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Political positions of Mahathir Mohamad

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Mahathir speaking about "The Future of Democracy in Asia" in Chatham House, United Kingdom
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Mahathir Mohamad
Prime Minister of Malaysia
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Former Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad's political views have shifted during his lengthy career. Support for "Asian values," liberal Islam and Malay nationalism have long been part of Mahathir's political ideals. He has long been a critic of the foreign policy of the United States and other Western nations. Mahathirism has had an influence over subsequent Malaysian administrations.[1]

Overview

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During the 1980s, he was a supporter of Third-Worldism, while during other periods he has been a proponent of "Asian values" and globalization.[2]

Mahathir is a vocal critic of neoliberalism[2] and the Western world.[3][4] In 2011, Mahathir suggested that the September 11 attacks might have been staged by the United States government.[5][6] Mahathir condemned the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1997, suggesting it be revised to place greater importance on economic growth over civil liberties.[7]

A Muslim thinker, he holds Islamic political views.[2] In 2002, he characterised himself as an Islamic fundamentalist. Mahathir is generally respected in developing and Islamic countries,[4] particularly due to his oversight of Malaysia's economic growth and his support of liberal Muslim values.[8]

He has been described as anti-royalist by Libération, owing to his efforts to oppose immunity for members of Malaysia's monarchies.[9]

Malay nationalism

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Mahathir has been described as a proponent of Malay nationalism.[2] In The Malay Dilemma, he argued that the Malay race had been marginalised, and voiced his support for affirmative action policies for them.[10] Upon his first resignation, he expressed his disappointment at the progress made towards his "principle task" of supporting the Malay race.[10] In 2021, Mahathir said he did not believe in "Ketuanan Melayu", calling it a "fantasy", and said instead that he believed in "Bangsa Malaysia".[11]

Environment

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Mahathir has advocated for a balance between environmental protection and natural resource use for economic growth.[12] He referred to the outcomes of the Earth Summit as "eco-imperialism", arguing that Global North countries put an undue burden on Global South countries for environmental degradation.[13] In response to international scrutiny, he said in 2019 that linking palm oil production to deforestation was "baseless, unfair and unjustified" and that the Malaysian palm oil sector had developed sustainably.[citation needed]

Allegations of antisemitism

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A strident critic of Israel, Mahathir has been accused of antisemitism throughout his political life.[14][3] In The Malay Dilemma, he wrote that "Jews are not merely hook-nosed, but understand money instinctively".[15] In August 1983, Mahathir claimed in a speech that Jews control the international media.[16] In March 1994, he banned the screening of Schindler's List on the grounds that he viewed it as anti-German, pro-Jewish propaganda.[16] During the collapse of the ringgit and the economic crisis in 1997, he made a series of remarks blaming Jews, in particular George Soros, a Jewish "agenda", and "an international Jewish conspiracy" attempting to destroy the economies of Muslim countries.[16][17][18]

During an Organization of Islamic Cooperation summit held in Kuala Lumpur in 2003, he accused Jews of "ruling the world by proxy" and getting "others to fight and die for them".[19][20] His speech was denounced by President George W. Bush.[21] In 2012, he claimed he was "glad to be labelled antisemitic".[22] In a 2018 BBC interview he repeated similar statements, as well as disputing the number of Jews killed in the Holocaust.[23] In 2019, when asked why he had previously claimed that Jews are "inclined towards money" he responded that he had Jewish friends, and that "they are not like the other Jews, that's why they are my friends."[24] Mahathir has defended his comments about Jews as an exercise of free speech, and by claiming that "the Jews do a lot of wrong things which force us to pass comment."[25][26][27]

LGBT rights

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Mahathir opposes an expansion of LGBT rights in Malaysia.[28][29] In 2001, Mahathir said that any homosexual ministers from the United Kingdom would be barred from entering Malaysia.[30] During an October 2018 lecture to university students in Bangkok, Mahathir contrasted Malaysian values with those of Western nations and cited "the institution of marriage [and] the family" in his opposition to LGBT.[28]

Foreign affairs

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Further information: List of international prime ministerial trips made by Mahathir Mohamad during his second term and Mahathir Mohamad § Foreign relations

In 2020, Mahathir expressed support for Joe Biden in the 2020 United States presidential election, saying that the re-election of Donald Trump would be a "disaster".[31]

References

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  1. ^ Dosch, Jörn (2014). "Mahathirism and Its Legacy in Malaysia's Foreign Policy". European Journal of East Asian Studies. 13 (1): 5–32. doi:10.1163/15700615-01301003. ISSN 1568-0584. JSTOR 44162324.
  2. ^ a b c d Schottmann, Sven (2018). Mahathir's Islam: Mahathir Mohamad on Religion and Modernity in Malaysia. University of Hawai'i Press. ISBN 978-0-8248-4674-9. JSTOR j.ctvvn4z8. Archived from the original on 15 November 2022. Retrieved 15 November 2022.
  3. ^ a b "Malaysia's Mahathir says US seeking to provoke war in Taiwan". Associated Press. 19 August 2022. Archived from the original on 29 August 2022. Retrieved 29 August 2022.
  4. ^ a b "Mahathir to launch war crimes tribunal". The Star (Associated Press). 31 January 2007. Archived from the original on 12 June 2008. Retrieved 14 January 2008.
  5. ^ Roslan Rahman (11 September 2011). "Malaysia's Mahathir: 9/11 not work of Muslims". AFP News. Archived from the original on 9 November 2014. Retrieved 10 November 2014.
  6. ^ AR, Zurairi (9 March 2015). "In Dr M's 'New World Order' meet, academics claim war on terror 'big US lie'". Malay Mail. Archived from the original on 24 September 2021. Retrieved 24 September 2021.
  7. ^ "Madeleine Albright Sings Out". The New York Times. 2 August 1997. Archived from the original on 4 January 2018. Retrieved 15 March 2019.
  8. ^ Bowring, Philip (23 September 1998). "Twin Shocks Will Leave Their Mark on Malaysia". International Herald Tribune. Archived from the original on 11 June 2008. Retrieved 14 January 2008.
  9. ^ Defranoux, Laurence. "Abdication surprise du roi de Malaisie". Libération (in French). Archived from the original on 15 November 2022. Retrieved 15 November 2022.
  10. ^ a b "Mahathir Mohamad: The man who dominated Malaysian politics". BBC News. 8 May 2018. Archived from the original on 22 November 2022. Retrieved 15 November 2022.
  11. ^ "I don't believe in 'Ketuanan Melayu' fantasy, says Dr M". Free Malaysia Today. 12 December 2021. Archived from the original on 12 December 2021. Retrieved 15 November 2022.
  12. ^ Bernama (2019-09-27). "Mahathir highlights Malaysia's conservation efforts". Malaysiakini. Retrieved 2023-09-02.
  13. ^ Mohamed, Mahathir bin (April 1999). "The Green Flag of Eco-Imperialism". New Perspectives Quarterly. 16 (2): 8–9. doi:10.1111/0893-7850.00214.
  14. ^ "Global Anti-Semitism Still Potent". The Anti-Defamation League. Archived from the original on 12 May 2018. Retrieved 11 May 2018.
  15. ^ Sugarman, Daniel (17 January 2019). "Oxford Union criticised for inviting antisemitic Malaysian prime minister Mahathir Mohamad to speak". The Jewish Chronicle. Archived from the original on 25 January 2019. Retrieved 24 January 2019.
  16. ^ a b c Yegar, Moshe (2006). "Malaysia: Anti-Semitism Without Jews". Jewish Political Studies Review. 18 (3/4): 81–97. ISSN 0792-335X. JSTOR 25834698. Archived from the original on 4 December 2021. Retrieved 4 December 2021.
  17. ^ Mydans, Seth (16 October 1997). "Malaysian Premier Sees Jews Behind Nation's Money Crisis". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on 4 December 2021. Retrieved 4 December 2021.
  18. ^ "Mahathir's dark side". The Daily Telegraph. London. 24 October 2003. Archived from the original on 21 April 2018. Retrieved 5 April 2018.
  19. ^ Ressa, Maria (17 October 2003). "Mahathir attack on Jews condemned". CNN International. Archived from the original on 18 February 2007. Retrieved 9 December 2020.
  20. ^ "Views on Jews By Malaysian: His Own Words". The New York Times. The Associated Press. 21 October 2003. Archived from the original on 12 May 2018. Retrieved 11 May 2018.
  21. ^ "Bush rebukes Malaysia leader over remarks about Jews". CNN. 21 October 2003. Archived from the original on 18 March 2016. Retrieved 11 May 2018.
  22. ^ "Dr M says glad to be called 'Antisemitic'". CFCA. Archived from the original on 26 September 2012. Retrieved 29 September 2012.
  23. ^ "Cambridge Union audience laughs at anti-Semitic 'joke' by Malaysian prime minister". The Telegraph. 18 June 2019. ISSN 0307-1235. Archived from the original on 24 October 2019. Retrieved 24 October 2019.
  24. ^ Rahim, Zamira (17 June 2019). "Malaysia PM tells Cambridge Union his Jewish friends are 'not like other Jews'". The Independent. Archived from the original on 7 November 2021. Retrieved 7 November 2021.
  25. ^ Cortellessa, Eric (26 September 2017). "A defiant Malaysian PM defends his anti-Semitism in the name of free speech". The Times of Israel. Archived from the original on 26 September 2019. Retrieved 16 February 2021.
  26. ^ Lin, Koh Jun (25 September 2019). "In speech at Columbia, Mahathir cites free speech for anti-Semitic remarks". Malaysiakini. Archived from the original on 26 September 2019. Retrieved 16 February 2021.
  27. ^ Harpin, Lee (18 June 2019). "Malaysia PM questioned why Jews 'resent' being called 'hook-nosed'". The Jewish Chronicle. Archived from the original on 7 November 2021. Retrieved 7 November 2021.
  28. ^ a b "Mahathir claims LGBT rights are 'Western values' not fit for Malaysia". South China Morning Post. 26 October 2018. Archived from the original on 6 June 2019. Retrieved 29 May 2019.
  29. ^ "Malaisie: le premier ministre rejette les revendications LGBT". LEFIGARO (in French). 25 October 2018. Archived from the original on 15 November 2022. Retrieved 15 November 2022.
  30. ^ "Gay ministers barred, Malaysia tells UK". BBC News. 1 November 2001. Archived from the original on 2 August 2017. Retrieved 5 May 2023.
  31. ^ "Mahathir backs Biden, says US re-electing Trump would be disaster". South China Morning Post. 2020-06-13. Retrieved 2023-09-26.
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