PETALING JAYA: More young people feel they are treated unfairly, according to a survey conducted by Merdeka Centre.
More than half of respondents, or 58%, believe they are unfairly treated, and this was a deterioration from the 43% of those polled in January last year.
On Friday (Sept 6), the opinion research firm launched its Malaysian Youth Survey Findings 2024 based on feedback from 1,605 respondents aged from 18 to 30 years old from different ethnic groups.
The findings were presented by Merdeka Centre senior research officer Fadhil Rahman
The survey also found that there was mistrust between youths of different races.
Merdeka Center programme director Ibrahim Suffian said that the degree of mistrust depends on where the respondents are from.
“Those from the east coast and northern region are generally more distrustful, as they interact less with other races.
“Whereas those from the west coast are more trusting, as they see more representation of different races in government too,” he said after the launch here.
“Those from lower income groups distrust those in higher income groups as well,” Ibrahim added.
He said that more interactions between races are key to a trusting and harmonious relationship.
The report also showed that mingling among races is lacking, as more than a quarter (28%) of all respondents said they do not interact with others from different ethnic groups.
Fadhil Rahman said that more than half of the respondents (56%) trust the Federal Government and feel positive about the ministers' policies.
However, trust towards the politicians is much lower at 31%, and the distrust is the same across gender, religion and region.
"Youths feel that the politicians and political parties are not affecting changes and not performing," he said.
He recommends that the country tackle discrimination and conservatism by cultivating interactions among communities and schools.
“Politicians should work on building a positive image by showing relevance in the public not only during elections,” he said.
