Mahathir asked to crack down on opposition group

Mahathir asked to crack down on opposition group

KUALA LUMPUR (Agencies): Picking up on a lead from Prime
Minister Mahathir Mohamad, officials from Malaysia's ruling party
on Friday demanded that the government crack down harder on a
powerful fundamentalist Islamic opposition group.

Malaysia's ruling party on Friday debated ways to reverse its
declining fortunes after Mahathir warned members to shape up or
risk losing the next election.

Delegates from the 2.9-million-member United Malays National
Organization (UMNO), which has held power since 1957, were
chewing over Mahathir's outspoken speech on Thursday to their
annual meeting.

Mahathir, who marks 20 years in power next month, castigated
fellow Malays for laziness, greed, ingratitude towards UMNO and
squandering opportunities under an affirmative action program.

He also accused unspecified foreign powers and their media of
hating Malaysia and of supporting the opposition to topple his
government.

UMNO lost 22 parliamentary seats in the 1999 polls as many
Malays abandoned it -- partly due to anger over the sacking and
jailing of the premier's popular former deputy Anwar Ibrahim.

Delegates to the general assembly of the UMNO urged the
government to jail leaders of the Pan-Malaysia Islamic Party -
including Muslim clerics - using a tough security law which
allows for indefinite detention without trial.

Such a move would significantly harden the government's line
against the Islamic party, which has made strong inroads into
UMNO's supporter base among Malaysia's predominant Muslims but
which has been protected from crackdowns on other opposition
groups because fears of a backlash.

Rashid Abdul Ngah, an UMNO leader from one of two states
controlled by the Islamic party, said the government should not
balk at targeting the clerics, known as ulamaks, who lead it.

"They have twisted Islam for their own interests and they are
responsible for many of the negative developments in the
country," Rashid said during debate at the conference. "The
government should not hesitate to use the ISA against these
ulamaks."

It is the first time Mahathir's party has urged him to use the
Internal Security Act against the Islamic party.

Mahathir, who was present during the debate, did not
immediately respond.

Rashid's demand comes two weeks after six opposition activists
were sent to a prison camp for up to two years under the act for
allegedly planning violent protests to topple Mahathir. All six
are linked to the National Justice Party, another opposition
group, which accuses the government of ordering the arrests to
stifle political dissent.

Mahathir has attacked the Islamic party since UMNO lost ethnic
Malay votes to it in 1999 general elections, and accuses it of
abusing Islam for its political agenda.

In his speech on Thursday to open the UMNO meeting, Mahathir
accused the Islamic group of teaching students at Islamic schools
to hate the government, and promising voters heaven if they
support the party in elections.

Mahathir said the Islamic party was "a traitor to the
language, race and religion" of Malaysia.

Despite his strong accusations, Mahathir has refrained from
using the security act against the Islamic party. Observers say
such a move could be dangerous as it would not go down well with
Muslim Malays whom the ruling party is trying to woo.

But on Friday, pressure was growing on Mahathir to act.

Ibrahim Ali, an UMNO leader from another state ruled by the
Islamic party, asked Mahathir when he was going to "bomb" the
opposition party.