Malaysia S Secret Brain Drain Analysis

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Malaysia is now losing some of its best Malay doctors, engineers, scientists, university professors, and other professionals due to the environment Malaysia’s leadership has created in the country.
Murray Hunter, Eurasia Review
Its just not non-Malays migrating from Malaysia It has long been known that a significant number of non-Malay Malaysians have migrated to other countries in search of more opportunities and a better life. The establishment narrative has been ‘tak apa’ or ‘good riddance’, or more thoughtfully, an explanation that this exodus of Malaysians from the country is just part of a general regional and world trend.
Names like Jimmy Choo, Tsai Ming-Liang, Kwen Liew, Zang Toi, Yuna, Bernard Chandran, Tan Hock Eng, Ng Yi-Ren, James Wan, Pua Khein-Seng, and Penny Wong come up, just to name a few successful expatriate Malaysians. In addition, there are thousands of expatriate Malaysians running or holding key positions in companies in Hong Kong, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, Australia, and even the United States.
Current statistics of the brain drain from Malaysia are difficult to come by, as it’s a very sensitive issue. What we do know is that the brain drain slowed a little from 2016, and dramatically dropped when Pakatan Harapan won government in 2018 and the Covid restrictions began in 2020. However, recent media reports indicate that Malaysia’s brain drain is increasing at the rate of 6 percent per annum once again.
If one talks to members of the Malaysian diaspora in Australia, New Zealand, United States, and Britain, there is a significant number of Malays exiting Malaysia to migrate to other countries.
Back in 2007, controversy erupted when then deputy home affairs minister Tan Chai Ho released statistics showing that out of 107,000 Malaysians who had renounced their citizenship since independence, 79,000 were Malays.
Three decades ago, those Malays who went overseas and didn’t return were those who either married a local when they were studying overseas, or got a job offer they couldn’t refuse. However, this demographic is very different today with whole families migrating abroad, based on reports by local Malay community organizations assisting these families settle into their new country.
The author has spoken to a number of Malays who have migrated abroad to find their reasons. All mentioned the better economic opportunities, higher salaries, better education systems, and better quality of life for them and their families. However, straight after that ramble, many talked about not being able to freely express themselves in Malaysia, and the need to socially and intellectually comply with the prevailing narratives, rituals, and codes set by society.  Many Malays, who are Muslims, object to being told how they should practice Islam. These Malays are not disinterested in Islam, they have a passion for the religion, as indicated by their active participation at local mosques and religious schools in their new country. They just want to practice Islam how they believe Islam should be practiced.
Today there are Malay mosques in Perth, Sydney, and Melbourne. Malays in Australia have also been involved in building several mosques back in Malaysia.
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