Malaysia struggles for revival as social unrest grows
Malaysia struggles for revival as social unrest grows
By Gwen Benjamin
KUALA LUMPUR (DPA): For Malaysia, 1998 was an unsettling year. The country has been struggling to revive its slumping economy while trying to suppress growing political unrest arising from the sacking and arrest of deputy prime minister Anwar Ibrahim.
Since Anwar's Sept. 2 sacking as deputy premier and finance minister, the capital has been shaken by anti-government demonstrations, with protesters clashing with police and demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad.
In protests unseen in the country in almost three decades, thousands of Anwar supporters and anti-government demonstrators have staged noisy protests at mosques and along the city's streets calling for "reformasi" or reforms.
"Reformasi" was the rallying cry of the charismatic Anwar after he was sacked from office. In the three weeks before his September 20 arrest, he toured the country, drawing tens of thousands to his rallies where he denounced Mahathir's 17-year- old administration for being riddled with "corruption, cronyism and nepotism."
Malaysians, unused to challenging authority, were disturbed by scenes of riot police shooting jets of chemically-laced water and tear gas on the mainly Moslem Malay protesters, as well as by the sight of protesters, who included women, being chased, beaten and herded into trucks.
Local human rights activists and non-governmental groups, which have long lamented the lack of democratic rights, press freedom and accountability under Mahathir, slammed the police crackdown as well as the arrest of Anwar and his supporters.
Anwar's arrest under the Draconian Internal Security Act, which allows for detention without trial, and his alleged beating while in police custody - he turned up in court with a black eye - drew international and regional condemnation against Malaysia.
United States Vice President Al Gore, attending an Asia- Pacific summit in Kuala Lumpur in November, openly backed the anti-government protesters, calling them the "brave people" of Malaysia.
Anwar is now on trial for corruption and sodomy, which he denies and blames on a high-level political conspiracy masterminded by Mahathir to destroy his political career. If found guilty, Anwar faces up to 20 years in jail and will be disqualified from running in elections.
Anwar also claims his sacking came because he opposed Mahathir's plans to use state and pension funds to bail out huge corporations, linked to the ruling elite, which were saddled with huge debts caused by the region's economic crisis.
The open defiance of Anwar and his supporters poses the most serious challenge to Mahathir since the premier almost lost in party polls in 1987 as president of the ruling United Malays National Organization (UMNO) party. Anwar was sacked as deputy UMNO president.
UMNO is the dominant member of Mahathir's Barisan Nasional (National Front) coalition government. The multi-racial Barisan has ruled Malaysia since independence from Britain in 1957.
Mahathir, 73, has rejected demands that he quit, saying he needs to tackle the economic crisis which has sent Malaysia sliding into its first recession in 13 years. GDP growth for this year is set to contract 4.8 per cent, against last year's 7.7 per cent expansion.
He also condemned the anti-government protesters for stirring up unrest which would frighten away foreign investors and hamper the government's efforts to revive the economy.
"What kind of reformasi do they want? Do we want our country to end up like other countries where the races cannot live in peace?" he said recently, adding that those seeking political change should do so legally through elections. Mahathir has to call for polls by early 2000.
Malaysia suffered bloody racial riots in 1969 between the majority Malays and richer Chinese, but pro-Malay government policies in business and education have since kept racial ties harmonious.
The Chinese community, the second biggest racial group and numbering around five million of the 21 million population, have privately voiced fears over the anti-government protests, especially since "reformasi" protests in Indonesia deteriorated into anti-Chinese riots. The protests in Malaysia have so far remained within police control.
Anwar's sacking and arrest "marks a watershed" in Malaysian politics, said political scientist and social critic Chandra Muzaffar.
He said Islamic egalitarianism, mass education and the emergence of a Malay middle class have eroded one of the main characteristics of Malaysian politics, which is "unquestioning acceptance of, and acquiescence with" the authority of the state.
"The ability to overcome fear is an important prerequisite for political change," he said, adding that the Anwar crisis has forever changed Malay political culture and Malaysian democracy.