Malay supremacy

Ketuanan Melayu (Jawi script: كتوانان ملايو; literally "Malay dominance") is a political concept emphasising Malay preeminence in present-day Malaysia. The Malays of Malaysia claimed a special position and special rights owing to their long domicile and the fact that the present Malaysian state itself evolved from a Malay polity. The oldest political institution in Malaysia is the system of Malay rulers of the nine Malay states. British colonial government transformed the system and turned it first into a system of indirect rule, then in 1948, using this culturally based institution, they incorporated the Malay monarchy into the blueprints for the independent Federation of Malaya.

The term Tanah Melayu in its name which literally means "Malay homeland", assumes proprietorship of the Malay states. In this way Britain strengthened Malay ethno-nationalism, Malay ethnicity and culture and Malay sovereignty in the new nation-state. Though other cultures would continue to flourish, the identity of the emerging political community was to be shaped by the "historic" political culture of its dominant Malay ethnic group. The Chinese and Indian immigrants who form a significant minority in Malaysia, are considered beholden to the Malays for granting them citizenship in return for special privileges as set out in Article 153 of the Constitution of Malaysia. This quid pro quo arrangement is usually referred to as the Malaysian social contract. The concept of ketuanan Melayu is usually cited by politicians, particularly those from the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO), the most influential political party in Malaysia.

...
Wikipedia