]! ^! During the late 18th and 19th centuries, Great Britain established colonies and protectorates in the area of current Malaysia; these were occupied by Japan from 1942 to 1945. In 1948, the British-ruled territories on the Malay Peninsula formed the Federation of Malaya, which became independent in 1957. Malaysia was formed in 1963 when the former British colonies of Singapore and the East Malaysian states of Sabah and Sarawak on the northern coast of Borneo joined the Federation. The first several years of the country's history were marred by Indonesian efforts to control Malaysia, Philippine claims to Sabah, and Singapore's secession from the Federation in 1965. During the 22-year term of Prime Minister MAHATHIR bin Mohamad (1981-2003), Malaysia was successful in diversifying its economy from dependence on exports of raw materials, to expansion in manufacturing, services, and tourism. 
]" ^" Southeastern Asia, peninsula bordering Thailand and northern one-third of the island of Borneo, bordering Indonesia, Brunei, and the South China Sea, south of Vietnam ^# 2 30 N, 112 30 E ^$ Southeast Asia ^% `! 329,750 sq km `" 328,550 sq km `# 1,200 sq km ^& slightly larger than New Mexico ^' `! 2,669 km `Y Brunei 381 km, Indonesia 1,782 km, Thailand 506 km ^( 4,675 km (Peninsular Malaysia 2,068 km, East Malaysia 2,607 km) ^) `$ 12 nm `N 200 nm `O 200 m depth or to the depth of exploitation; specified boundary in the South China Sea ^* tropical; annual southwest (April to October) and northeast (October to February) monsoons ^+ coastal plains rising to hills and mountains ^, `% Indian Ocean 0 m `& Gunung Kinabalu 4,100 m ^- tin, petroleum, timber, copper, iron ore, natural gas, bauxite ^. `' 5.46% `( 17.54% `) 77% (2005) ^/ 3,650 sq km (2003) ^0 flooding, landslides, forest fires ^1 air pollution from industrial and vehicular emissions; water pollution from raw sewage; deforestation; smoke/haze from Indonesian forest fires _P `P Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands ^2 strategic location along Strait of Malacca and southern South China Sea 
]# ^3 24,821,286 (July 2007 est.) ^4 `+ 32.2% (male 4,118,086/female 3,884,403) `, 62.9% (male 7,838,166/female 7,785,833) `- 4.8% (male 526,967/female 667,831) (2007 est.) ^5 `! 24.4 years `. 23.8 years `/ 25 years (2007 est.) ^6 1.759% (2007 est.) ^7 22.65 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) ^8 5.05 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) ^9 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population `* does not reflect net flow of an unknown number of illegal immigrants from other countries in the region (2007 est.) ^: `0 1.07 male(s)/female `1 1.06 male(s)/female `, 1.007 male(s)/female `- 0.789 male(s)/female `2 1.012 male(s)/female (2007 est.) ^; `! 16.62 deaths/1,000 live births `. 19.26 deaths/1,000 live births `/ 13.8 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.) ^< `2 72.76 years `. 70.05 years `/ 75.65 years (2007 est.) ^= 3.01 children born/woman (2007 est.) ^> 0.4% (2003 est.) ^? 52,000 (2003 est.) ^@ 2,000 (2003 est.) _` `h high `i bacterial diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever vectorborne diseases: dengue fever and malaria are high risks in some locations (2007) ^A `3 Malaysian(s) `4 Malaysian ^B Malay 50.4%, Chinese 23.7%, indigenous 11%, Indian 7.1%, others 7.8% (2004 est.) ^C Muslim, Buddhist, Daoist, Hindu, Christian, Sikh; note - in addition, Shamanism is practiced in East Malaysia ^D Bahasa Melayu (official), English, Chinese (Cantonese, Mandarin, Hokkien, Hakka, Hainan, Foochow), Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Panjabi, Thai `* in East Malaysia there are several indigenous languages; most widely spoken are Iban and Kadazan ^E `5 age 15 and over can read and write `2 88.7% `. 92% `/ 85.4% (2002) 
]$ ^F `6 none `7 Malaysia `Z none `[ Malaysia `\ Federation of Malaya ^H constitutional monarchy `* nominally headed by paramount ruler and a bicameral Parliament consisting of a nonelected upper house and an elected lower house; all Peninsular Malaysian states have hereditary rulers except Melaka and Pulau Pinang (Penang); those two states along with Sabah and Sarawak in East Malaysia have governors appointed by government; powers of state governments are limited by federal constitution; under terms of federation, Sabah and Sarawak retain certain constitutional prerogatives (e.g., right to maintain their own immigration controls); Sabah holds 25 seats in House of Representatives; Sarawak holds 28 seats in House of Representatives ^I `8 Kuala Lumpur `9 3 10 N, 101 42 E `: UTC+8 (13 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) `* Putrajaya is referred to as administrative center not capital; Parliament meets in Kuala Lumpur ^J 13 states (negeri-negeri, singular - negeri) Johor, Kedah, Kelantan, Melaka, Negeri Sembilan, Pahang, Perak, Perlis, Pulau Pinang, Sabah, Sarawak, Selangor, and Terengganu; and one federal territory (wilayah persekutuan) with three components, city of Kuala Lumpur, Labuan, and Putrajaya ^K 31 August 1957 (from UK) ^L Independence Day/Malaysia Day, 31 August (1957) ^M 31 August 1957; amended 16 September 1963 ^N based on English common law; judicial review of legislative acts in the Supreme Court at request of supreme head of the federation; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction; Islamic law is applied to Muslims in matters of family law and religion ^O 21 years of age; universal ^P `; Paramount Ruler Sultan MIZAN Zainal Abidin (since 13 December 2006) `< Prime Minister ABDULLAH bin Ahmad Badawi (since 31 October 2003); Deputy Prime Minister Mohamed NAJIB bin Abdul Razak (since 7 January 2004) `= Cabinet appointed by the prime minister from among the members of Parliament with consent of the paramount ruler `> paramount ruler elected by and from the hereditary rulers of nine of the states for five-year terms; election last held on 3 November 2006 (next to be held in 2011); prime minister designated from among the members of the House of Representatives; following legislative elections, the leader of the party that wins a plurality of seats in the House of Representatives becomes prime minister `? Sultan MIZAN Zainal Abidin elected paramount ruler ^Q bicameral Parliament or Parlimen consists of the Senate or Dewan Negara (70 seats; 44 appointed by the paramount ruler, 26 appointed by the state legislatures) and the House of Representatives or Dewan Rakyat (219 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms) `> House of Representatives - last held on 21 March 2004 (next must be held by 2009) `? House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - BN 91%, DAP 5%, PAS 3%, other 1%; seats by party - BN 199, DAP 12, PAS 6, PKR 1, independent 1 ^R Federal Court (judges appointed by the paramount ruler on the advice of the prime minister) ^S National Front (Barisan Nasional) or BN (ruling coalition) (consists of the following parties: Gerakan Rakyat Malaysia Party or PGRM [KOH Tsu Koon - acting]; Liberal Democratic Party (Parti Liberal Demokratik - Sabah) or LDP [LIEW Vui Keong]; Malaysian Chinese Association (Persatuan China Malaysia) or MCA [ONG Ka Ting]; Malaysian Indian Congress (Kongresi India Malaysia) or MIC [S. Samy VELLU]; Parti Bersatu Rakyat Sabah or PBRS [Joseph KURUP]; Parti Bersatu Sabah or PBS [Joseph PAIRIN Kitingan]; Parti Pesaka Bumiputera Bersatu or PBB [Patinggi Haji Abdul TAIB Mahmud]; Parti Rakyat Sarawak or PRS [James MASING]; Sabah Progressive Party (Parti Progresif Sabah) or SAPP [YONG Teck Lee]; Sarawak United People's Party (Parti Bersatu Rakyat Sarawak) or SUPP [George CHAN Hong Nam]; United Malays National Organization or UMNO [ABDULLAH bin Ahmad Badawi]; United Pasokmomogun Kadazandusun Murut Organization (Pertubuhan Pasko Momogun Kadazan Dusun Bersatu) or UPKO [Bernard DOMPOK]; People's Progressive Party (Parti Progresif Penduduk Malaysia) or PPP [M.Keyveas]; Sarawak Progressive Democratic Party or SPDP [William MAWANI]); opposition parties: Alternative Front (Barisan Alternatif) or BA (consists of PAS and PKR); Democratic Action Party (Parti Tindakan Demokratik) or DAP [KARPAL Singh]; Islamic Party of Malaysia (Parti Islam se Malaysia) or PAS [Abdul HADI Awang]; People's Justice Party (Parti Keadilan Rakyat) or PKR [WAN AZIZAH Wan Ismael]; Sarawak National Party or SNAP [Edwin DUNDANG] ^T NA ^U APEC, APT, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN, BIS, C, CP, EAS, FAO, G-15, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IPU, ISO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, MINURSO, MONUC, NAM, OIC, OPCW, PCA, PIF (partner), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO ^V `R Ambassador RAJMAH binti Hussain `S 3516 International Court NW, Washington, DC 20008 `T [1] (202) 572-9700 `U [1] (202) 572-9882 `V Los Angeles, New York ^W `R Ambassador Christopher J. LAFLEUR `_ 376 Jalan Tun Razak, Kuala Lumpur 50440 `` US Embassy Kuala Lumpur, APO AP 96535-8152 `T [60] (3) 2168-5000 `U [60] (3) 2142-2207 ^X 14 equal horizontal stripes of red (top) alternating with white (bottom); there is a blue rectangle in the upper hoist-side corner bearing a yellow crescent and a yellow 14-pointed star; the crescent and the star are traditional symbols of Islam; the design was based on the flag of the US 
]% ^Y Malaysia, a middle-income country, transformed itself from 1971 through the late 1990s from a producer of raw materials into an emerging multi-sector economy. Growth was almost exclusively driven by exports - particularly of electronics. As a result, Malaysia was hard hit by the global economic downturn and the slump in the information technology (IT) sector in 2001 and 2002. The economy grew 4.9% in 2003, notwithstanding a difficult first half, when external pressures from Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) and the Iraq War led to caution in the business community. Growth topped 7% in 2004 and 5% per year in 2005-06. As an oil and gas exporter, Malaysia has profited from higher world energy prices, although the rising cost of domestic gasoline and diesel fuel forced Kuala Lumpur to reduce government subsidies, contributing to higher inflation. Malaysia "unpegged" the ringgit from the US dollar in 2005 and the currency appreciated 6% against the dollar in 2006. Healthy foreign exchange reserves and a small external debt greatly reduce the risk that Malaysia will experience a financial crisis over the near term similar to the one in 1997. The economy remains dependent on continued growth in the US, China, and Japan - top export destinations and key sources of foreign investment. The government presented its five-year national development agenda in April 2006 through the Ninth Malaysia Plan, a comprehensive blueprint for the allocation of the national budget from 2006-10. The plan targets the development of higher value-added manufacturing and an expansion of the services sector. ^Z $308.8 billion (2006 est.) ^[ $131.8 billion (2006 est.) ^\ 5.5% (2006 est.) ^] $12,700 (2006 est.) ^^ `@ 8.3% `A 48.1% `B 43.6% (2006 est.) ^_ 10.73 million (2006 est.) ^` `@ 13% `A 36% `B 51% (2005 est.) ^a 3.5% (2006 est.) _! 5.1% (2002 est.) _" `C 1.4% `D 39.2% (2003 est.) _d 46.1 (2002) _# 3.8% (2006 est.) _V 19.9% of GDP (2006 est.) _$ `E $31.63 billion `F $37 billion; including capital expenditures of $9.4 billion (2006 est.) _% 46.7% of GDP (2006 est.) _& Peninsular Malaysia - rubber, palm oil, cocoa, rice; Sabah - subsistence crops, rubber, timber, coconuts, rice; Sarawak - rubber, pepper, timber _' Peninsular Malaysia - rubber and oil palm processing and manufacturing, light manufacturing, electronics, tin mining and smelting, logging, timber processing; Sabah - logging, petroleum production; Sarawak - agriculture processing, petroleum production and refining, logging _( 5.8% (2006 est.) _) 78.24 billion kWh (2004) _* 72.71 billion kWh (2004) _+ 50 million kWh (2004) _, 0 kWh (2004) _- 770,000 bbl/day (2005 est.) _. 515,000 bbl/day (2004 est.) _/ 230,200 bbl/day (2003) _0 NA bbl/day _W 3.1 billion bbl (2006 est.) _1 62.43 billion cu m (2004 est.) _2 32.97 billion cu m (2004 est.) _X 29.46 billion cu m (2004 est.) _Y 0 cu m (2004 est.) _Z 2.124 trillion cu m (1 January 2005 est.) _Q $17.86 billion (2006 est.) _3 $158.7 billion f.o.b. (2006 est.) _4 electronic equipment, petroleum and liquefied natural gas, wood and wood products, palm oil, rubber, textiles, chemicals _5 US 19.7%, Singapore 15.6%, Japan 9.3%, China 6.6%, Hong Kong 5.8%, Thailand 5.4% (2005) _6 $127.3 billion f.o.b. (2006 est.) _7 electronics, machinery, petroleum products, plastics, vehicles, iron and steel products, chemicals _8 Japan 14.6%, US 13%, Singapore 11.8%, China 11.6%, Taiwan 5.6%, Thailand 5.3%, South Korea 5%, Germany 4.5% (2005) _[ $82.3 billion (2006 est.) _9 $57.77 billion (30 June 2006 est.) _; ringgit (MYR) _< ringgits per US dollar - 3.6683 (2006), 3.8 (2005), 3.8 (2004), 3.8 (2003), 3.8 (2002) _= calendar year 
]& _> 4.366 million (2005) _? 19.545 million (2005) _@ `G modern system; international service excellent `H good intercity service provided on Peninsular Malaysia mainly by microwave radio relay; adequate intercity microwave radio relay network between Sabah and Sarawak via Brunei; domestic satellite system with 2 earth stations `I country code - 60; submarine cables to India, Hong Kong, and Singapore; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Indian Ocean, 1 Pacific Ocean) (2001) _A AM 35, FM 391, shortwave 15 (2001) _B 88 (mainland Malaysia 51, Sabah 16, and Sarawak 21) (2006) _C .my _D 158,650 (2006) _E 11.016 million (2005) 
]' _F 117 (2006) _G `! 37 `a 5 `J 9 `b 8 `c 8 `W 7 (2006) _R `! 80 `b 1 `c 7 `W 72 (2006) _] 2 (2006) _^ condensate 282 km; gas 5,372 km; oil 1,715 km; oil/gas/water 19 km; refined products 114 km (2006) _e `! 1,890 km `m 57 km 1.435-m gauge (57 km electrified) `n 1,833 km 1.000-m gauge (150 km electrified) (2005) _H `! 98,721 km `K 80,280 km (includes 1,821 km of expressways) `L 18,441 km (2004) _b 7,200 km `* Peninsular Malaysia 3,200 km; Sabah 1,500 km; Sarawak 2,500 km (2005) _S `! 312 ships (1000 GRT or over) 5,542,727 GRT/7,544,154 DWT by type: bulk carrier 19, cargo 99, chemical tanker 38, container 48, liquefied gas 27, livestock carrier 1, passenger/cargo 8, petroleum tanker 61, roll on/roll off 5, vehicle carrier 6 `X 66 (China 1, Germany 2, Hong Kong 14, Japan 4, South Korea 1, Singapore 44) `d 68 (Bahamas 12, Belize 1, Cayman Islands 1, Mongolia 1, Panama 13, Philippines 1, Singapore 35, US 4) (2006) _I Bintulu, Johor, Labuan, Lahad Datu, Lumut, Miri, George Town (Penang), Port Kelang, Tanjung Pelepas 
]( _J Malaysian Armed Forces (Angkatan Tentera Malaysia, ATM): Malaysian Army (Tentera Darat Malaysia), Royal Malaysian Navy (Tentera Laut Diraja Malaysia, TLDM), Royal Malaysian Air Force (Tentera Udara Diraja Malaysia, TUDM) (2006) _T 18 years of age for voluntary military service (2005) _K males age 18-49: 5,584,231 females age 18-49: 5,510,345 (2005 est.) Manpower fit for military service: males age 18-49: 4,574,854 females age 18-49: 4,613,321 (2005 est.) _L males age 18-49: 244,418 females age 18-49: 231,896 (2005 est.) _U 2.03% (2005 est.) 
]) _N Malaysia has asserted sovereignty over the Spratly Islands together with China, Philippines, Taiwan, Vietnam, and possibly Brunei; while the 2002 "Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea" has eased tensions over the Spratly Islands, it is not the legally binding "code of conduct" sought by some parties; Malaysia was not party to the March 2005 joint accord among the national oil companies of China, the Philippines, and Vietnam on conducting marine seismic activities in the Spratly Islands; disputes continue over deliveries of fresh water to Singapore, Singapore's land reclamation, bridge construction, and maritime boundaries in the Johor and Singapore Straits; in November 2007, the ICJ will hold public hearings in response to the Memorials and Countermemorials filed by the parties in 2003 and 2005 over sovereignty of Pedra Branca Island/Pulau Batu Puteh, Middle Rocks and South Ledge; ICJ awarded Ligitan and Sipadan islands, also claimed by Indonesia and Philippines, to Malaysia but left maritime boundary and sovereignty of Unarang rock in the hydrocarbon-rich Celebes Sea in dispute; separatist violence in Thailand's predominantly Muslim southern provinces prompts measures to close and monitor border with Malaysia to stem terrorist activities; Philippines retains a dormant claim to Malaysia's Sabah State in northern Borneo; Brunei and Malaysia are still considering international adjudication over their disputed offshore and deepwater seabeds, where hydrocarbon exploration was terminated in 2003; Malaysia's land boundary with Brunei around Limbang is in dispute; piracy remains a problem in the Malacca Strait _c `o 19,153 (Indonesia), 14,208 (Burma) (2006) __ `f Malaysia is a destination and, to a lesser extent, a source and transit country for men and women trafficked for the purposes of sexual exploitation and forced labor; foreign victims, mostly women and girls from China, Indonesia, Thailand, the Philippines, and Vietnam, are trafficked to Malaysia for commercial sexual exploitation; economic migrants from countries in the region who work as domestic servants or laborers in the construction and agricultural sectors face exploitative conditions in Malaysia that meet the definition of involuntary servitude; some Malaysian women, primarily of Chinese ethnicity, are trafficked abroad for sexual exploitation `g Tier 2 Watch List - Malaysia is placed on Tier 2 Watch List for its failure to provide evidence of increasing efforts to combat trafficking, particularly its failure to provide protection for victims of trafficking _O drug trafficking prosecuted vigorously and carries severe penalties; heroin still primary drug of abuse, but synthetic drug demand remains strong; continued ecstasy and methamphetamine producer for domestic users and, to a lesser extent, the regional drug market 