Rule by exception : development, displacement and dissent In greater Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Thesis: M.C.P., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Urban Studies and Planning, 2017.

Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Prasad, Vishnu, M.C.P. Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Other Authors: Balakrishnan Rajagopal.
Format: Thesis
Language:eng
Published: Massachusetts Institute of Technology 2017
Subjects:
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/111423
_version_ 1826206785059422208
author Prasad, Vishnu, M.C.P. Massachusetts Institute of Technology
author2 Balakrishnan Rajagopal.
author_facet Balakrishnan Rajagopal.
Prasad, Vishnu, M.C.P. Massachusetts Institute of Technology
author_sort Prasad, Vishnu, M.C.P. Massachusetts Institute of Technology
collection MIT
description Thesis: M.C.P., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Urban Studies and Planning, 2017.
first_indexed 2024-09-23T13:38:18Z
format Thesis
id mit-1721.1/111423
institution Massachusetts Institute of Technology
language eng
last_indexed 2024-09-23T13:38:18Z
publishDate 2017
publisher Massachusetts Institute of Technology
record_format dspace
spelling mit-1721.1/1114232019-04-12T17:09:20Z Rule by exception : development, displacement and dissent In greater Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia Prasad, Vishnu, M.C.P. Massachusetts Institute of Technology Balakrishnan Rajagopal. Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Urban Studies and Planning. Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Urban Studies and Planning. Urban Studies and Planning. Thesis: M.C.P., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Urban Studies and Planning, 2017. Cataloged from PDF version of thesis. Includes bibliographical references (pages 91-97). My thesis looks at the relationship between development, displacement, and dissent in Greater Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Barring a brief four year period, independent Malaysia has continuously operated under a near-permanent state of constitutionally imposed emergencies. I look at the operation of one of the emergency regulations, the Essential Clearance of Squatters Regulations (ESCR, promulgated initially in 1969 and used until 2013) for the purposes of displacement and urban planning. Relying on archival research, interviews, and an in-depth case study, I seek to characterize the nature of urban development, particularly the operation of the law, in Kuala Lumpur. I make three broad arguments: 1. The use of squatter regulations for the purposes of urban planning started with the colonial emergency of 1948, when urbanization and development were used as primary elements of a military strategy to combat the Communist emergency. 2. Post-independence, however, the Malaysian state has increasingly used laws meant initially for counter-insurgency operations for the purposes of development. I argue that the urban planning in Kuala Lumpur must be seen as a form of urban law-fare (the use of techniques of war for political or economic ends; Comaroff, 2001) and that the creation of a "state of exception" (Agamben 2005), through the declaration of emergencies, has enabled the use of military ends as a normal technique of government. 3. Lastly, I look at the case of Kampung Berembang, perhaps the only successful case of resistance against the use of ESCR. I argue that the residents' re-positioning of themselves as peneroka bandar or urban pioneers (as opposed to squatters), using claims originating in Malay Customary law, were critical to reclaiming their rights as citizens. by Vishnu Prasad. M.C.P. 2017-09-15T15:33:32Z 2017-09-15T15:33:32Z 2017 2017 Thesis http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/111423 1003292277 eng MIT theses are protected by copyright. They may be viewed, downloaded, or printed from this source but further reproduction or distribution in any format is prohibited without written permission. http://dspace.mit.edu/handle/1721.1/7582 97 pages application/pdf a-my--- Massachusetts Institute of Technology
spellingShingle Urban Studies and Planning.
Prasad, Vishnu, M.C.P. Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Rule by exception : development, displacement and dissent In greater Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
title Rule by exception : development, displacement and dissent In greater Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
title_full Rule by exception : development, displacement and dissent In greater Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
title_fullStr Rule by exception : development, displacement and dissent In greater Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
title_full_unstemmed Rule by exception : development, displacement and dissent In greater Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
title_short Rule by exception : development, displacement and dissent In greater Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
title_sort rule by exception development displacement and dissent in greater kuala lumpur malaysia
topic Urban Studies and Planning.
url http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/111423
work_keys_str_mv AT prasadvishnumcpmassachusettsinstituteoftechnology rulebyexceptiondevelopmentdisplacementanddissentingreaterkualalumpurmalaysia