Who Really Writes The Malaysian History

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REFLECTING upon the recent academic research and its controversies, one thing became clear to me, that history should not be made an object of derision and mockery.
For decades, Malaysians grew up hearing a powerful maxim, “History is written by the victor.” It sounded wise, even inevitable—as if truth has no place in nation-building unless approved by those in power.
Malaysia today is a society where citizens, not just leaders, are demanding clarity. New voices, alternative archives, and digital evidence challenge older narratives. While victors may still write the first draft, Malaysians are increasingly insisting on writing the final one.
Official history tends to deliver a neat story of harmony, stability, and a proud journey towards progress, but anyone who has lived through Malaysia’s political storms knows the truth is far more complex.
Government textbooks, older museum exhibits and political speeches often minimise political conflicts thus sanitising controversial episodes. It also portrays ruling coalitions as saviours by glossing over mistakes or abuses and emphasising one ethnic perspective over a multi-ethnic reality.
This is how power shapes collective memory in Malaysia and cracks in these narratives are widening—not due to hostility, but due to maturity. Today, there are Malaysia’s untold or under-told histories which need attention.
Take May 13, 1969 for example: it was the day the nation was told to forget; of course, every Malaysian knows the date but not everyone knows the exact details. For years, the event was wrapped inside one official story: “racial riots”.

Yet eyewitnesses, journalists, and scholars describe a deeper political contest beneath the surface. We were told it was spontaneous racial chaos, said retired civil servant Encik Rahman, who lived through it.
However, he noted that many had seen organised movements happening before the riots erupted, and this underscores the notion that history here is not denied—it is curated.
Schoolbooks were once centred almost entirely on Tunku Abdul Rahman’s role. Nobody disputes his leadership, but the story omits the left-wing anti-colonial movements: the women’s contributions, Indian and Chinese labour movements, religious organisations,  Orang Asli communities and post-war grassroots organisers.
Historian Prof Lim Wei Hon once said that Merdeka wasn’t a one-man show but our textbooks read like a political memoir rather than a national story. The over simplified narrative was politically convenient, not historically complete.
So are the communists heroes or traitors? For decades, communist fighters were labelled unambiguously as “terrorists”. Yet today, young Malaysians ask new questions: Are they all ideologically driven villains or were they anti-colonial fighters whose methods were rejected, but whose motive must be understood?
Another historian, Dr Suraya noted that the declassified British archives show a more nuanced picture and; history, she added, is never black and white, only propaganda is.
The 1MDB and political scandals is a history written in real time. Even very recent events show how narratives are crafted. In some versions, 1MDB is a global financial fraud. In others, it is a “political conspiracy”. However, documents, audits, and court rulings tell a different story.
A journalist once pointed out that the direction of the 1MDB narrative depends on who controls the microphone and she couldn’t be more accurate.
The monopoly over history is gone. Ordinary citizens are documenting what official channels overlooks through newly available media. In what has been called the “second draft”, ordinary Malaysians are finding their voices.
There are many sources available which may aid the second draft: social media eyewitness accounts, oral history interviews, independent documentaries, citizen journalism, academic research from young scholars, digital preservation of old newspapers and photos.
For the first time in history, Malaysians can challenge any narrative and provide evidence for it. Indeed, we are not rewriting history to destroy unity; we are doing it to build unity on truth, not fear.
Honest history matters as an emphasis that truth should not be bent for political advantage. Unity cannot be built on illusions; only truth can heal a nation. History is not meant to glorify rulers but to guide civilisation. When a nation hides its mistakes, it repeats them; when it faces its mistakes, it grows from them.
Malaysia is transitioning from a nation being told what its history is to a nation bold enough to ask what its history means and it propels us towards a matured Malaysia.

This is a new era where the government writes one version of history, the academics write another, the survivors provide theirs, and the people are those who decide which version is the closest to truth.
Perhaps the old saying “History is written by the victor” needs a Malaysian upgrade. Perhaps we can call it “Victors may write the first chapter but the people now write the rest”.
After all, history is no longer the property of those in power; it must now become a national conversation where authenticity rules. 
K.Tamil Maran ( KT Maran)
Seremban, Negri Sembilan
The views expressed are solely of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of  MMKtT.
- Focus Malaysia.

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