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The onus is on Najib to convince Malaysians and the world of his innocence

The Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak has continued his roller-coaster governance of Malaysia after his “Black Tuesday” of July 28.

In the “Black Tuesday” last week, Najib summarily sacked the Attorney-General, Tan Sri Gani Patail who had served three Prime Ministers for nearly 13 years and some two months short of mandatory retirement when reaching the age of 60; launched the nation’s second wave of attacks on national institutions including Parliament, the Executive, key agencies comprising the “Special Task Force on the 1MDB” such as the Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM), Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC), the Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC) and the Press; sacked his Deputy Prime Minister-cum-Education Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin and Rural and Regional Development, Datuk Seri Shafie Apdal for raising questions about the 1MDB scandal which Malaysians and the world have been asking; reshuffled his Cabinet with “loyal people over smart people” and form his trio of Cabinet “spin doctors” to defend him and 1MDB; and most serious of all, setting off unprecedented convulsion in the most fractured Government in the nation’s history, with one enforcement agency investigating and pouncing on another.

The Prime Minister and his UMNO lieutenants have over the weekend been on a national roadshow with UMNO members bussed in tens of thousands to declare their support and loyalty to Najib at every stop, but all these theatrics, even with the support of UMNO’s erstwhile opponent, PAS President Datuk Seri Hadi Awang, cannot hide the fact that Najib is the weakest Prime Minister in the nation’s history.

This is not just in terms of popularity rating as Prime Minister with Malaysians – which fell to 44% in January but could have plunged now to the lower 30% levels – but most important of all, plumbed the lowest depth never reached by Malaysia’s previous five Prime Miniters, Tunku, Razak, Hussein, Mahathir and Abdullah in terms of moral authority, standing and credibility as Prime Minister. Continue reading “The onus is on Najib to convince Malaysians and the world of his innocence”

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The onus is on Najib to convince the world of his innocence

Editorial
South China Morning Post
02 August, 2015

Malaysia’s prime minister, Najib Razak, has repeatedly denied wrongdoing over the state sovereign fund 1MDB’s huge debts. He claims opponents are trying to orchestrate his removal through allegations that almost US$700 million was transferred into his bank accounts. Yet his explanations have not been convincing. The dismissal of critics in his cabinet, the disarray surrounding an official inquiry and the silencing of media have only heightened speculation. Restoring lost moral authority requires ensuring a genuinely independent investigation.

There is every reason why this has to happen. The 1MDB scandal has damaged Malaysia’s image and outlook, causing the stock market and the ringgit currency to plummet. Malaysia’s oil-driven economy was already in trouble over the sharp fall in prices. Allegations of corruption shrouding the leadership only deepens the crisis. Continue reading “The onus is on Najib to convince the world of his innocence”

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Malaysia’s ringgit takes a wild ride

Leslie Shaffer
CNBC
3rd August 2015

Malaysia’s currency, already under pressure from a political scandal and the oil price drop, really fell out of bed Monday, with the ringgit falling nearly 1 percent.

The central bank, Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM), has been intervening in the market to support the currency, but analysts said those efforts may be stumbling.

“(The central bank) can’t hold the level of the currency where it is, given that their reserves have been declining. Now maybe they’re starting to throw the towel,” Khoon Goh, senior foreign-exchange strategist at ANZ, told CNBC Monday, noting he hadn’t expected the currency to hit the 3.85-handle until next year.

The U.S. dollar was fetching as much as 3.85 ringgit in Asian trade Monday, compared with around 3.8156 ringgit Friday, before the Malaysian currency abruptly strengthened to 3.8460 against the U.S. dollar around midday. That’s still hovering around its weakest levels since 1998, during the Asian Financial Crisis, with the currency among the world’s worst performing after falling around 10 percent so far this year.

“Domestic political developments are suddenly to the fore and on top of that we have (central bank) Bank Negara, which tried to hold the currency earlier in July at around the 3.80 level (against the U.S. dollar) and using up around $5 billion of their FX reserves,” Goh said. “I think that reserves are probably under the psychological $100 billion mark now and I think that is starting to spook the market.” Continue reading “Malaysia’s ringgit takes a wild ride”

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Malaysia’s overdue housecleaning clamor

by Gary Kleiman
Asia Times
August 3, 2015

Malaysia’s stock market was down over 10 percent at end-July after Prime Minister Najib Razak, fighting to extend his six-year tenure in the wake of the 1MDB debt and campaign funding scandal, sacked his deputy and other cabinet members openly challenging him.

His public approval rating at 45 percent has suffered since the United Malay party won re-election last year, despite the opposition getting a larger vote total.

His predecessor Mahathir Mohamed did not think he deserved another term for lack of economic and political vision, as the household debt burden, which soared to 85 percent of GDP through government programs to boost consumption, is no longer sustainable to offset falling oil exports.

Foreign investors, with respective one-third and one-quarter ownership in the local bond and equity markets, were once enthusiastic about early promises to change the state-dominated business and financial sector model. But the results were meager and with the currency now at a 15-year low as the region’s worst performer, aversion is spiking as in the Asian financial crisis aftermath. Continue reading “Malaysia’s overdue housecleaning clamor”

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Although Najib has succeeded in frightening off Mahathir in not talking about 1MDB scandal, there are still enough patriotic and public-spirited Malaysians who still insist on their rights to demand proper accountability and not to be fobbed off by Najib’s delaying tactics

I fully agree with former Cabinet Minister and Kedah Mentri Besar, Tan Sri Sanusi Junid that Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s reshuffled Cabinet is unashamedly a 1MDB Cabinet, imbued with the “Charge of the Light Brigade” spirit of “Theirs not to make reply, Theirs not to reason why, Theirs but to do and die, Into the Valley of Death” to give blind support and loyalty to Najib on the 1MDB scandal.

We can already see a trio of Najib’s Cabinet Ministers, two of whom are newly brought into Najib’s Cabinet, who have taken the position as Najib’s vanguard to resort to all means, whether fair or foul, to shield and cocoon Najib from demands of accountability, transparency and good governance principles on the 1MDB scandal.

Although Najib has succeeded in frightening off former Prime Minister, Tun Mahathir, from further talking about the 1MDB scandal, it is fortunate that there are still enough patriotic and public-spirited Malaysians who refuse to bow down to Najib’s strong-armed tactics and are still insisting on their rights to demand proper accountability on the 1MDB scandal and not to be fobbed off by Najib’s various delaying tactics, including: Continue reading “Although Najib has succeeded in frightening off Mahathir in not talking about 1MDB scandal, there are still enough patriotic and public-spirited Malaysians who still insist on their rights to demand proper accountability and not to be fobbed off by Najib’s delaying tactics”

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I agree with new Minister in PM’s Department in charge of parliamentary affairs Azalina Othman for an emergency Parliament sitting but with the agenda to appoint new PAC chairman as well as to decide on future of “Special Task Force on 1MDB”

I agree with the new Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department, Datuk Azalina Othman Said for an emergency Parliament sitting but with the agenda to appoint the new Public Accounts Committee (PAC) Chairman as well as to decide on the future of the “Special Task Force on 1MDB”.

I am very surprised that Shahidan Kassim has been so summarily removed as the Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department in charge of parliamentary affairs after being assigned the portfolio for less than 27 months, without the basic courtesy of an announcement of the change of portfolio by the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak but by Azalina herself in Kota Tinggi, Johor on Saturday.

Does this tantamount to a verdict that Shahidan had failed as the Minister in charge of parliamentary affairs and if so, why is he retained as Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department?

Does Shahidan know before Azalina’s announcement that he had lost charge of parliamentary affairs, or is this a “coup” by Azalina considering that she has very powerful forces backing her as a new Cabinet Minister?

This is a most shabby treatment for a UMNO loyalist like Shahidan but we are apparently in for very shabby times, considering the shabby and humiliating manner in which Tan Sri Gani Patail had been sacked as Attorney-General, although he had served as the No. 1 top legal officer of the government for nearly 13 years and was only two months short of mandatory retirement to reach the age of 60, as well the shabby treatment meted out to key officers of the “Special Task Force investigating 1MDB” – with the hunters of 1MDB crimes becoming the hunted themselves. Continue reading “I agree with new Minister in PM’s Department in charge of parliamentary affairs Azalina Othman for an emergency Parliament sitting but with the agenda to appoint new PAC chairman as well as to decide on future of “Special Task Force on 1MDB””

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Labi Gone, Next Labu!

M. Bakri Musa
www.bakrimusa.com

Remember Labu and Labi, the two bumbling idiots in P. Ramlee’s 1962 comedy movie of the same title?

Today we have a political version of that duo. With the latest cabinet reshuffle, Labi is gone. Next should be Labu, aka Najib Razak. The leadership of Malaysia is too important to be entrusted to these jokers.

In a twist of irony, this latest exercise eases the process. By firing his deputy, Najib has set an important precedent – decoupling cabinet positions from party leadership. It has been the tradition, and only that as it is unsupported by the constitution, that leaders of the ruling party should also lead the country.

By having someone other than the party’s deputy leader be the Deputy Prime Minister, that sets the stage whereby the Prime Minister too could be someone other than the party’s President. That is the only silver lining to this latest reshuffle. That excepted, Najib’s new cabinet remains a yawner. The elusive “wow” factor still eludes him.

In picking his new ministers Najib is taken in by the glint of pebbles, confusing that for the sparkle of diamonds, or in kampong expression, pasir berkilau disangkakan intan. No surprise there as Najib himself is a pebble. He values loyalty over smarts, pebbles over diamonds. Expect Malaysia to be continually grinded down. Continue reading “Labi Gone, Next Labu!”

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Save Najib, Save UMNO or Save Malaysia?

It has been a roller-coaster month which Malaysians had not have the misfortune to experience before.

It began with the explosive Wall Street Journal (WSJ) report alleging that government investigators had discovered US$700 million (RM2.6 billion) deposited into Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s personal bank accounts in AmBank in March 2013 just before the 13th General Election, which Najib had not denied but repeatedly declared he had never taken funds for personal gain, to a major and ongoing purge and crackdown of key institutions started with the sacking of the Deputy Prime Minister and the Attorney-General and followed by the overawing and intimidation of the Cabinet, Parliament, the Press and the multi-agency Special Task Force investigating 1MDB comprising Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM), Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC), Royal Malaysian Police and the Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC).

In one month, the country went from the “high” of the Prime Minister assuring the nation that no stone would be left unturned to get to the bottom not only of the RM42 billion 1MDB scandal but the WSJ report of RM2.6 billion deposited into the Prime Minister’s personal bank accounts, (and Najib was so confident that he publicly declared that all investigations will clear him), to the “low” of the “hunters being hunted”, allegations that the sacked Attorney-General Tan Sri Gani Patail was in the final stage of drafting corruption charges against Najib himself, and the Special Task Force investigating 1MDB virtually accused of being involved in an international conspiracy to topple the elected Prime Minister of Malaysia.

How does one separate fact from fiction, truth from lies. Continue reading “Save Najib, Save UMNO or Save Malaysia?”

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Najib’s desperate shuffle for survival

By Bridget Welsh
Malaysiakini
Jul 31, 2015

COMMENT Najib Razak’s cabinet reshuffle was an expected step in the repertoire of many measures that the prime minister has used to stay in office.

In this manoeuvre, he has removed the immediate leadership threats among the Umno hierarchy, closed down the two avenues of negotiation involving the 1MDB scandal, and purportedly strengthened the ‘strongman’ dimensions of his leadership.

Many argue this Mahathirian move has secured Najib’s position by neutralising challengers. I disagree. In fact, Najib’s measures of late reveal weakness – not strength – and are likely to deepen his leadership crisis.

With the reshuffle, Najib has forged new alliances among the various factions in Umno. In the Umno party elections of 2013, Najib made a strategic alliance with Abdullah Ahmad Badawi’s appointees and the former premier’s son-in-law Khairy Jamaluddin to secure dominance over internal party opposition seen from the Mahathir Mohamad camp.

Najib managed to position considerable loyalists as division chiefs in the party contests, but did not fully secure control over the Supreme Council or have a majority of division chief loyalists on his own, relying heavily on allies to shore up his position. Continue reading “Najib’s desperate shuffle for survival”

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Paul Low – where were you when the table was turned, the hunters become the hunted as the Special Task Force probing 1MDB was displaced by a Police Probe on 1MDB Special Task Force?

The Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Paul Low has vowed to protect the officers of the multi-agency Special Task Force investigating 1MDB, coming from the four key agencies of Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM), the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC), the Royal Malaysian Police and the Attorney-General’s Chamber (AGC).

He said he had been brought into the federal cabinet specifically to promote good governance and to strengthen transparency and accountability in the government, and in line with this mandate, he assured the public that he would continue to stand firm in protecting these institutions and their respective officers, and will see to it that they are allowed to conduct the investigations until a satisfactory conclusion is reached.

Tragically, Paul Low was completely impotent when the key officials and the multi-agencies of the Special Task Force investigating 1MDB came under assault, with the most important officer, the Attorney-General Tan Sri Gani Patail himself sacked suddenly and summarily, while key institutions like the AGC, MACC and BNM were humbled and intimidated, with the arrest of a former MACC adviser and an officer from AGC by the police today.

Where was Paul Low after making the vow to protect Special Task Force officers? Continue reading “Paul Low – where were you when the table was turned, the hunters become the hunted as the Special Task Force probing 1MDB was displaced by a Police Probe on 1MDB Special Task Force?”

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Is former AG Gani Patail a free man, and if so, why he could not appear in public to explain truth or otherwise of alleged draft corruption charge sheet against Najib?

The newly-minted Attorney-General Tan Sri Mohamed Apandi Ali has dismissed the purported draft of a corruption charge sheet against Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak published on whistleblower website Sarawak Report as false.

When the new Attorney-General could not say a simple “Yes” or “No” whether Gani, who had served as Attorney-General for nearly 13 years and was only about two months away from Oct. 6 when he is reaches 60 years and mandatory retirement, was summarily sacked as AG on Tuesday on July 28, 2015, Apandi is telling all Malaysians that he is capable of varnishing the truth, quibbling and equivocating instead of telling “the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth”!

Under these circumstances, Apandi’s denial must be taken with a pinch of salt until and unless he could produce the former AG, Gani Patail, to publicly explain the circumstances and the truth or otherwise of the draft corruption charge sheet against Najib. Continue reading “Is former AG Gani Patail a free man, and if so, why he could not appear in public to explain truth or otherwise of alleged draft corruption charge sheet against Najib?”

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Will there be some 20 UMNO MPs and 20 BN MPs from Sabah and Sarawak prepared to join with some 80 MPs from DAP, PKR and Gerakan Harapan Baru to form a new coalition government with a new Prime Minister with new policies to save Malaysia from becoming a failed state?

It is becoming a popular refrain from top government circles in the past few days alleging that there is an international conspiracy plotting the toppling of a serving Prime Minister by “criminalizing” him, as if the Najib government is preparing the ground for a new dragnet of arrests, using Section 124 of the Penal Code on the new-fangled crime of “activities detrimental to parliamentary democracy” which can send a person convicted for the offence to jail for up to 20 years.

The latest person to join in this government chorus is none other than the new Attorney-General Tan Sri Mohamad Apandi Ali who, in his fourth day as the top law officer of the government early this morning, dismissed the purported draft of a corruption charge sheet against the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Razak by former Attorney-General Tan Sri Gani Patail, published on whistleblower website Sarawak Report, as false.
Apandi went on to declare that the alleged draft corruption charge against Najib point to “a conspiracy to topple a serving prime minister by criminalising him” and warning “stern action against the perpetrators” as “the full force of the law will be applied without exception on any that are found guilty”.

In fact, more than a dozen names have been circulated in the social media in the past few days of persons from the press, Parliament, the “special task force” on the 1MDB which is a multi-agency constituted by Bank Negara Malaysia, Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission, the Royal Malaysian Police and the Attorney-General’s Chambers alleging that they are going to be picked up in the crackdown on these plotters of the international conspiracy to “criminalise” Datuk Seri Najib Razak and to topple the elected Prime Minister of Malaysia – and it really surprises me that the Inspector-General of Police who have been issuing all sorts of warnings to various quarters in the social media seems to be blissfully unaware of such sites and their activities.

This is why in the past two days, I had specifically asked whether Malaysia is on the brink of a “new Dark Age” and another round of attacks on the independence, integrity and professionalism of the national institutions which had suffered and had not fully recovered from the earlier round of attacks on the national institutions in the country. Continue reading “Will there be some 20 UMNO MPs and 20 BN MPs from Sabah and Sarawak prepared to join with some 80 MPs from DAP, PKR and Gerakan Harapan Baru to form a new coalition government with a new Prime Minister with new policies to save Malaysia from becoming a failed state?”

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Is the sacking of AG and DPM a multiple attack on the national institutions including the Press, Parliament, the 1MDB “special task force” comprising AGC, BNM, MACC and Police to save Najib from the 1MDB scandal?

The past 72 hours have deepened the mystery and national foreboding about the sacking of the Attorney-General Tan Sri Abdul Gani Othman, the Deputy Prime Minister, Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin and the Minister for Rural and Regional Development, Datuk Seri Shafie Apdal.

The question that is looming ever larger is whether the sackings represented a prelude to a multiple attack on the national institutions including the press, Parliament, the 1MDB “special task force” comprising the Attorney-General’s Chambers, Bank Negara Malaysia, Malaysian Anti-Corruption Agency and the Royal Malaysian Police to save the Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak from the 1MDB scandal.

The latest political hurricane started with the totally unacceptable reason for the sudden and summary sacking on Tuesday of Gani as Attorney-General who had served as the first legal officer of the Crown for 13 years and two months short of retirement on reaching 60 years old, on the ridiculous ground of “health reasons”. Continue reading “Is the sacking of AG and DPM a multiple attack on the national institutions including the Press, Parliament, the 1MDB “special task force” comprising AGC, BNM, MACC and Police to save Najib from the 1MDB scandal?”

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David Cameron presses Malaysian PM on corruption claims

Patrick Wintour Political editor in Kuala Lumpur
Guardian
Thursday 30 July 2015

Najib Razak asked by Cameron about imprisonments of political opponents and allegations he misused $700m of government money

David Cameron has pressed the Malaysian prime minister Najib Razak over claims he has imprisoned his political opponents and taken government money for personal gain, at a private meeting between the two men in Kuala Lumpur.

In a meeting at Najib’s residence, Cameron also urged his Malaysian counterpart to accept the importance of a free press, the need for ethics in business, and the fight against corruption. He stressed the importance of an open economy and open society.

Cameron has made the fight against corruption a key theme of his four-day trade mission to south-east Asia, and the British prime minister had arrived in Malaysia in the week in which corruption claims prompted Najib to sack both the attorney general, who had been investigating him, and his own deputy, who had been a prominent critic. Continue reading “David Cameron presses Malaysian PM on corruption claims”

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David Cameron challenges Malaysian PM Najib Razak on corruption

By Matthew Holehouse, Kuala Lumpur
The Telegraph
30 Jul 2015

The Prime Minister urged Mr Razak to clean up his government and challenged the treatment of Anwar Ibrahim, the country’s opposition leader in jail

David Cameron has confronted Najib Razak, the Malaysian prime minister, over the deepening corruption scandal that threatens to bring down his government.

Allegations that $700 million (£450 million) in state development funds ended up in Mr Najib’s personal bank accounts overshadowed a visit by the Prime Minister designed to build trade ties.

During a long, one-to-one meeting, Mr Cameron on Thursday urged Mr Najib to clean up his government.

In a pointed move, he then met with civil society leaders, including journalists, the G25 group of campaigners and lawyers, who are campaigning for greater democracy and a free press.
Mr Cameron also challenged Mr Najib over the treatment of Anwar Ibrahim, the opposition leader in jail on sodomy charges. Continue reading “David Cameron challenges Malaysian PM Najib Razak on corruption”

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Malaysia cabinet reshuffle saps confidence

Nyshka Chandran
CNBC
30th July 2015

The hasty top-level reshuffle by Malaysia’s embattled Prime Minister Najib Razak in the wake of a corruption scandal will do little to encourage foreign investment amid an already tense political backdrop and a sustained currency crisis, analysts warn.
Announced on Tuesday, the Cabinet reshuffle involved the sacking of Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin after he called on Najib to explain the controversy surrounding a Wall Street Journal (WSJ)report earlier this month that revealed nearly $700 million from quasi-sovereign wealth fund One Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) was deposited into the Prime Minister’s personal bank accounts. The accusation is particularly explosive given that 1MDB is in debt to the tune of $11 billion.

The Prime Minister has denied accepting money for personal gain and is reportedly considering a defamation lawsuit against the WSJ.

Tuesday’s reshuffle also saw cabinet posts given to four senior members of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) – the group overseeing the 1MDB parliamentary investigation. Continue reading “Malaysia cabinet reshuffle saps confidence”

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Malaysian cabinet reshuffle: Shrewd move or political gamble for Najib?

Channel News Asia
30th July 2015

Amid sackings, step-downs and new appointments following the 1MDB saga, Channel NewsAsia’s Insight explores the prime minister’s motivation and game plan.

KUALA LUMPUR: In the weeks since the Wall Street Journal reported on the investigation of Malaysia’s troubled state wealth fund, 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB), significant cabinet changes have been made by Prime Minister Najib Razak.

Amid allegations that US$700 million (RM$2.7 billion) from companies linked with 1MDB was transferred to the prime minister’s account, Mr Najib on Monday sacked his deputy prime minister, Mr Muhyiddin Yassin, following his public remarks on the ongoing investigation.

On Tuesday, Malaysia’s Attorney-General Abdul Gani Patail had his tenure terminated with immediate effect, citing health reasons. Mr Patail, who headed the special task force investigating the allegations concerning 1MDB, suffers from a kidney ailment and was set to retire in October.

As electoral reform group, Bersih, demands Mr Najib’s resignation, analysts speaking to Channel NewsAsia’s Insight try to make sense of Najib’s game plan, his motivations, and what is in store for the Malaysian prime minister and his party. Continue reading “Malaysian cabinet reshuffle: Shrewd move or political gamble for Najib?”

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Malaysia’s first family are under the spotlight as David Cameron flies in

As David Cameron arrives to talk trade, Malaysian prime minister Najib Razak’s bank accounts, his wife’s handbags and her son’s Hollywood deals are making the headlines

By Philip Sherwell, Asia Editor
The Telegraph
30 Jul 2015

David Cameron might have hoped that his few final hours in Malaysia at the end of a four-day, four-state whirlwind trade tour of South East Asia would have been the chance to start winding down before heading home.

Instead, he finds himself flying in to a deepening controversy on Thursday as a multi-million dollar scandal engulfs his host Najib Razak, the prime minister of the former British colony.

Nor is it just Mr Najib who is under attack from his foes in Malaysia amid allegations that he ended up with $700 million in his personal accounts from a state investment bank that he founded.

The Malaysian leader’s wife Rosmah Mansor has been derided for her alleged penchant for luxury and free-spending ways – claims that her husband has dismissed as political assaults.

And Riza Aziz, her son from her first marriage and Mr Najib’s step-son, is also a staple in the gossip as well as financial pages.

He has emerged as a major Hollywood film producer with multi-million property deals in Manhattan and Los Angeles since becoming close friends with a Malaysian playboy investor during their education in London. Continue reading “Malaysia’s first family are under the spotlight as David Cameron flies in”

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The troubles of Malaysia’s prime minister continue

Economist
Jul 30th 2015 | SINGAPORE | Asia

Najib Razak sacks five ministers, including his deputy

HOW many lousy weeks comprise an annus horribilis? If current conditions continue, Najib Razak, Malaysia’s prime minister, will find out. For months Mr Najib has been buffeted by allegations of corruption at a state investment fund, 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB), which he set up six years ago. Earlier this month the Wall Street Journal reported that some $700m from companies associated with 1MDB was paid into what investigators believe are his personal bank accounts. (Mr Najib vigorously denies any wrongdoing.)

On Monday Mr Najib seemed to get a rare bit of good news: Malaysia was bumped up from the bottom to second-to-last of four tiers in America’s Trafficking in Persons report, which ranks governments on their efforts to combat people smuggling. But he did not get to enjoy that news for long. Critics pointed out that, earlier this year, graves were discovered in traffickers’ camps near Malaysia’s border with Thailand, and just this week reports emerged alleging that migrants were forced to work without pay on palm-oil plantations. Some believe that the elevation stemmed not from actual efforts to fight trafficking, but from America’s desire to pass smoothly the Trans-Pacific Partnership, a free-trade deal currently being negotiated among a dozen Pacific countries including Malaysia. Continue reading “The troubles of Malaysia’s prime minister continue“

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Mahathir On Anwar, Islam, Malays In Business And The Press

Chris Wright
Forbes
JUL 28, 2015

These days, feeling that the press is no longer marching to his tune, Mahathir communicates to the world through a blog, Chedet.com – a name taken, he tells me, from a childhood nickname conferred upon him by his sisters.

It is a consistently strident piece of work, as one would expect, with a tag-line: “Blogging to unblock”. In it, until recently beneath the incongruous herald of a pizza delivery ad, he rails against the issues of the day, from Kuala Lumpur traffic to intervention in Syria, from the nature of modern Islam to racial polarization and the endless question of the Malaysian national car. The English language entries alone in the second half of 2014 have taken on deforestation and the logging trade, the nature of state education, monetary handouts and national economics, ISIS, American foreign policy, British jihadists, the bombing of Gaza, Malaysian tourism, Formula One, the privatization of Malaysian Airlines, censorship of the internet, the Jews and the history of Israel, the oil price, the nature of an Islamic state, and Joe Biden (a piece that concludes: “America is a land stolen from the Red Indians through genocide. Americans should really bow their heads down in shame forever”).

They take an ordered, numbered form, not always reaching an obvious conclusion but never short of a boisterous opinion. Thus does Mahathir put his country and faith to rights, shouting not from a rooftop but from a desktop, to the masses of the net. The top-flight Malay establishment tolerates him politely, accepting the voice of a man who is part of much of their history even if no longer directly relevant to its present. Continue reading “Mahathir On Anwar, Islam, Malays In Business And The Press”