Barisan Alternatif (BA, Alternative Front in Malay) is a coalition of Malaysian opposition parties, formed as a counterweight to the ruling Barisan Nasional. The Malay language, also known locally as Bahasa Melayu, is an Austronesian language spoken by the Malay people who are native to the Malay peninsula, southern Thailand, Singapore and parts of Sumatra. ... Barisan Nasional (National Front) is a political coalition in Malaysia. ...

Formation

The impetus for the BA's formation was the September 20, 1999 arrest and subsequent conviction of former UMNO deputy prime minister Anwar Ibrahim, who had been fired from his government posts and subsequently became the leader of the Reformasi movement against UMNO. On October 24, 1999, the four largest opposition parties -- the Islamic Party of Malaysia (PAS), the Democratic Action Party (DAP), the National Justice Party (Keadilan) and the Malaysian People's Party -- announced an electoral alliance and issued a joint manifesto. September 20 is the 263rd day of the year (264th in leap years). ... 1999 is a common year starting on Friday of the Common Era, and was designated the International Year of Older Persons by the United Nations. ... The United Malays National Organisation (UMNO), Pertubuhan Kebangsaan Melayu Bersatu in Malay, is the largest political party in Malaysia and a founding member of the Barisan Nasional coalition, which has ruled the country uninterrupted since independence. ... Anwar Ibrahim and child in 2004. ... October 24 is the 297th day of the year (298th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 68 days remaining. ... 1999 is a common year starting on Friday of the Common Era, and was designated the International Year of Older Persons by the United Nations. ... PAS logo YAB Tuan Guru Dato Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat, PAS Mursyidul Am (Spiritual Advisor) The Islamic Party of Malaysia (also PAS, from the Malay Parti Islam SeMalaysia) is an Islamic political party in Malaysia, headed by Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang. ... Democratic Action Party (DAP) logo The Democratic Action Party (DAP, Parti Tindakan Demokratik in Malay) is Malaysias largest secular opposition party. ... This article is about the Peoples Justice Party of Malaysia. ... This article is about the Peoples Justice Party of Malaysia. ... The Malaysian Peoples Party (PRM, Parti Rakyat Malaysia in Malay) is a Malaysian political party. ...

In the 1999 general elections, the BA cooperated to contest only one candidate in each constituency. The big winner was PAS, which captured the states of Kelantan and Terengganu and increased its parliamentary seats from 7 to 27. DAP increased its share from 7 to 10 and with two of its most prominent leaders, Lim Kit Siang and Karpal Singh losing their constituencies, a disappointing performance blamed mostly on its largely Chinese electorate's distrust of the alliance with PAS, and newly formed Keadilan, crippled by the detention of many of its leaders, took only 5 seats. The Barisan Nasional retained a 77% absolute majority with 148 of 193 seats. The 1999 Malaysian General Election was held on 29 November 1999 as stipulated by the laws of Malaysia for general elections. ... Map showing Kelantan in Peninsular Malaysia Kelantan (Jawi: كلنتان) is one of the states in Malaysia. ... State motto: no State motto Capital Kuala Terengganu Sultan Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin Chief Minister Dato Iblis Jusoh Area 12,955 km2 Population  - Estimated 1,500,000 State anthem Terengganu State Anthem Terengganu (Jawi: ترڠڬانو, formerly spelled Trengganu) is a state of Malaysia. ... Lim Kit Siang (born February 20, 1941; Chinese :林吉祥) is a prominent member of the socialist opposition party in Malaysia. ... Karpal Singh Ram Singh is the chairman of DAP, replacing long term chairman, Lim Kit Siang in 2004. ...

Fragmentation

From the very beginning, the alliance had been strained by PAS's unwillingness to publicly renounce its aim of making Malaysia an Islamic state, a position that was anathema to Malaysia's 45% non-Muslim minority, although a temporary compromise was achieved when PAS did not include the issue in the joint manifesto.

However, the strain increased after PAS's election victory and the minority parties' realization that they were losing votes to the fear of an Islamic state. Shortly after the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, the DAP announced its withdrawal from the Barisan Alternatif on September 21, 2001. The World Trade Center on fire The September 11, 2001 attacks were a series of coordinated terrorist attacks against the United States on September 11, 2001. ... September 21 is the 264th day of the year (265th in leap years). ... 2001 is a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

2004 General election

The split has led to infighting between the opposition parties in the 2004 general election. As they could not agree in the allocation of seats in each state, many seats had multiple contestants. Ties between Keadilan and PAS were also strained, as was evident in PAS' refusal to support Parti Rakyat Malaysia's bid in the Kota Bharu parliamentary seat. This term is normally used in political parties and sometimes in religious organizations to describe dissenters from a hegemony. ... General elections were held in Malaysia on March 21, 2004. ... Kota Bharu (or Kota Baru or Kota Baharu) is a town in Malaysia, and is the state capital of Kelantan. ...

See also: List of political parties in Malaysia, Politics of Malaysia