Country Foundations

Malaysia

Constitution in force since 1957, 64,080 words. Rights measured for 2023.

Declared
40%
mean across compared rights
Practiced
65%
mean across compared rights
Gap
+25%
delivers more than promised
Executive respects constitution
67%
V-Dem, measured directly

The rights ledger

Each row compares what the constitution declares against what is measured in practice. The two values are always shown together — a gap on its own is easy to misread.

Declared in the constitutionPracticed (measured)Falls short / exceeds
0255075100Right to life — declared 100%, practiced 85%, gap −15%Right to life100%85%−15%Freedom from torture — declared 0%, practiced 64%, gap +64%Freedom from torture0%64%+64%Freedom from slavery and forced labour — declared 50%, practiced 74%, gap +24%Freedom from slavery and forced labour50%74%+24%Freedom from arbitrary detention (habeas corpus) — declared 100%, practiced 65%, gap −35%Freedom from arbitrary detention (ha…100%65%−35%Right to a fair and public trial — declared 0%, practiced 59%, gap +59%Right to a fair and public trial0%59%+59%Presumption of innocence — declared 0%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Presumption of innocenceno practice measure0%——Right to legal counsel — declared 100%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Right to legal counselno practice measure100%——Protection from self-incrimination — declared 0%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Protection from self-incriminationno practice measure0%——Protection from double jeopardy — declared 100%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Protection from double jeopardyno practice measure100%——Due process of law — declared 0%, practiced 47%, gap +47%Due process of law0%47%+47%Trial by jury or lay participation — declared 0%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Trial by jury or lay participationno practice measure0%——Freedom of expression — declared 100%, practiced 60%, gap −40%Freedom of expression100%60%−40%Freedom of the press — declared 0%, practiced 51%, gap +51%Freedom of the press0%51%+51%Freedom of thought and conscience — declared 0%, practiced 62%, gap +62%Freedom of thought and conscience0%62%+62%Freedom of religion — declared 100%, practiced 53%, gap −47%Freedom of religion100%53%−47%Separation of religion and state — declared 0%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Separation of religion and stateno practice measure0%——Academic freedom — declared 0%, practiced 51%, gap +51%Academic freedom0%51%+51%Freedom of assembly — declared 100%, practiced 51%, gap −49%Freedom of assembly100%51%−49%Freedom of association — declared 100%, practiced 70%, gap −30%Freedom of association100%70%−30%Right to petition government — declared 0%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Right to petition governmentno practice measure0%——Right to form and join trade unions — declared 0%, practiced 56%, gap +56%Right to form and join trade unions0%56%+56%Right to vote and universal suffrage — declared 0%, practiced 77%, gap +77%Right to vote and universal suffrage0%77%+77%Right to privacy — declared 0%, practiced 70%, gap +70%Right to privacy0%70%+70%Freedom of movement — declared 100%, practiced 82%, gap −18%Freedom of movement100%82%−18%Right to asylum — declared 0%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Right to asylumno practice measure0%——Right to own property — declared 63%, practiced 74%, gap +11%Right to own property63%74%+11%Equality before the law — declared 100%, practiced 64%, gap −36%Equality before the law100%64%−36%Right to education — declared 0%, practiced 75%, gap +75%Right to education0%75%+75%Right to health care — declared 0%, practiced 83%, gap +83%Right to health care0%83%+83%Right to shelter or housing — declared 0%, practiced 57%, gap +57%Right to shelter or housing0%57%+57%Independent judiciary — declared 0%, practiced 67%, gap +67%Independent judiciary0%67%+67%Right to bear arms — declared 0%, practiced — (no comparable practice measure)Right to bear armsno practice measure0%——decl.prac.gap

· marks a right with no provision in that country’s constitution. Scores run 0–100; practiced values are V-Dem indicators normalized across all country-years.

Promise and practice over time

The declared line steps when the constitution changes. The practiced line moves when behaviour does. The distance between those two moments is the part worth looking at.

Declared (the text)Practiced (measured)The text changed
05010019752000

Mean across the 23 rights measured on both sides, 1957–2023. Vertical marks show years when the constitutional text changed enough to move the declared score.

Promised, but not delivered

  • Freedom from arbitrary detention (habeas corpus) −35%
  • Freedom of expression −40%
  • Freedom of religion −47%
  • Freedom of assembly −49%

Delivered, though never promised

  • Freedom from torture +64%
  • Right to a fair and public trial +59%
  • Due process of law +47%
  • Freedom of the press +51%

Declared internationally

A constitution is only one place a country makes promises. These are the nine core UN human rights treaties.

Civil & Political Rights (ICCPR)no action
Economic, Social & Cultural Rights (ICESCR)no action
Racial Discrimination (ICERD)no action
Discrimination against Women (CEDAW)ratified 1995
Convention against Torture (CAT)no action
Rights of the Child (CRC)ratified 1995
Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD)ratified 2010
Enforced Disappearance (CPED)no action
Migrant Workers (ICMW)no action

Compare with

AfghanistanAlbaniaAlgeriaAngolaArgentinaArmeniaAustraliaAzerbaijanBahrainBangladeshBarbadosBelarusBelgiumBeninBhutanBoliviaBosnia and HerzegovinaBotswanaBrazilBulgariaBurkina FasoBurma/MyanmarBurundiCambodiaCameroonCanadaCape VerdeCentral African RepublicChadChileChinaColombiaComorosCosta RicaCroatiaCubaCyprusDemocratic Republic of the CongoDenmarkDjiboutiDominican RepublicEcuadorEgyptEl SalvadorEquatorial GuineaEritreaEstoniaEswatiniEthiopiaFijiFinlandFranceGabonGeorgiaGhanaGreeceGuatemalaGuineaGuinea-BissauGuyana

Data generated 2026-08-08.