Parti Rakyat Malaysia (PRM) or Malaysian People's Party has a long and significant history. Since its formation on November 11, 1955, as Partai Rakyat Malaya (before Malaysia was established) it has undergone various kinds of trials and tribulations and experienced several ups and downs.

PRM has survived for nearly half a century largely through idealism, dedication and commitment of the core of its members to the people's struggle to achieve genuine justice, democracy, freedom, equality, welfare and unity within a new Malaysia.

Although the founder members of PRM were Malays, the membership of the party was open to all, right from the first day. A good number of non-Malays, especially Chinese later signed up as members. At present although their proportion is smaller than their Malay counterpart, and less than a third of the delegates to the 36th PRM Congress during this week-end are non-Malays, they are relatively active.

PRM could claim to be a truly multi-ethnic party not merely in terms of its composition, but also because its policies cut across ethnic lines. The party has never resorted to narrow ethnic appeals to gain support, a weakness shown by many parties especially during elections. Despite encountering problems and difficulties, we believe the future holds for multi-ethnic parties and politics.