SINGAPORE — The furore over an anti-cross protest at a church in Selangor that has grabbed headlines over the past week is a development in Malaysian politics that has been brewing for some time and is a result of actions taken by the dominant Malay party in the country as it seeks to shore up its popularity among the majority race in the nation.

Analysts and observers said race and religion have always featured in Malaysian politics, but the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) has until now focused on the racial angle as leverage to strengthen its grip on power — the most obvious example being the bumiputra policy. But this has changed after UMNO’s poor showing in the 2013 general election, where the party lost the popular vote; the battle lines are now also drawn around religion.

Analysts added that this does not bode well for Malaysia. Social order, which is already tenuous, will come under further pressure as positions harden and moderate segments of society push back against those politicising race and religion.

… According to Dr Mohamed Nawab Mohamed Osman, Head of the Malaysia Programme at S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies, this was the first sign that Malaysian society was getting worried about growing extremist elements.

“Prior to the G25, what we saw were small groups such as the Sisters of Islam and Global Movement of Moderates that served as of voices of reason,” he observed.