In a signal of the new defiant tone in parliament, opposition MPs staged a one hour walkout to protest against Mahathir's disregard for the constitution in convening parliament without following proper procedures. For the first time in history the opposition is dominated by Malay instead of Chinese, a fitting reminder to Mahathir that his party the United Malay National Organisation (UMNO) is losing support of mainstream Malays divided by the Anwar Ibrahim issue as well as the inequitable distribution of wealth.