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Malaysia’s two emergencies: why 2021’s freeze on democracy is not like the trouble of 1969
Liew Chin Tong
Deserted roads in Kuala Lumpur after a lockdown and state of emergency were imposed to curb the spread of Covid-19. Photo: Reuters
Amid soaring Covid-19 cases, the prolonged political crisis in Malaysia since a parliamentary coup in February last year came to a head on Tuesday when a state of national emergency was declared for the first time since 1969. At the time, parliament was suspended after racial riots broke out between Malays and Chinese in Kuala Lumpur, leaving almost 200 people dead. It only reconvened in 1971.