Policies 3. Religious Policies 4. Racial Harmony 5. National Unity Policies 1. Economic Policies

• General agreement across the board that – The Government should change socioeconomic policies to help integrate society better. – Government policies to help the poor should apply to all races in Malaysia. – A positive sign showing that young Malaysians are open to more inclusive economic policies. • Whether current economic policies have been good for national unity – Chinese gave significantly negative responses as opposed to Malays and Indians – Rural respondents more likely to agree economic policies were good for national unity. – Study showed warning signs of dissatisfaction amongst the Chinese with respect to economic policies in Malaysia. 1. Economic Policies

• Statements in full: (on a scale of 1 to 5 where 1 is “Fully Disagree and 5 is “Fully Agree”)

(a) I don’t know much about the NEP (New Economic Policy). (b) I think the NEP has been good to unite the country together. (c) Government economic policies are good for national unity. (d) The Government should change socioeconomic policies to help integrate society better. (e) Government policies to help the poor should apply to all races in Malaysia (f) Government policies to help the poor should be for a particular group of Malaysians only. 1. Economic Policies

On a scale of 1 to 5

Rural respondents were more likely to agree that Government’s economic policies were good for national unity. On a scale of 1 to 5

Policies for a Particular 2.2 1.9 Group Only 2.5

Statements on Econ Policies good for 4 3.4 Indian/Others Economic unity Policies 4.2 Chinese Malay 4.1 NEP good for unity 3.5 4.2 012345 Mean Mean Ranks

Ranks given for general Government economic policies were relatively high (with the exception of the Chinese who gave significantly lower scores), The ranking given for whether the NEP has been good to unite the country together showed the Malays, followed by Indians, then Chinese in decreasing rank order. 2. Education Policies

• The results show that different groups view the impact of education policies on national unity very differently – Malays most likely to agree that current education policies contribute positively to national unity, followed by Indians and lastly Chinese – The rural respondents give positive ratings – Northerners and Easterners gave more positive ratings, with those in the Central region being the most pessimistic – Worrying signs that Chinese show strong aversion to education in Malaysia (at school or university level), preferring foreign education over local. • Present education policies are therefore perceived as – Contributing positively towards national unity amongst: Malay, rural, East and North – Contributing negatively towards national unity amongst: Chinese, Central, urban. 2. Education Policies

• Statements in full: (on a scale of 1 to 5 where 1 is “Fully Disagree and 5 is “Fully Agree”)

(a) Education policies in Malaysia make people of different races more united. (b) Primary and secondary schools are good places for different races to interact. (c) Local universities help to bring people of different races closer together. (d) The standard of local universities is good. (e) I would prefer to study in Malaysia compared to overseas. (f) I would prefer to send my children to local schools/ universities instead of overseas. 2. Education Policies

On a scale of 1 to 5

Means (Strata)

Urban Rural

3.8 4.2

Average of Statement Means (Ethnicity)

Malays Chinese Indians/Ot hers

Q5 (a – f) 4.28 3.25 4.02 3. Religious Policies

• Generally positive religious harmony rating amongst respondents, an average of 6.9 (1-10). – Very high ratings stating that the government should do more to help religious harmony in Malaysia – Indians had the highest number of friends of different religions, followed by Malays and then Chinese. • However, significant differences emerged among the different groups – Respondents from rural areas rated religious harmony significantly higher than did those from urban areas – Respondents from the Malay ethnic group rated religious harmony significantly higher than did those from Chinese and Indian/others ethnic groups. – For the statement which read “The Government helps to bring different religions together in Malaysia”, only 42% of Chinese gave high ratings (closer to fully agreeing) compared to 85% and 70% of Malays and Indians, respectively. – Easterners are the most positive, perceiving religion to be unifying Malaysians together compared with other regional counterparts. • An opportunity for government to immediately address religious issues which are currently resulting in pessimism amongst the Chinese. 3. Religious Policies

• Statements in full: (on a scale of 1 to 5) (a) Religion brings people together in Malaysia. (b) I have friends of different religions in Malaysia. (c) It is not difficult to get along with people of different religions in the country. (d) Religious harmony will get better in the future. (e) The government helps to bring different religions together in Malaysia. (f) The government should do more to help religious harmony in Malaysia. 3. Religious Policies

How would you rate religious harmony in Malaysia presently, on a scale of 1-10?

East 7 South 6.5 Central 6.6 North 6.9 Indians 6.8 Chinese 5.5 Malay 7.3 Religious HarmonyReligious Rural 7.1 Urban 6.6

012345678910 Means 4. Racial Harmony

• Differences in ratings of racial harmony: – Those from the rural region rated racial harmony significantly higher than those from urban regions on a scale of 1 to 10. Indeed, 16% of those from rural regions gave a high rating compared to 12% from the urban region. Urbanites therefore show less confidence in Government’s efforts at improving racial harmony than do those from the rural strata. – For most individual statements, again there was a significant difference between ratings by Chinese as compared with responses from Malay and Indian/others ethnic groups. – Respondents from the Eastern states of Peninsular Malaysia found it relatively more difficult to relate to those of different races. – Older respondents preferred mixing with people of a different race compared to younger respondents. Similarly, the younger group gave a higher rating to the statement “I find it difficult to relate to people of a different race” compared to those of other age groups. Both the above findings are worrying indications that show the increasing racial polarisation amongst the younger generation. 4. Racial Harmony

• Statements in full: (evaluated on a scale of 1 to 5) (a) I like mixing with people of a different race. (b) I find it difficult to relate to people of a different race. (c) I prefer to make friends with people who are like me. (d) Different races can mix / get along well with each other in this country (e) The government is successful at bringing all races together 4. Racial Harmony

How would you rate racial harmony in Malaysia on a scale of 1-10?

East 6.7 South 6.5 Central 6.5 North 6.9 Indians 6.9 Chinese 5.6

Racial Harmony Malay 7.1 Rural 6.9 Urban 6.5

012345678910 Scale of 1-10 4. Racial Harmony

East 3.1 I find it difficult to South 2.8 relate to people of a Region Central 2.7 different North 2.2 race. 00.511.522.533.5 Means

On a scale of 1 to 5 4. Racial Harmony

“I like mixing with people of a different race.”

30-35 4.3

25-29 4.2

20-24 4.1 Age Groups Age

18-19 4

3.85 3.9 3.95 4 4.05 4.1 4.15 4.2 4.25 4.3 4.35 Means

On a scale of 1 to 5 4b. Unfair Treatment

• Malays felt significantly less unfairly treated on almost all variables compared to the Chinese and Indian/others. – 75% of Malays stated that they had “never before” been unfairly treated on account of race, whereas only 45% of Chinese and 49% of Indians/others stated so. – 82% of Malays stated they had “never before” been unfairly treated on account of religion, as opposed to 53% for both Chinese and Indian/others.

• Respondents from the South and Central regions rated a higher incidence of unfair treatment than did those from Northern and Eastern regions, for race and religion respectively. 4b. Unfair Treatment

“I have been unfairly treated due to my race.”

Eas t 1.4 Unfair treatment due to race

South 1.9

Central 1.7

North 1.5

Indians 2

2 Chines e

1.4 Malay

1.3 Rural Unfair Treatment Unfair

1.8 Urban

0 0.5 1 1.5 2 2.5 3 3.5 4 4.5 5

Means 4b. Unfair Treatment

Never Bef ore

Very Rarely

Occassionally

Quite Of ten race

Malay

Always Chinese

Indian/Others q7c_d 0 20 40 60 80

Percent 4b. Unfair Treatment

“I have been unfairly treated due to my religion.”

East 1.3

South 1.6

Central 1.5

North 1.4

Indians 1.9 Chinese 1.7

Malay 1.3

Rural 1.2

Unfair to religion due Treatment Urban 1.6

0 0.5 1 1.5 2 2.5 3 3.5 4 4.5 5 Means 4b. Unfair Treatment

“I have been unfairly treated due to my religion.”

Never Before

Very Rarely

Occassionally

Quite Of ten race

Malay

Always Chinese

Indian/Others q7c_e 0 20 40 60 80 100

Percent 5. National Unity Policies

• Overall, young Malaysians gave a generally positive rating for national unity, an average of 6.48 out of 10 presently, and an average of 6.62 out of 10 in ten years from now. Malaysians expect national unity to improve slightly over the next decade. • Respondents from rural areas rated Malaysia as being more united than did those from urban cities. • Malays and Indians rated national unity significantly higher than the Chinese. • Those from the central region gave significantly lower ratings than did those from northern and eastern regions. 5. National Unity Policies

• Statements in full: (evaluated on a scale of 1 to 5) (a) I feel that Malaysia is a country that is united. (b) I have never had bad experiences of national unity in the country. (c) It is important to talk about things that Malaysians are not happy about. (d) The Government is successful in promoting national unity in the country. (e) There are not many incidents that are bad for unity in the country. (f) We have achieved national unity in Malaysia. (g) National unity is important in my life. (h) Political parties are successful in promoting national unity in the country. 5. National Unity Policies

3.5 h 2.9 3.9

3.8 f 3 4.1 Indians Chinese 3.8 d 3 Malays 4.1

4.1 a 3.3

Statements on National Unity 4.4

012345 Average of ratings (1-5)

Statements in full: (evaluated on a scale of 1 to 5) (a) I feel that Malaysia is a country that is united. (d) The Government is successful in promoting national unity in the country. (f) We have achieved national unity in Malaysia. (h) Political parties are successful in promoting national unity in the country. 5. National Unity Policies

3.8 h 3.5

4.1 f 3.6 Rural Urban 4.1 d 3.7

4.3 a 4 Statements on National Unity

012345 Average of ratings (1-5)

Rate National Unity in Malaysia on a scale of 1-10

East 6.6 South 6.2 Central 6.4 North 6.8 Indians 6.9 Chinese 5.4 Malays 6.9 Rural 6.8 National Unity in Malaysia Urban 6.3

012345678910 Means

On a scale of 1 to 10 II. National Unity Model I

• The National Unity Model estimates the perception of national unity as a function of other variables • This is a powerful prediction model. • Using econometric software Eviews, an ordinal logit model was estimated. • Dependent variable = National Unity at present. • Independent variables = Critical factors that contribute to the perception of national unity. National Unity Model I

Coefficient Std. Error z-Statistic Prob.

SOUTH -0.286320 0.151633 -1.888240 0.0590 EAST -0.295848 0.164021 -1.803723 0.0713 INDIAN_OTHERS 0.355835 0.205892 1.728261 0.0839 Q5D 0.246782 0.073338 3.365009 0.0008 Q6C_A 0.616573 0.097001 6.356377 0.0000 Q6C_B 0.103558 0.060283 1.717872 0.0858 Q6C_F 0.296800 0.082480 3.598469 0.0003 Q6C_G -0.235551 0.083502 -2.820890 0.0048 Q7A_1 0.496162 0.056073 8.848467 0.0000 Q7A_C -0.187348 0.071071 -2.636066 0.0084 Q7B_1 0.576179 0.061477 9.372266 0.0000 Q7B_C 0.151839 0.048247 3.147136 0.0016 Q8B_G 0.110462 0.044681 2.472256 0.0134 Q9_A -0.247565 0.103023 -2.403011 0.0163 Q9_B 0.257656 0.098193 2.623977 0.0087 Q10_D -0.104357 0.057443 -1.816703 0.0693 National Unity Model I • National Unity at present is a function of these significant contributing variables: – Region (North, **South and **East) – Race (Malay, Indian/Others) – 5d: Perception of local universities – 6ca: Feeling that Malaysia is united – 6cb: Not having had bad experiences of national unity before – 6cf: Having achieved national unity in Malaysia – **6cg: National unity being important in one’s life – 7a1: Perception of religious harmony presently – **7ac: Ease of getting along with people of different religions – 7b1: Prediction of religious harmony 10 years from now – 7bc: Preference of making friends with people like them – 8bg: Government policies to help the poor should be for a particular group of Malaysians only – **9a: Thinking Malaysia will become a better place to live in – 9b: Thinking that national unity in Malaysia will improve – **10d: Thinking the police force is effective in maintaining security of people and homes National Unity Model II

• A similar model was used to estimate predictions of national unity in 10 years’ time. • Dependent variable = National Unity 10 years from now • Independent variables = See below. National Unity Model II

Coefficient Std. Error z-Statistic Prob.

GENDER 0.279512 0.113052 2.472418 0.0134 INDIAN_OTHERS 0.497960 0.200243 2.486773 0.0129 AGE -0.156845 0.054337 -2.886515 0.0039 Q5B 0.128510 0.074991 1.713671 0.0866 Q5C 0.138208 0.071929 1.921458 0.0547 Q6C_A 0.515287 0.094913 5.429028 0.0000 Q6C_D 0.182268 0.090194 2.020838 0.0433 Q6C_F 0.201835 0.087264 2.312935 0.0207 Q6C_G -0.205130 0.079372 -2.584402 0.0098 Q7A_1 0.306042 0.053335 5.738163 0.0000 Q7A_B -0.265651 0.072893 -3.644373 0.0003 Q7A_D 0.287195 0.084676 3.391712 0.0007 Q7B_1 0.380563 0.057859 6.577377 0.0000 Q7C_B 0.168687 0.058122 2.902295 0.0037 National Unity Model II • National unity 10 years from now is a function of these significant contributing variables: – Gender (Male/Female) – Race (Malay, Indian/Others) – **Age (18-35 years old) – 5b: That primary and secondary schools are good places for different races to interact. – 5c: Feeling that local universities help to bring people of different races closer – 6ca: Feeling that Malaysia is united – 6cd: Thinking that the Government is successful in promoting national unity in the country – 6cf: Having achieved national unity in Malaysia – **6cg: National unity being important in one’s life – 7a1: Perception of religious harmony presently – **7ab: Having friends of different religions in Malaysia – 7ad: Thinking religious harmony will get better in the future – 7b1: Perception of racial harmony presently – 7cb: Being unfairly treated due to Education level National Unity Predicted Values based on Models I & II

Present Future % Change All 6.509484 6.663344 2.363626 Strata Urban 6.508636 6.501081 -0.11607 Rural 6.51146 7.041071 8.133523 Race Malays 6.939042 7.143163 2.941624 Chinese 5.383454 5.39009 0.12325 Indians 6.851653 7.090815 3.490573 Region North 6.547289 6.838235 4.443763 Central 6.399309 6.502688 1.615471 South 6.58066 6.449569 -1.99207 East 6.623648 7.011614 5.857294 Age 18-19 6.584441 7.070843 7.387139 20-24 6.409167 6.550495 2.205103 25-29 6.483698 6.731293 3.818733 30-35 6.596205 6.530893 -0.99015 National Unity Models I & II

30-35 25-29 20-24 18-19 East National Unity at Present South Variables Central North National Unity 10 years Indians Chinese from now Malays Rural Urban StrataRace Region Age Full Full 02468 (1-10) l Unity l Unity Rating Nationa

• National Unity is predicted to increase overall, based on the national unity models. • The exceptions were respondents from the following categories: Urban, South, and 30-35 year olds. National Unity Predicted Values based on Models I & II

1. Language Literacy 2. Youth Concerns 3. Inter-ethnic/Inter-religious Interactions 4. Ownership of Country 5. Future and Aspirations 6. Suggestions to Improve National Unity 1. Language Literacy

On a scale of 1 - 5

On a scale of 1 - 5 2. Youth Concerns

1 is the most important, 11 is the least important 2. Youth Concerns

1 is the most important, 11 is the least important

National Unity

Racial Harmony

Environment

Social Problems

Politics Rural Religion Urban Safety/Security

Education Issue of Concern of Issue Economy

Material Goods

Career

0246810

Rank of Importance

Urban respondents gave a significantly higher While all ethnic groups seem to give rank of importance to the environment and similar ratings to national unity, Malay material goods compared to rural respondents, respondents give a significantly high but significantly lower rank to the importance of rank of importance to religion, whereas religion in their lives. Chinese give lowest ranks followed by Indians. 3. Inter-ethnic/religious Interactions Those within both rural and urban Mainly sharing my 66 own religion 62 areas had very high proportions of

Mainly from my own 64 Rural friends from their own racial and racial group 66 Urban religious groups. Mainly from my own 41 My close friendsare... age group 49

0 10203040506070 Percentage Chinese scored the highest on 44 Mainly sharing my 57 own religion 69 having close friends within their

Indians/Others Mainly from my 52 own racial and age groups, whilst 71 Chinese own racial group 65 Malay Malays had the highest proportion 53 Mainly from my

My close friendsare... 54 own age group of close friends from their own 42 religion. 0 1020304050607080 Percentage

79 Mainly sharing my 70 Respondents from the East and the own religion 60 53 East 80 South seem to be the most racially and Mainly from my own 73 South racial group 61 Central 55 religiously polarised, significantly more North 41 Mainly from my own 54 than those from Central and Northern My close friends are... age group 51 39 regions. 0 102030405060708090 Percentage 4. Ownership of Country

Rural respondents gave significantly higher ratings to statements of ownership of Malaysia than did urban respondents On a scale of 1 to 5

The Chinese feel that they have significantly less ownership of the country than do Malays and Indians/Others.

On a scale of 1 to 5 5. Future & Aspirations

Again, the rural respondents had significantly higher ratings about the future of Malaysia than urban respondents. On a scale of 1 to 5

Again, the Chinese had significantly lower ratings about the future of Malaysia than did the Malays and Indians/others. On a scale of 1 to 5 6. Suggestions to improve National Unity • General Inequality Issues • Address poverty issues • Inequality in University • Salary & Employment Entrance Systems issues • Other Issues related to • Inequality issues in the Higher Education job market • Fine-tune Education • Safety/Security Issues Programs • Police force effectiveness • Improve Education • Effectiveness of Standards politics/politicians • More Multi-racial School • Role of the public Systems • Cultivation from young • Promotional campaigns/ programs 7. Suggestions to improve National Unity

Respondents in the rural areas gave more suggestions on promotional programs, most likely because these are the tools of national unity they have most experienced. Respondents in the urban areas gave more suggestions related to inequality issues.

A significant proportion of the Chinese (32%) and Indians (24%) gave suggestions on “General Inequality Issues” as a way of improving national unity in the country, as opposed to only 7% of Malays, who do not seem to see inequality issues as a problem contributing to fraying national unity. Brief Conclusions

• Significant difference between urban and rural respondents, the latter being more likely to perceive Malaysia as having achieved national unity. • There are significant differences between responses according to ethnic background. The Chinese population show marked differences in perception of national unity in Malaysia on nearly all factors: unfair treatment, racial harmony, religious harmony, and lower ratings on ownership of the country. • Youth are more concerned with matters affecting their personal lives and sphere (career, education, safety & security), and less so with public social issues (Malaysian politics, national unity). Brief Conclusions

• Present inter-ethnic interaction is relatively superficial across strata and ethnic backgrounds. • NU Model is a powerful predictor of perceptions of national unity in the present and future in Malaysia given a set of variable values, and their accompanying coefficients. • The NU Model demonstrates the sensitivities of the perception of national unity in relation to other independent variables. • Given this set of present realities, there are many challenges to the state of national unity as perceived by the young in Malaysia, many policy-related. Work should continue to constructively build national unity in the country through all necessary means. Thank You

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