Survey: 64pct of M'sians face discrimination

A recent study conducted by Architects of Diversity (AOD) found that 64 percent of people in the country have experienced some form of discrimination in the past 12 months.

In the survey of 3,238 respondents, 38 percent cried discrimination in the form of socio-economic status, 33 percent due to age, and 32 percent because of ethnicity.

The ‘State of Discrimination Survey Malaysia 2023’ highlighted that 51 percent of Indians reported having higher levels of discrimination compared to other races.

Some 35 percent of Indians reported discrimination when looking for housing, and 21 percent when dealing with the police.

AOD executive director Jason Wee said the survey aimed to provide a baseline study on the quantitative nature of discrimination in Malaysia relating to various identities, including religion and race.

The survey was conducted from Aug 4 to 23 involving adults aged 18 and above across the country.

Meanwhile, the survey respondents revealed that they were split over the government’s initiatives to tackle discrimination.

Some 45 percent of the respondents said that they were satisfied or slightly satisfied whereas 40 percent said that they were slightly dissatisfied or not satisfied at all. Another 15 percent of the respondents preferred not to respond.

Some of the respondents suggested that the government should enact anti-discrimination laws to solve discrimination.

Kluang MP Wong Shu Qi, who was present at the report launch, said that while a law was important, it should only be introduced as a last resort.

Wong said that if society needed laws to intervene in cases of discrimination, then it proved that there was a lack of morals.

“I think that discrimination literacy must be improved but first things first — can we be kinder to each other?”

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