Informed Questions on Malaysia
Abstract
While Indonesia gets the attention of policy makers on South East (SE) Asia because of its size and population, Malaysia has increasingly been courted as an example of an Islamic country that is moderate and progressive. This is despite the vitriolic, anti-west outbursts of Dr Mahathir, its controversial Prime Minister of 22 years, who has set the objective of Malaysia becoming a fully developed country by the year 2020. He envisions Malaysia becoming a strong and modern Islamic country, and has disparaged the Muslim world for being weak as a result of its backward policies. At the 2002 World Economic Forum in New York, he said, "If today Islam is perceived to be a religion of backward, violent and irrational people, it is not because of Islam itself as a faith and a way of life. It is because Muslims have deviated from the fundamentals of Islam, have abused the teachings to justify their personal greed and ambition." [1] Yet, Dr Mahathir is not afraid to attack the West. At the recent Non-Aligned Summit in Kuala Lumpur in Feb 2003, he said that powerful countries "no longer respect borders, international laws or simple values&the expression of this trait invariably involves injustice and oppression of other origins and colors." He concluded that, "it is no longer a war against terrorism. It is in fact a war to dominate the world."
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Mar 01, 2003
- Accession Number
- ADA442120
Entities
People
- Bg Tay
- Lim Heng
Organizations
- National War College