Fashion, music and memes overtake interest in politics among Malaysian youth
While history remembers youth as revolutionaries, today’s Gen Z seems disengaged from politics — are they truly indifferent, or is there more beneath the surface?
ALFIAN TAHIR
During the anti-colonial movement we saw the formation of Kesatuan Melayu Muda (KMM) or the Young Malays Union founded by Ibrahim Yaakob and Ishak Haji Muhammad.
During WWII, fearless young leaders such as Abdullah CD, Onn Jaafar and Dr Burhanuddin al-Helmy resisted the Japanese by forming progressive political parties in effort to create awareness on the importance of self determination.
These youth actions prior to Malaysia's independence came at a heavy cost, but it was worthwhile as it help shaped the country’s future.
But how do the youths of today feel about politics? Are they really interested in the topic? Even if they do understand the term academically, how do they really view it?
A BLEAK OUTLOOK
Ilham Centre executive director Hisomuddin Bakar revealed that the current generation of youths are not actively involved in politics despite having awareness of it.
Based on his research, Hisomuddin said that Gen Z are more interested in topics such as fashion, music and entertainment.
"They know what politics is, but their [political] literacy is very low.
"They do not know the difference between the Dewan Rakyat and Dewan Negara, or the functions of an MP or an assemblyman.
"They know that they are allowed to vote, [but] they do not understand the significance of voting or what changes can they make [through] an election," said Hisomuddin.
Speaking further, Hisomuddin said despite the Undi18 movement, there is very little effort made to educate the youths on politics. He explained that youths are easily manipulated by political parties, especially on sensitive issues.
"This generation is not ready for politics. Basically they do not understand what is democracy. They learn politics through history class in school, but that is not enough.
"They [are aware of] politics when there is an election. This is when political parties made full use of social media, harping on religious and racial issues. Issues like these are being played up through the whole campaign period and it is successful in influencing the youths.
"After the election, the youths go back to fashion, music, travel, food, gossip and sports.
"When there is an issue, especially sensitive issues, they do not bother to dive deeper into it, but prefer to follow the narrative played by certain political parties — in Malay we call [them] pengikut buta (blind followers)."
Asked if the Gen Zs played a role in the last election, Hisomuddin said the generation went out in huge numbers to vote, but did not believe the effect would last.
"The data that we have showed they exercised their rights to vote. The percentage was high but it was driven by the excitement [of being] first time voters. To have their pictures (of lining up) be uploaded on social media.
"It was not because they fully understand the bread-and-butter issues or corruption plaguing our country, but due to the narratives played by political parties," he added.
A RAY OF HOPE
However, Universiti Malaysia Sabah (UMS) student Muhamad Fadhil Muhamad Kasim felt that there is a sliver of political awareness amongst youths, three years following the formation of the Madani government.
Fadhil was the coordinator for the Gempur Sabah rally — a group formed by university students in calling for better governance in Sabah.
"To say that the youth are not interested in politics is not entirely right. [They] are fully aware of what is happening but the intimidation by our government has forced many to keep quiet.
"They refused to participate because they do not want to be harassed by authorities. That is why they prefer to stay away from expressing themselves," he said.
The UMS Faculty of Economy student added that the media played a role in educating youths.
"The news reports from the media on corruption issues and abuse of power involving high ranking government officials have opened our eyes [to the fact] that we cannot stay silent.
"The awareness is there; we are aware of the damage if we allow corruption to take place," the 25-year-old said.
Last December, a group of university students in Sabah defied a police order and went ahead with a street protest criticising the government's move to appoint Musa Aman as state governor. Musa was heavily linked with corruption when he was the state's chief minister.
The rally was attended by around 200 participants, mostly students from various universities and colleges. It was a rather small number considering the severity of the issue.
Commenting on the low turnout, Hisomuddin said it was clear that the topic is still far from the reach of the majority of students.
He said that without the participation of political parties whose members are mainly of the older generation, the number of protesters would struggle to surpass 1,000 participants.
POLITICS IS BORING
Despite the positive points shared by Fadhil, other youths offered a different perspective. For them, politics is tiring and heavy.
The topic is also far removed from the daily reality that they face.
Ibrahim Hakeem, a 26-year-old food delivery rider, said: "I do not feel interested because to me they are all the same. Politicians are all the same. What have they done?
"We are still struggling to work and to live, but we see in the news that they have millions in their bank accounts.
"There are no significant changes regardless of who is in power. I prefer to waste my time scrolling through entertainment stuff, rather than reading or getting involved in politics."
His sentiment was shared by boutique assistant Fathiha Malik. The 23-year-old said she gets bored when talking or hearing about politics.
"My parents and their relatives do talk about politics whenever they meet but I don’t feel excited to listen to it.
"It is boring and my peers are also not interested in the topic. We see the news about it, but that’s about it. To get involved or to understand it better is not [something I am interested in]."
Asked why, she claimed that politics are "meant for the older generation".
Once upon a time, the late Sukarno depended heavily on youths in his journey to build Indonesia. His well-known quote "Give me 10 young men and I will shake the world" now feels sadly obsolete.
Or perhaps the great Sukarno was too naive to believe that the youths would continue fighting forever.
How do you view your own relationship with politics? Curious to see where you stand when it comes to fighting for issues you support? Take our quiz to learn more about yourself!
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