Malaysian Son: A progressive’s political journey in the heart of Southeast Asia

A passionate account about the coming of age of a young Malaysian politician

Malaysian Son is the story of Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad, the Member of Parliament (MP) for Setiawangsa. Growing up privileged under the authoritarian regime of Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad, the imprisonment of Anwar Ibrahim led him to join the Reformasi movement. As a member of the multiracial People’s Justice Party (KEADILAN), he later became the youngest elected state representative in the 2008 General Elections. In 2018, as Youth Leader of the Pakatan Harapan (PH) coalition, he participated in the 2018 campaign against Prime Minister Najib Razak, spending time in jail and the courts. PH achieved a historic victory but, in spite of warnings from Nik who was a backbench MP, failed to achieve a cohesive and stable government. It eventually collapsed in 2020, leading to years of political instability that has yet to abate. Malaysian Son is a must read for all who want to understand the country’s tumultuous recent history.