Malaysia
Country in SE Asia, comprising the Malay Peninsula, bounded N by Thailand,
and surrounded E and S by the South China Sea and W by the Strait
of Malacca; and the states of Sabah and Sarawak in the N part
of the island of Borneo (S Borneo is part of Indonesia).
Government
Malaysia is a federation of 13 states: Johore, Kedah, Kelantan, Malacca,
Negri Sembilan, Pahang, Penang, Perak, Perlis, Sabah, Sarawak,
Selangor, and Trengganu, plus the capital city, Kuala Lumpur,
and the island of Labuan, which are separate federal territories.
Each state has its own constitution, head of state, and elected
assembly, led by a chief minister and cabinet, and legislates
on matters outside the federal parliament's sphere.
Under the 1957 constitution, a monarch is elected for five-year
terms by, and from among the hereditary rulers of Johore, Kedah,
Kelantan, Negri Sembilan, Pahang, Perak, Perlis, Selangor, and
Trengganu. The paramount ruler's powers are similar to those of
the British monarch, including discretion in the appointment of
a prime minister and in granting a dissolution of parliament.
Generally, the monarch acts on the advice of the prime minister
and cabinet, who wield effective power.
The two-chamber federal legislature or parliament is composed
of a 70- member upper house or senate, the Dewan Negara, comprising
40 members nominated by the head of state, four from the two federal
territories, and two members elected by each of the 13 state assemblies
for six-year terms, and a house of representatives, the Dewan
Rakyat, whose 192 members are elected for five-year terms from
single-member constituencies by universal suffrage. The senate
can only delay bills already approved by the dominant house of
representatives, whose majority party or coalition provides the
prime minister, who governs with a cabinet selected from parliament.
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