State Rulers and Federal Constitution

THE constitutional position of state Rulers has been in the news lately and there is bitter controversy over several issues. What can be agreed is that historically, there were several sovereign Malay states on the peninsula with absolute Rulers.

But between 1511 and 1946, successive Portuguese, Dutch, Siamese, British and Japanese colonial governments wrested away most of the royal powers except in matters of Islam, Malay adat and palace affairs.