SIXTY-FOUR per cent of Malaysians have reported experiencing some form of discrimination in the past 12 months, a recent survey by Architects of Diversity reveals.

Socio-economic status topped the types of discrimination faced in the past year with 38%, followed by age (33%) and ethnicity (32%). 

The findings showed Hindus were more likely to experience religious-based discrimination at 40%, against Muslims (20%), Christians (26%) and Buddhists (22%). 

“Discrimination was primarily experienced on social media at 32%, and at the workplace while looking for jobs (30%) and at work (29%),” the report showed. 

The report also revealed that 51% of Indians reported having experienced higher level of discrimination than their peers when applying for jobs. 

“Some 35% of Indians face discrimination when looking for house and 21% face this issue when dealing with the police,” the report said.

The survey was conducted from August 4 to 23, involving adults aged 18 and above. A total of 3,238 of 3,241 responses were included in the final sample after exclusion of responses with invalid demographic data and non-Malaysians. 

At work, the data showed 72% East Malaysians were likely to experience discrimination related to work conditions, while Indians (60%) and Malays (56%) experienced pay-related discrimination than the Chinese and other Bumiputera peers. 

Meanwhile, the findings also revealed that each major religious group – Muslims, Christians, Buddhist and Hindus – felt their own groups experienced the most discrimination. 

“Eighty-one per cent of Hindu respondents felt their own religious group experienced a lot more discrimination than Christians (73%), Buddhist (63%) and Muslims (59%),” the report showed. 

The findings showed 55% of the respondents did not report the discrimination faced. 

“Respondents said they chose not to report mainly due to having no evidence or difficulty in producing evidence (32%) and higher barriers in terms of time or money (32%),” it revealed. 

Malaysians were generally split when asked about their satisfaction with the current government’s initiative to solve discrimination, with 45% saying they were very satisfied or slightly satisfied, while 40% said they were slightly dissatisfied or not satisfied at all.

Most respondents felt that creating a law and raising awareness could resolve the issue in the country. – September 14, 2023.