Flight 370 Saps Malaysia's Confidence KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia At a coffee shop in Bangsar, an affluent Kuala Lumpur suburb,

, the lunchtime crowd gossips and chec s the news on their smartphones! Ma ing the rounds is a "ou#ube $ideo in which a bomoh a local shaman and two acolytes, sitting on a %magic carpet& in Kuala Lumpur 'nternational Airport, perform a ritual to find Malaysia Airlines (light )*+, missing since March ,! #he $ideo is an uncomfortable reminder of Malaysia-s troubled reality! A British colony until ./0*, Malaysia now has a 1!2!P! per capita of o$er 3.+,+++, roughly twice that of #hailand and three times that of 'ndonesia! A coalition nown as Barisan 4asional, or B4, led by the United Malays 4ational 5rgani6ation, has held power since independence, presiding o$er both economic growth and contro$ersial policies that confer significant ad$antages in education, business and go$ernment on ethnic Malays, who ma e up some 7+ percent of the population! #he B4-s dominance has prompted allegations of corruption, cronyism and complacency, particularly regarding go$ernment8owned companies, such as Malaysia Airlines, which posted losses of o$er 3)0+ million in 9+.)! Most people ' spea to here ac nowledge that an incident li e the disappearance of (light )*+ is unprecedented and say they appreciate the monumental tas facing the go$ernment! #he offhand, sometimes defensi$e nature of the early press conferences, coupled with occasional attac s on the foreign media, are widely percei$ed as the arrogance of a go$ernment unaccustomed to global attention and accountability! 'n addition to showcasing the country-s internal $ulnerabilities, the disappearance of (light )*+ has underlined :hina-s increasing influence on Malaysia! Last 5ctober, a treaty signed by :hina-s president, ;i <inping, ele$ated relations between the two countries to a %comprehensi$e strategic partnership& aimed at increasing military cooperation and tripling bilateral trade to 3.7+ billion by 9+.*! #oday, :hina is Malaysia-s largest trading partner= Malaysia is :hina-s third most important Asian mar et after <apan and >outh Korea! But some people fear Malaysia-s handling of the (light )*+ tragedy will damage blossoming socioeconomic ties! #wo days after the ?etliner disappeared, the frustrated :hinese go$ernment tersely demanded that Malaysian authorities %step up their efforts& to find the missing plane! Li e many in Kuala Lumpur, ' scrutini6e e$ery scrap of information relating to (light )*+! As Malaysia na$igates this tragedy in the glare of the world-s ga6e, ' an@iously await news of the plane and its passengers, and clues to the country-s e$olution in the years ahead! >ourceA httpABBwww!nytimes!comB9+.CB+)B9+BopinionBflight8)*+8saps8malaysias8 confidence!htmlDhpErrefFopinion