Malaysia has solely granted citizenship to 103 Chinese language nationals previously decade, opposite to deceptive claims on social media that the Chinese language inhabitants within the nation elevated by tens of millions. The posts surfaced after a Muslim cleric baselessly claimed a whole bunch of hundreds of Chinese language nationals have been buying Malaysian citizenship.
“The start price among the many Malays is 64.7 % whereas among the many Chinese language it’s 9.7 %,” learn a Malay-language TikTok publish from November 1, 2024.
“It is unusual that there’s a 8 million improve within the variety of the Chinese language inhabitants. The place did so a lot of them come from?”
The publish racked up greater than 37,000 views.
Screenshot of the deceptive TikTok publish, taken November 14, 2024.
A screenshot of the TikTok publish unfold on Fb right here, right here, right here and right here.
Comparable claims about 1.2 million Chinese language nationals supposedly buying Malaysian citizenship have circulated on-line since 2022 (archived hyperlink).
It was amplified in November by a Muslim preacher who reportedly claimed 1.2 million Chinese language nationals got Malaysian citizenship en masse. Police at the moment are investigating the cleric (archived hyperlink).
The resurgence of the declare prompted Malaysia’s House Minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail to rebuff the deceptive figures throughout a parliamentary session on November 7, 2024 (archived hyperlink).
He stated solely 103 Chinese language individuals, not 1.2 million, had been granted Malaysian citizenship since 2013, in accordance with the Malaysian Federal Structure since 2013.
“Those that got citizenship have been Chinese language nationals who’re married to locals,” the minister stated.
Saifuddin stated the 1.2 million determine was “unfaithful”. He added that 84,817 Chinese language nationals at present remained in Malaysia on social go to passes — referring to short-term visas issued to vacationers (archived hyperlink).
In the meantime, between January 1, 2018 to November 2024, Malaysia noticed greater than 8.4 million Chinese language vacationers enter the nation — together with 8 million who departed, he stated.
The remaining 479,300 included individuals who stayed within the nation for varied causes, together with these with long-term visas, particular passport purposes or these detained by authorities.
Present inhabitants
Malaysia is a multiracial nation of 34 million individuals, with an ethnic composition of Malays, Chinese language, Indians and different races.
Malays and indigenous peoples, collectively often known as Bumiputera, make up 70.4 % of the inhabitants, whereas Chinese language account for 22.4 % and Indians symbolize 6.5 %. Different races make up 0.7 % of the inhabitants.
Screenshot of the Division of Statistics present inhabitants estimates taken on November 14, 2024
In the meantime, the start price amongst Malays stands at 67 %, or 305,400, whereas the Chinese language made up 9.8 %, or 44,800. The start price amongst Indians was 4.4 %, or 20,000 (archived hyperlink).
