Malaysia is a constitutional monarchy with a democratic government. The King, who has limited discretionary powers, is elected for a 5-year term from among the Conference of Rulers, the 9 Sultans of the peninsular Malaysian states. The bicameral Parliament is made up of the House of Representatives and the Senate. Executive power is held by the Prime Minister, who is able to command a majority of the House of Representatives. At the state level each Sultan acts on the advice of a State Executive Council chaired by a Chief Minister. A coalition of political parties has been dominated by the United Malays National Organisation, which has held power since 1957.

Elections in 2004 were deemed free and fair, despite opposition complaints about the abuse of power by the incumbents. The Communist Party is prohibited, and registration of the Socialist Party has been blocked since 1999. There are 20 women in the 219-seat House of Representatives and 18 women in the 70-seat Senate.

Equal protection in law prohibits discrimination based on sex, religion, race, descent or place of birth. The constitution provides for the special position of bumiputras: ethnic Malays and the indigenous peoples of the eastern states of Sabah and Sarawak. Affirmative action policies and legislation give preference to bumiputras in housing, home ownership, government contracts and scholarships.
The judiciary is independent. Senior judges are appointed on the recommendation of the Prime Minister.

Shari'a law applies to all Muslims. The testimony of women is not given equal weight in Shari'a courts, and women do not receive equal treatment in matters of divorce and child custody. Customary law is used to resolve land disputes between indigenous peoples in Sarawak and Sabah, and the military has its own separate system of courts.

Human Rights Watch reports that some prisoners are subjected to humiliating interrogations. Caning is included in sentences for narcotics possession, criminal breach of trust, kidnapping, rape, robbery and trafficking, and caning precedes deportation of illegal immigrant adult males under age 50. However, caning is not allowed for men older than 50, women and children under age 10. Police corruption is reported to be endemic.

Freedom of speech and of the press are guaranteed in law but subject to limitations. The threat of imprisonment for criminal defamation causes journalists to practise self-censorship. Media criticism of government policies and corruption has increased. The Anti-Corruption Act authorises the interception of messages in any means of communication for use in a corruption trial. Freedom of speech is curtailed in the interest of security or public order, and dissent is restricted under the Sedition Act, the Official Secrets Act and criminal defamation laws. Books and films are censored. Internet access is not restricted, but the government has indicated it will punish the misuse of information technology. The owner of a web site or weblog can be punished for content deemed offensive in court.

Trafficking of children under age 18 is illegal, but Malaysia is a source, transit and destination country for women and girls trafficked for sexual exploitation. Foreign women and girls are employed as household servants in conditions that amount to forced labour.

Sunni Islam is the official religion; the practice of other Islamic traditions is restricted. Muslim civil servants must attend religious classes taught by government-approved teachers.

Religious and cultural taboos against homosexuality are widespread. Stigmatisation of those with HIV/AIDS is common.

Education is provided through a system of publicly funded schools, religious schools and private schools or through home schooling. 25% of the national budget is spent on providing free, compulsory education for children to age 15. Only 6 years of primary education is compulsory. Preschool education is not universal, and many preschool programmes are provided by religious groups. Some private schools have preschool sections. Primary and secondary education is highly centralised and competitive, with frequent use of standardised tests. On completion of primary education, students undergo the Primary School Evaluation Test.

In 2005, the New Straits Times reported that in Malaysia the tuition industry tutoring students for exams has reached RM 4 billion. Chinese and Tamil schools, known as vernacular schools, conduct classes in Mandarin and Tamil respectively; they also use the Primary School Evaluation Test, enabling their students to re-integrate into national schools for secondary education. The Prime Minister has expressed concern that only about 2% of Chinese students attend national schools. The Education Department is considering the introduction of National Integration as a subject in the school syllabus. The funding of Chinese and Tamil schools remains contentious, though their attendance rates are high at 96% (primary) and 82% (secondary).

Students leaving mainstream secondary schools write the Malaysian Certificate of Education examination, which decides whether they will go into the Sciences or Arts at the tertiary level. Prospective tertiary students may apply for admission to a matriculation programme run by the Ministry of Education. Not all applicants are admitted, and the selection criteria are not publicly declared. A race-based quota is applied on the admission process, with 90% of the places being reserved for bumiputeras. In 2002 the government announced a reduction of reliance on racial quotas and a tilt toward meritocracy.

The Ministry of Higher Education was created in 2004. Tertiary education in public universities is subsidised. Prior to 2004, all lecturers in public tertiary institutions were required to have completed postgraduate studies, but this requirement has been removed to allow industry professionals to apply for lecturing positions. Private branch campuses of foreign tertiary institutions from Australia and the United Kingdom operate in Malaysia offering university degrees or professional qualifications.

Sabah State has a problem of street children, many of whom are children left behind when illegal immigrant parents were deported. The children lack the citizenship necessary for access to government programmes, including education.

A 1-year programme begins at age 5. At this level 49% of education is private. The Net Enrolment Rate (NER) is 72%. There are 25,116 ECE teachers (99% female). The pupil/teacher ratio (PTR) is 23 : 1.

Free education is available for ages 6 to 11. Primary school begins at age 6 and lasts 6 years. At this level 1% of education is private. The NER is 93% (49% female). Of students who enrol in Grade 1, 84% reach the last grade of primary school. There are 159,041 primary teachers (68% female). The PTR is 19 : 1.

Secondary education begins at age 12 and lasts 7 years. At this level 3% of education is private. 15% of students in upper secondary education study in technical vocational programmes. The NER is 70%. There are 129,856 secondary teachers, 77,081 (64% female) in lower secondary and 52,775 (62% female) in upper secondary education. The PTR is 18 : 1 in lower secondary and 18 : 1 in upper secondary education.

632,309 students (55% female) study in tertiary institutions, for a Gross Enrolment Rate of 29%. At this level 32% of education is private. Foreign students studying in Malaysia come from Asia (22,314), the Arab States (2,158), Sub-Saharan Africa (1,394), Central and Eastern Europe (228), North America and Western Europe (227) and Latin America and the Caribbean (14). At the same time, Malaysian students are studying abroad in Australia (16,094), the UK (11,806), the USA (6,483), Japan (1,841) and New Zealand (831).

The minister of higher education has stated that non-Muslim women who attend the International Islamic University of Malaysia in Kuala Lumpur must wear headscarves when attending lectures and during graduation ceremonies.

Discrimination on the basis of disability is not prohibited in law, but the government promotes the integration into society of persons with disabilities. 1% of public sector jobs are reserved for persons with disabilities, and new buildings must be accessible to them. Special education schools exist, and some integration of children with minor disabilities takes place in mainstream schools, but in general existing facilities do not provide for the needs of all children with disabilities.

The country is not a party to the 1951 UN Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees or its 1967 Protocol, and the government has not established a system for providing protection to refugees. The UNHCR lists 33,499 refugees, of whom 56% are from Aceh Province in Indonesia and 41% are Burmese nationals.

Rohingya (Muslim refugees from north-east Myanmar) refugee children in Malaysia do not get basic education. The Rohingya community has set up classes in their homes to provide what education they can. More than 70% of Rohingya children are of school age. They can attend public schools as "permanent resident foreigners," but they must pay higher fees and buy their own books, which they are unable to do. Their access to education is also prevented by a lack of birth certificates, a legal prerequisite for school admission.

Law and policy provide for preferential programmes to boost the economic position of bumiputras. By contrast, ethnic Indian citizens remain among the country's poorest groups. Indigenous people enjoy the same rights as the rest of the population. The 149,500 Orang Asli are the poorest group in the country, with some 77% of households below the poverty level. Federal laws pertaining to indigenous Orang Asli allow the minister to decide issues, giving the Orang Asli little opportunity to participate in decisions that affect them.

US$26.3 million (100 million ringed) has been allocated for health, preschool education, infrastructure and economic development projects for the Orang Asli. The dropout rate among Orang Asli students remains high. Government statistics show 25,354 Orang Asli pupils registered in primary schools but only 7,559 registered in secondary schools.

Restrictions are placed on academic freedom. The government enforces restrictions on teachers and students who express dissenting views. All civil servants, university faculty and students must sign a pledge of loyalty to the King and the government. Human rights activists claim this is to restrain political activity. 2 lecturers at Universiti Utara Malaysia were fired for failing to sign the loyalty pledge.

Academics sometimes criticise the government, but self-censorship among public university academics is reported. Private institution academics practise self-censorship in fear that the government might revoke the licences of their institutions. Limitations are placed on student associations and on political activities by students and faculty. The Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia fired a professor who spoke against the political, social and economic policies of the governing coalition. The government believes students should be apolitical, and those who sign anti-government petitions are expelled or fined.

The policy is enforced selectively. The Universities and University Colleges Act restricts freedom of association. 17 public universities have agreed to allow monitoring of campus elections of student representatives. Disciplinary action was taken against 10 students who called for free and fair campus elections.

A number of initiatives have been taken to promote the full and equal participation of women in education. Women account for more than half of university students and graduates. They are prominent in science and medicine. A definition of sexual harassment is provided, but women's groups want legal protection rather than a voluntary code, a position opposed by the Malaysian Employers Federation. Amendments to the Islamic Family Law Act standardise state provisions on polygamy, divorce and inheritance for Muslims. Violence against women is a problem.

The minimum age of employment is 14, but exceptions are possible for public entertainment, work in training institutions or work as an approved apprentice. Children are limited to 6 hours of work a day for 6 days a week. Reliable estimates of the number of child workers are difficult find. Most child labourers work in the agricultural sector helping their parents, where only adult members of the family farm are paid. Government officials maintain that foreign workers have largely replaced child labour and that child labour provisions are enforced.

Workers have the right to form and join trade unions, except public sector workers, defence and police officials and those classified as "confidential, managerial and executive." 9% of the labour force is organised in 617 trade unions. Collective bargaining is permitted within limits but not for public servants. Issues of transfer, dismissal and reinstatement are regarded as internal management prerogatives and are excluded from collective bargaining, despite this being in contravention of ILO standards. Restrictions on work permits effectively bar foreign workers from union membership. The Malaysian Trade Union Congress (MTUC) reports delays in union recognition. There is a ban on the formation of national unions in the electronics sector, the country's largest industry.

Unions are independent of government and political parties, and union officers may not hold a principal office in a political party. There are 2 national labour confederations, the MTUC and the Congress of Unions of Employees in the Public and Civil Service. Public servants have the right to organise at the ministry level; the ILO has requested details regarding the collective bargaining agreements reached with civil service unions. International affiliation is permitted. Strikes are legal, but the right to strike is severely restricted. The list of essential services includes sectors not normally deemed essential under ILO definitions. Labour laws apply in free trade zones.

Forced or compulsory labour is prohibited, and the legislation is enforced. Market forces determine wages and no minimum wage exists. Citizens have a decent standard of living, but the same cannot be said for migrant workers. The work day is 8 hours. Contracts for household servants are vague and open to abuse. Contracts do not specify the number of working hours per day.