‘Anwar Lacked Dr M’s Clout In Tackling Islam’

K Kabilan

A leaked 1997 diplomatic cable shows that the US had backed Dr Mahathir's version of moderate Islam but felt that Anwar was too soft to handle the religious conservatives.

KUALA LUMPUR: The US embassy here had given its tacit approval to Dr Mahathir Mohamad’s hardline approach against Muslim conservatives in Malaysia as it was in line with the “US interests and values”, revealed a leaked US confidential cable from 1997.

However, the US diplomats were highly concerned if Mahathir’s successor as prime minister could cope with the growing Muslim conservatism.

They were specifically worried if Anwar Ibrahim, who was Mahathir’s deputy at that time, had the “political position or the desire to take on Muslim conservatism as vigorously as Mahathir has done”.

“Moreover, Anwar, if he does become the next PM, will not have Mahathir’s almost unquestioned authority. Thus, for political reasons he may be reluctant to take strong stands that upset the vocal religious constituency,” they added.

And they concluded that in the long run, the “growing proportion of Malays in Malaysia’s ethnic mix will probably lead inexorably to the further Islamisation of Malaysian society”.

The details were revealed in a cable sent by the then US ambassador in Malaysia John R Malott to the US State Department in Washington on Dec 23, 1997.

The confidential cable was leaked by whistleblower site WikiLeaks exclusively to FMT today.

The year 1997 was a critical year for Malaysia as Mahathir was facing a major financial crisis. He was also facing problems with haze and the country’s zealous religious officials, added the cable.

Mahathir Takes Charge

The cable said several incidents involving “zealous Islamic authorities” have angered Mahathir during this period. They include:

a proposal by a unit within the education ministry to introduce compulsory Islamic civilization studies for all students. This proposal was then broadened to become Asian civilization following protests and Mahathir’s intervention.

the arrest of three Malay women by the Selangor religious authorities for taking part in a beauty contest.

an open warning by the Sarawak religious authorities against Muslim men from taking part in a bodybuilding competition.

Following the messy beauty contest incident, Mahathir had then announced that by early 1998, the government would unify syariah laws at the federal level, thus sharply curbing the autonomy of local religious authorities.

“Theoretically, the government’s plan for standardisation of syariah law will require the agreement of the states’ ruling sultans, but such constitutional niceties have rarely delayed the PM before.

“The ‘unification’ of syariah law early next year is already a fait accompli and conservative clerics know it, but don’t like it,” added the cable from the ambassador.

The cable further stated that Mahathir then in his keynote address at the Umno meeting in September 1997 had called on Malays to reject extremism and noted the results of sectarian violence in Bosnia and the Middle East.

The confidential cable added that Mahathir also criticised Muslims who put more stock in outward appearances (such as traditional clothes and beards for men and headscarves for women) than in leading a moral lie.

“Such a speech might sound sensible enough to Western ears, but by all accounts it was a disaster with the largely Malay audience, including Deputy PM Anwar, sporting traditional dress and goatees and most of the women, including Anwar’s wife, wearing headscarves,” it stated.

Malott said that Mahathir’s “attack” on “extremist” Islam soon saw a fiery reaction from conservative Muslims, including the Selangor mufti who had apparently labelled the prime minister as an apostate.

“Reportedly, Friday sermons at many mosques have included both oblique and direct criticism of the government. The police confirmed publicly that anonymous ‘poison pen’ literature criticising the PM is circulating at mosques,” added the US cable.

The Selangor mufti, who had denied ever calling Mahathir an apostate, was replaced by the state religious authorities on the grounds that the state needed a mufti whose views “were acceptable to all” and that a replacement was needed due to the mufti’s advanced age.

This prompted the US embassy to point out that the age reasoning was curious as “the PM himself has repeatedly stated that he will not step down, though he is one year older than the mufti”.

Anwar Will Lack Authority

The US cable stated that Mahathir’s moves to modernise Islam made even the moderates feel anxious over the tone and direction taken by the prime minister.

However, the top US diplomat felt that Mahathir “consistently advocates a moderate Islam

squarely in line with US interests and values”.

“The PM, for better or worse, is not afraid to take on anyone, including conservative Islamic groups that generally have negative views toward the US.

“Mahathir is also important as a voice of moderation within the international Islamic community,” added the secret cable.

The cable then went on to describe how Anwar, labelled as Mahathir’s “good conscience”, “has not proven he has either the political standing or the desire to take on conservative Islam”.

Malott, who was a firm Anwar loyalist following his sacking as the deputy prime minister in 1998, felt that Anwar who started off as a Muslim activist seemed loath to confront his former Muslim associates.

“Anwar’s reaction to the beauty pageant incident, which happened while the PM was out of the country and Anwar was in charge, was much less vigorous.”

Malott said that “Anwar, if he replaces Mahathir, will not have his predecessor’s almost unquestioned authority”.

“Thus, for political reasons he may be reluctant to take strong stands that upset the vocal religious constituency,” Malott added in the cable.

Worried Non-Malays

The US cable also predicted that in the long run, Malaysian demographic will probably dictate an increased role for Islam in Malaysia.

It noted that many Malays seem to be reacting by turning back to their Islamic roots – at least in external forms of observance.

“For instance, over the past decade noticeably more Malay women now wear headscarves. This Islamic resurgence, even in its mild Malaysian form, worries Malaysia’s non-Malay communities,” the cable added.

The confidential cable concluded by stating that, given political uncertainties, “it is not clear whether Mahathir’s successor (whether Anwar or someone else) will have sufficient authority to make sure differences do not get out of hand”.

“We expect, therefore, Islamic issues to become more prominent in the coming years.”

Mahathir was eventually replaced by Abdullah Ahmad Badawi who introduced Islam Hadhari, which created more confusion among both Malays and non-Malays alike. It only resulted in government agencies picking up Islamic agenda to mollify the premier.

When present Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak took over in 2008, he moved away from the Islam Hadhari concept, and replaced it with 1Malaysia unity ideology.

However, race relations in the country continue to remain tense, especially in recent years following a hardline attitude shown by the government against other religions. This is not helped by actions undertaken by Malay right-wing groups such Pembela and Perkasa.

-- FMT