{
  "id": 7025128,
  "title": "Moving from identity politics to citizenship politics",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/13/moving-from-identity-politics-to-citizenship-politics",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-09-13T00:00:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Free Malaysia Today",
    "slug": "free-malaysia-today",
    "url": "https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/opinion/2026/09/13/moving-from-identity-politics-to-citizenship-politics"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Malaysia's national survival relies on a foundation of everyday kindness and pluralism, where neighbors help one another without concern for identity cards, and people of different backgrounds play together and live in harmony. However, this peaceful reality is threatened by political machinations that aim to undermine this unity. Our complex identities—neighbours, workers, parents, children of a specific land, and participants in shared civic life—often get stripped down by politics into one single, rigid category, as warned by Amin Maalouf and Amartya Sen. This \"miniaturisation\" of individuals into predetermined tribal boxes erodes the beauty and complexity of Malaysian society. Political parties, such as PAS, Umno, and Bersatu, employ majoritarian identity strategies to strengthen Malay Muslim unity, claiming that Islam and Malays are under threat. This manufactured fear undermines rational concerns like economic well-being and cross-cultural empathy, pushing citizens into a zero-sum game where they must view their neighbors as adversaries. This division leaves no room for moderation and creates permanent political outsiders. Malaysia stands at a crossroads: defending the middle ground of pluralism or succumbing to the seductive trap of exclusive identity politics. The writer urges Malaysians to move away from identity politics and embrace the politics of citizenship, where every Malaysian, regardless of race or religion, is a valued citizen. The unity of Malaysians should be the priority, as a house built on exclusion and subjugation cannot stand.",
  "summary": "Calling for Muslim unity means drawing a circle to leave out the non-Muslims, just as calling for non-Muslim unity will draw a circle to leave out the Muslims; and the immediate casualty is the fragile middle ground.",
  "key_points": [
    "Malaysia's unity depends on everyday kindness and pluralism.",
    "Political parties use identity strategies to strengthen Malay Muslim unity.",
    "Writer urges Malaysians to embrace citizenship politics over identity politics."
  ],
  "editors_take": "Shifting from identity politics to citizenship politics would allow Malaysians to reclaim their diversity as a strength, rather than a weakness to be exploited for political gain.",
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Free Malaysia Today",
        "title": "Moving from identity politics to citizenship politics",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/13/moving-from-identity-politics-to-citizenship-politics-7026709",
        "published": "2026-09-13T00:00:00.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}