INTRODUCTION

This is the party of hardship (Parti Derita). This party was lifted by the have-nots, from the streets. The rich tycoons, the wealthy elites, [they] are not with us. The people with us are people like you. With the spirit and dreams for justice. We are not the smartest or the ones with the most resources, what we have are spirit and dreams. So rise up!

—PKR president Anwar Ibrahim, 2019 PKR congress

The People's Justice Party (PKR) in Malaysia was born out of crises. Unlike other parties that had the luxury of deciding on its ideology and strategy methodically, PKR needed to grapple with survival while its figurehead, Anwar Ibrahim, was jailed and its members regularly arrested and detained. Its opponents once said that “peace is a liability to PKR” and its members would not disagree with that.

Its success was never predestined, and no one could have guessed that the quarter-of-a-century struggle to make Anwar prime minister would one day come true. This was achieved in November 2022.

PKR's earliest supporters recount the days of arrests and job losses, and fleeing the country in the face of persecution for being associated with Anwar. As a party, PKR was often labelled the “weak link” in coalitions and its leader too accommodative, resulting in defections and indiscipline. Within the party, the financial rewards were thin, as party members often volunteered and self-organized, without monetary returns. Perhaps most brutal of all, Anwar had to endure politically motivated charges and be jailed twice, both times upending the party.

This is the party that fought on the streets, confronted authorities for the freedom of Anwar, and owned the narrative to change the government. It is never the party of the elite or the wealthy. It is a party of many hardships—it is “Parti Derita”.

This paper argues that PKR's core identity revolves around three characteristics. First, its big-tent approach in the pursuit of power. Since the beginning, PKR has pursued the politics of coalitions and became a critical intermediary in elevating opposition politics into a formidable force. Internally, the party also practises a big-tent approach for accessible and inclusive participation, in its multiracial composition and its direct election methods. Its focus on power also meant that it assumed the role of the narrative owner in every election, driving the key message around which opposition parties congregate.