TO move away from identity politics, the government must get rid of the first-past-the post (FPTP) election system Malaysia inherited from the British, Bersih 2.0 said.

In its Merdeka Day message, the electoral reform coalition said the FPTP system provided “incentive for identity politics” because it encouraged a “winner takes all mentality”.

“This, coupled with our multi-ethnic society… produces political discourses that are extreme and divisive,” a statement from the Bersih steering committee said.

“As we celebrate this Merdeka Day, we urge the government and all parties to embrace a national conversation about moving away from FPTP towards a system with party-list proportional representation (list-PR) seats.

“This will ensure a wide representation of parties in parliament and eliminate their need to play up communal fear over internal division to mobilise votes,” it said.

The list-PR system can also overcome infighting over seat allocations which are inevitable in the FPTP system, Bersih added.

Under the alternative system, component parties could “compete openly and healthily against each other via party votes, instead of resorting to sabotage and scheming”, it said.

It will also allow quotas for women and other marginalised groups and give a direct mandate to parties which can, in turn, discourage party-hopping, Bersih said.

“Malaysia now has a unique opportunity to re-examine what are some of the structural factors that contribute both to our strength and weakness as a nation, and to take bold and even radical steps to address some of the institutional structures that contribute to the rise of identity politics, that is tearing our communities apart. 

“One of these structure is the way we elect our politicians and we must consider adopting a system that reduces incentive to use identity politics and one that encourages centrism, moderation and inclusiveness.” – August 30, 2019.