Mahathir Mohamad

Tunku Abdul Rahman resigned in 1970 and was replaced by Abdul Razak Hussein. Razak encouraged Mahathir back into the party, and had him appointed as a Senator in 1973.[24] He rose quickly in the Razak government, returning to UMNO's Supreme Council in 1973, and being appointed to Cabinet in 1974 as the Minister for Education. He also returned to the House of Representatives, winning the Kedah-based seat of Kubang Pasu unopposed in the 1974 election.[18] One of his first acts as Minister for Education was to introduce greater government control over Malaysia's universities, despite strong opposition from the academic community.[25] He also moved to limit politics on university campuses, giving his ministry the power to discipline students and academics who were politically active, and making scholarships for students conditional on the avoidance of politics.[26]

In 1975, Mahathir ran for one of the three vice-presidencies of UMNO. The contest was considered to be a battle for the succession of the party's leadership, with both Razak and his deputy, Hussein Onn, in declining health. Each of Razak's preferred candidates was elected: former Chief Minister of Melaka, Ghafar Baba; Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah, a wealthy businessman and member of Kelantan's royal family; and Mahathir. When Razak died the following year, Hussein as his successor was forced to choose between the three men to be deputy prime minister; he also considered the ambitious minister Ghazali Shafie. Each of Mahathir's rivals had significant political liabilities: Ghazali, having been defeated by the others for a vice-presidency, lacked the support of UMNO members; Ghafar had no higher education and was not fluent in English; and Razaleigh was young, inexperienced and, critically, unmarried. But Hussein's decision was not easy. Hussein and Mahathir were not close allies, and Hussein knew the choice of Mahathir would displease Abdul Rahman, still alive and revered as the father of Malaysia's independence. After six weeks of indecision Mahathir was, much to his surprise, appointed as Hussein's deputy. The appointment meant that Mahathir was the anointed successor to the prime ministership.[27][28]

However, Mahathir was not an influential deputy prime minister. Hussein was a cautious leader who rejected many of Mahathir's bold policy proposals. While the relationship between Hussein and Mahathir was distant, Ghazali and Razaleigh became Hussein's closest advisers, often bypassing the more senior Mahathir when accessing Hussein. Nonetheless, when Hussein relinquished power due to ill health in 1981, Mahathir succeeded him unopposed and with his blessing.[29]

Mahathir was sworn in as prime minister on 16 July 1981, at the age of 56.[30] One of his first acts was to release 21 detainees held under the Internal Security Act, including journalist Samad Ismail and a former deputy minister in Hussein's government, Abdullah Ahmad, who had been suspected of being an underground communist.[31] He appointed his close ally, Musa Hitam, as deputy prime minister.[32]

Mahathir exercised caution in his first two years in power, consolidating his leadership of UMNO and, with victory in the 1982 general election, the government.[33][34] In 1983, Mahathir commenced the first of a number of battles he would have with Malaysia's royalty during his premiership. The position of Yang di-Pertuan Agong, the Malaysian head of state, was due to rotate in to either the elderly Idris Shah II of Perak or the controversial Iskandar of Johor, who had only a few years earlier been convicted of manslaughter. Thus Mahathir had grave reservations about the two Sultans, who were both activist rulers of their own states.[35][36] Mahathir tried to pre-emptively limit the power that the new Agong could wield over his government, introducing to parliament amendments to the Constitution to deem the Agong to assent to any bill that had not been assented within 15 days of passage by Parliament. The proposal would also remove the power to declare a state of emergency from the Agong and place it with the prime minister. The Agong at the time, Ahmad Shah of Pahang, agreed with the proposals in principle but balked when he realised that the proposal would also deem Sultans to assent to laws passed by state assemblies. Supported by the Sultans, the Agong refused to assent to the constitutional amendments, which had by then passed both houses of Parliament with comfortable majorities.[37][38] When the public became aware of the impasse, and the Sultans refused to compromise with the government, Mahathir took to the streets to demonstrate public support for his position in mass rallies. The press took the side of the government, although a large minority of Malays, including conservative UMNO politicians, and an even larger proportion of the Chinese community supported the Sultans. After five months, the crisis resolved, as Mahathir and the Sultans agreed to a compromise. The Agong would retain the power to declare a state of emergency, but if he refused to assent to a bill, the bill would be returned to Parliament, which could then override the Agong's veto.[39]

A 2012 prototype of the Proton Prevé Sapphire. Mahathir considered that an automotive industry was essential to Malaysia becoming an industrial nation. His government used tariffs to support the development of the Proton as a Malaysian-made car and to limit the capital outflow of the ringgit to foreign countries.

On the economic front, Mahathir inherited the New Economic Policy from his predecessors, which was designed to improve the economic position of the bumiputera (Malaysia's Malays and indigenous peoples) through targets and affirmative action in areas such as corporate ownership and university admission.[40] Mahathir also actively pursued privatisation of government enterprises from the early 1980s, both for the liberal economic reasons it was being pursued by contemporaries such as Margaret Thatcher, and because he felt that combined with affirmative action for the bumiputera it could provide economic opportunities for bumiputera businesses.[41] His government privatised airlines, utilities and telecommunication firms, accelerating to a rate of about 50 privatisations a year by the mid-1990s.[42] While privatisation generally improved the working conditions of Malaysians in privatised industries and raised significant revenue for the government, many privatisations occurred in the absence of open tendering processes and benefited Malays who supported UMNO. One of the most notable infrastructure projects at the time was the construction of the North–South Expressway, a motorway running from the Thai border to Singapore; the contract to construct the expressway was awarded to a business venture of UMNO.[43] Mahathir also oversaw the establishment of the car manufacturer Proton as a joint venture between the Malaysian government and Mitsubishi. By the end of the 1980s, Proton had overcome poor demand and losses to become, with the support of protective tariffs, the largest car maker in Southeast Asia and a profitable enterprise.[44]

In Mahathir's early years as prime minister, Malaysia was experiencing a resurgence of Islam among Malays. Malays were becoming more religious and more conservative. PAS, which had in the 1970s joined UMNO in government, responded to the resurgence by taking an increasingly strident Islamist stand under the leadership of the man who in 1969 had defeated Mahathir for his parliamentary seat, Yusof Rawa. Mahathir tried to appeal to religious voters by establishing Islamic institutions such as the International Islamic University of Malaysia which could promote Islamic education under the government's oversight. He also attracted Anwar Ibrahim, the leader of the Malaysian Islamic Youth Movement (ABIM) to join UMNO. In some cases, Mahathir's government employed repression against more extreme exponents of Islamism. Ibrahim Libya, a popular Islamist leader, was killed in a police shoot-out in 1985; Al-Arqam, a religious sect, was banned and its leader, Ashaari Mohammad, arrested under the Internal Security Act.[45] Mahathir comprehensively defeated PAS at the polls in 1986, winning 83 seats of the 84 seats it contested, leaving PAS with just one MP.[46]

Any illusion that the 1986 election may have created about Mahathir's political dominance was short-lived. In 1987, he was challenged for the presidency of UMNO, and effectively the prime ministership, by Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah. Razaleigh's career had gone backwards under Mahathir, being demoted from the Ministry of Finance to the Ministry of Trade and Industry. Razaleigh was supported by Musa, who had resigned as deputy prime minister the previous year. While Musa and Mahathir were originally close allies, the two had fallen out during Mahathir's premiership, with Musa claiming that Mahathir no longer trusted him. Razaleigh and Musa ran for the UMNO presidency and deputy presidency on a joint ticket against Mahathir and his new choice for deputy, Ghafar Baba. The tickets were known as Team B and Team A respectively. Mahathir's Team A enjoyed the support of the press, most party heavyweights, and even Iskandar, now the Agong, although some significant figures such as Abdullah Badawi supported Team B. In the election, held on 24 April 1987, Team A prevailed. Mahathir was re-elected a by a narrow margin, receiving the votes of 761 party delegates to Razaleigh's 718. Ghafar defeated Musa by a slightly larger margin. Mahathir responded by purging seven Team B supporters from his ministry, while Team B refused to accept defeat and initiated litigation. In an unexpected decision in February 1988, the High Courts ruled that UMNO was an illegal organisation as some of its branches had not been lawfully registered.[47][48]

Each faction raced to register a new party under the UMNO name. Mahathir's side successfully registered the name "UMNO Baru" ("new UMNO"), while Team B's application to register "UMNO Malaysia" was rejected. UMNO Malaysia, under the leadership of Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah and with the support of both of Malaysia's surviving former prime ministers, Abdul Rahman and Hussein, registered the party Semangat 46 instead.[49] The Lord President of the Supreme Court, Salleh Abas, sent a letter of protest to the Agong. Mahathir then suspended Salleh for "gross misbehaviour and conduct", ostensibly because the letter was a breach of protocol. A tribunal set up by Mahathir found Salleh guilty and recommended to the Agong that Salleh be dismissed. Five other judges of the court supported Salleh, and were suspended by Mahathir. A newly constituted court dismissed Team B's appeal, allowing Mahathir's faction to continue to use the name UMNO. According to Milne and Mauzy, the episode destroyed the independence of Malaysia's judiciary.[50]

At the same time as the political and judicial crises, Mahathir initiated a crackdown on opposition dissidents with the use of the Internal Security Act. Mahathir later declared that it was only used to lock up people accused of riots, unlawful assembly, terrorism and those who have murdered police officers. The appointment of a number of administrators who did not speak Mandarin to Chinese schools provoked an outcry among Chinese Malaysians to the point where UMNO's coalition partners the Malaysian Chinese Association and Gerakan joined the Democratic Action Party (DAP) in protesting the appointments. UMNO's Youth wing held a provocative protest that triggered a shooting by a lone Malay gunman, and only Mahathir's interference prevented UMNO from staging a larger protest. Instead, Mahathir ordered what Wain calls "the biggest crackdown on political dissent Malaysia had ever seen". Under the police operation codenamed "Operation Lalang", 119 people were arrested and detained without charge under the Internal Security Act. Mahathir argued that the detentions were necessary to prevent a repeat of the 1969 race riots. Most of the detainees were prominent opposition activists, including the leader of the DAP, Lim Kit Siang, and nine of his fellow MPs. Three newspapers sympathetic to the opposition were shut down.[51] Mahathir suffered a heart attack in early 1989,[52] but recovered to lead Barisan Nasional to victory in the 1990 election. Semangat 46 failed to make any headway outside Razaleigh's home state of Kelantan.[53]

A view of Petronas Twin Towers and the surrounding central business district in Kuala Lumpur, a testament of the Malaysian phenomenal economic evolution under Mahathir's 22-year rule

The expiry of the Malaysian New Economic Policy (NEP) in 1990 gave Mahathir the opportunity to outline his economic vision for Malaysia. In 1991, he announced Vision 2020, under which Malaysia would aim to become a fully developed country within 30 years.[54] The target would require average economic growth of approximately seven per cent of gross domestic product per annum.[55] One of Vision 2020's features would be to gradually break down ethnic barriers. Vision 2020 was accompanied by the NEP's replacement, the National Development Policy (NDP), under which some government programs designed to benefit the bumiputera exclusively were opened up to other ethnicities.[56] The NDP achieved success out one of its main aims, poverty reduction. By 1995, less than nine per cent of Malaysians lived in poverty and income inequality had narrowed.[57] Mahathir's government cut corporate taxes and liberalised financial regulations to attract foreign investment. The economy grew by over nine per cent per annum until 1997 prompting other developing countries to try to emulate Mahathir's policies.[58] Much of the credit for Malaysia's economic development in the 1990s went to Anwar Ibrahim, appointed by Mahathir as finance minister in 1991.[59] The government rode the economic wave and won the 1995 election with an increased majority.[60]

Mahathir initiated a series of major infrastructure projects in the 1990s. One of the largest was the Multimedia Super Corridor, an area south of Kuala Lumpur, in the mould of Silicon Valley, designed to cater for the information technology industry. However, the project failed to generate the investment anticipated. Other Mahathir projects included the development of Putrajaya as the home of Malaysia's public service, and bringing a Formula One Grand Prix to Sepang. One of the most controversial developments was the Bakun Dam in Sarawak. The ambitious hydro-electric project was intended to carry electricity across the South China Sea to satisfy electricity demand in peninsular Malaysia. Work on the dam was eventually suspended due to the Asian financial crisis.[61]

In 1997, the Asian financial crisis which began in Thailand in mid 1997 threatened to devastate Malaysia. The value of the ringgit plummeted due to currency speculation, foreign investment fled, and the main stock exchange index fell by over 75 per cent. At the urging of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the government cut government spending and raised interest rates, which only served to exacerbate the economic situation. In 1998, in a controversial approach Mahathir reversed this policy course in defiance of the IMF and his own deputy, Anwar. He increased government spending and fixed the ringgit to the US dollar. The result confounded his international critics and the IMF. Malaysia recovered from the crisis faster than its Southeast Asian neighbours. In the domestic sphere, it was a political triumph. Amidst the economic events of 1998, Mahathir had dismissed Anwar as finance minister and deputy prime minister, and he could now claim to have rescued the economy in spite of Anwar's policies.[62]

In his second decade in office, Mahathir had again found himself battling Malaysia's royalty. In 1992, Sultan Iskandar's son, a representative field hockey player, was suspended from competition for five years for assaulting an opponent. Iskandar retaliated by pulling all Johor hockey teams out of national competitions. When his decision was criticised by a local coach, Iskandar ordered him to his palace and beat him. The federal parliament unanimously censured Iskandar, and Mahathir leapt at the opportunity to remove the constitutional immunity of the sultans from civil and criminal suits. The press backed Mahathir and, in an unprecedented development, started airing allegations of misconduct by members of Malaysia's royal families. As the press revealed examples of the rulers' extravagant wealth, Mahathir resolved to cut financial support to royal households. With the press and the government pitted against them, the sultans capitulated to the government's proposals. Their powers to deny assent to bills were limited by further constitutional amendments passed in 1994. With the status and powers of the Malaysian royalty diminished, Wain writes that by the mid-1990s Mahathir had become the country's "uncrowned king".[63]

Mahathir addressing the United Nations General Assembly on 25 September 2003

By the mid-1990s it had become clear that the most serious threat to Mahathir's power was the leadership ambition of his deputy, Anwar. Anwar began to distance himself from Mahathir, overtly promoting his superior religious credentials and appearing to suggest he favoured loosening the restrictions on civil liberties that had become a hallmark of Mahathir's premiership.[64] However, Mahathir continued to back Anwar as his successor until their relationship collapsed dramatically during the Asian financial crisis. Their positions gradually diverged, with Mahathir abandoning the tight monetary and fiscal policies urged by the IMF. At the UMNO General Assembly in 1998, a leading Anwar supporter, Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, criticised the government for not doing enough to combat corruption and cronyism. As Mahathir took the reins of Malaysia's economic policy over the coming months, Anwar was increasingly sidelined. On 2 September, he was dismissed as deputy prime minister and finance minister, and promptly expelled from UMNO. No immediate reasons were given for the dismissal, although the media speculated that it related to lurid allegations of sexual misconduct circulated in a "poison pen letter" at the general assembly.[65] As more allegations surfaced, large public rallies were held in support of Anwar. On 20 September, he was arrested and placed in detention under the Internal Security Act.[66]

Anwar stood trial on four charges of corruption, arising from allegations that Anwar abused his power by ordering police to intimidate persons who had alleged Anwar had sodomised them. Before Anwar's trial, Mahathir told the press that he was convinced of Anwar's guilt. He was found guilty in April 1999 and sentenced to six years in prison. In another trial shortly after, Anwar was sentenced to another nine years in prison on a conviction for sodomy. The sodomy conviction was overturned on appeal after Mahathir left office.[67]

While Mahathir had vanquished his rival, it came at a cost to his standing in the international community and domestic politics. US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright defended Anwar as a "highly respectable leader" who was "entitled to due process and a fair trial".[68] In a speech in Kuala Lumpur, which Mahathir attended, US Vice-President Al Gore stated that "we continue to hear calls for democracy", including "among the brave people of Malaysia".[69] At the APEC summit in 1999, Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chrétien refused to meet Mahathir, while his foreign minister met with Anwar's wife, Wan Azizah Wan Ismail.[70] Wan Azizah had formed a liberal opposition party, the National Justice Party (Keadilan) to fight the 1999 election. UMNO lost 18 seats and two state governments as large numbers of Malay voters flocked to PAS and Keadilan, many in protest at the treatment of Anwar.[71]

In September 2001 debate was caused by Mahathir's announcement that Malaysia was already an Islamic state.[72] At UMNO's general assembly in 2002, he announced that he would resign as prime minister, only for supporters to rush to the stage and convince him tearfully to remain. He subsequently fixed his retirement for October 2003, giving him time to ensure an orderly and uncontroversial transition to his anointed successor, Abdullah Badawi.[73] In a speech made before the Organization of the Islamic Conference shortly before he left office, Mahathir claimed "the Jews rule the world by proxy: They get others to fight and die for them."[74] His speech was denounced by President George W. Bush.[75] Having spent over 22 years in office, Mahathir was the world's longest-serving elected leader when he retired.[76]

Mahathir with Russian President Vladimir Putin in 2003

During Mahathir's term, Malaysia's relationship with the West was generally fine despite his being known as an outspoken critic towards it.[77] Early during his tenure, a small disagreement with the United Kingdom over university tuition fees sparked a boycott of all British goods led by Mahathir, in what became known as the "Buy British Last" campaign. It also led to a search for development models in Asia, most notably Japan. This was the beginning of his famous "Look East Policy".[78] Although the dispute was later resolved by Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, Mahathir continued to emphasise Asian development models over contemporary Western ones. He particularly criticised the double standards of Western nations.[79]

Mahathir has been publicly critical of the Foreign Policy of the United States from time to time, particularly during the George W. Bush presidency.[80] and yet relations between the two countries were still positive and the United States was the biggest source of foreign investment, and was Malaysia's biggest customer during Mahathir's rule. Furthermore, Malaysian military officers continued to train in the US under the International Military Education And Training (IMET) program. The BBC reported that relations with the United States took a turn for the worse in 1998 when Al Gore, Vice President of the United States, gave a speech at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) conference hosted by Malaysia.[81] Gore stated that:

Mahathir greeting US Secretary of Defense William Cohen in Kuala Lumpur in 1998 during Pacific Dialogue Conference

Democracy confers a stamp of legitimacy that reforms must have in order to be effective. And so, among nations suffering economic crises, we continue to hear calls for democracy, calls for reform, in many languages – People Power, doi moi, reformasi. We hear them today – right here, right now – among the brave people of Malaysia.[82]

Gore and the United States were critical of the trial of Mahathir's former deputy Anwar Ibrahim, going so far as to label it as a "show trial". US News and World Report called the trial a "tawdry spectacle."[83] Also, Anwar was the preeminent Malaysian spokesperson for the economic policies preferred by the IMF, which included interest-rate hikes. An article in Malaysia Today commented that "Gore's comments constituted a none-too-subtle attack on Malaysia's Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad and more generally on governments, including Japan, that resist US demands for further market reforms."[84]

During the ASEAN meeting in 1997, Mahathir made a speech condemning the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, suggesting its revision. He said that in Asia, the society's interests are more important than an individual's interests. He added that Asians need economic growth more than civil liberties. These remarks did not endear him to US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, who was a guest at the meeting[85] and paid a visit to Anwar's wife following his firing and subsequent imprisonment.[86]

The United States government has previously criticised the Malaysian government for implementing the ISA, and Mahathir has not hesitated to point to the United States for justification of his own actions. In speaking of arbitrary detention without trial of prisoners of conscience in Malaysia, he said: "Events in the United States have shown that there are instances where certain special powers need to be used in order to protect the public for the general good."[87] In 2003 Mahathir spoke to the Non-Aligned Movement in Kuala Lumpur. He blamed Western nations and Israel for a global rise in terrorism: "If innocent people who died in the attack on Afghanistan and those who have been dying from lack of food and medical care in Iraq are considered collaterals, are the 3,000 who died in New York and the 200 in Bali also just collaterals whose deaths are necessary for operations to succeed?" He also said: "If we think back, there was no systematic campaign of terror outside Europe until the Europeans and the Jews created a Jewish state out of Palestinian land."[88] A 2003 house hearing by the Subcommittee on East Asia and the Pacific of the U.S. House International Relations Committee (now called the House Committee on Foreign Affairs) summarises the relationship between the United States and Malaysia as follows: "Despite sometimes blunt and intemperate public remarks by Prime Minister Mahathir, U.S.-Malaysian cooperation has a solid record in areas as diverse as education, trade, military relations, and counter-terrorism."[89]

Mahathir's relationship with Australia (the closest country in the Anglosphere to Malaysia, and the one whose foreign policy is most concentrated on the region), and his relationship with Australia's political leaders, has been particularly rocky. Relationships between Mahathir and Australia's leaders reached a low point in 1993 when Paul Keating described Mahathir as "recalcitrant" for not attending the APEC summit. It is thought that Keating's description was a linguistic gaffe, and that what he had in mind was "intransigent".[90]

Mahathir is an alumnus of the National University of Singapore. He studied at the university's King Edward VII College of Medicine between 1947 and 1953. When he and his wife were granted honorary degrees by the university in November 2018, he said that "I will always value my stay in Singapore for nearly six years." Singapore's long-time prime minister Lee Kuan Yew was also a student at the National University of Singapore.[91] However, relations with Singapore under Mahathir's tenure were stormy. Many disputed issues raised during his administration have not been resolved.[92] Issues have included:

• disputes about the Malaysia–Singapore Points of Agreement of 1990;[92]
• disputes over water prices;[92]
• the proposed replacement of the Johor-Singapore Causeway;[92]
• the dispute over the island Pedra Branca.[92]

On Lee Kuan Yew's death in March 2015, Mahathir wrote a blog chedet.cc entitled "Kuan Yew and I". He expressed his sorrow and grief at the loss of Lee. He said that he often disagreed with the veteran Singaporean leader but bore him no enmity for the differences of opinion on what was good for the newborn nation to thrive. He wrote that with Lee's death, ASEAN had lost the strong leadership of both Lee as well as President Suharto of Indonesia who had died earlier in 2008.[93] Many political analysts believe that with Lee's death, Mahathir is the last of the "Old Guard" of Southeast Asia.[94]

In April 2016, the 1st Anniversary of Lee Kuan Yew's death. Mahathir told the media that Singaporeans must value Lee Kuan Yew's contributions because he industrialised Singapore. He said: "That is one achievement that we need to recognise." With Lee, Mahathir "had no problems." He said that he does not view Lee "as an enemy and all that, but as a Singapore leader who had his own stand that was not the same with the stand of Malaysia."[95]

In Bosnia and Herzegovina, Mahathir has been noted as a particular significant ally of that nation. He was influential in the establishment of an OIC summit in Karachi in 1993 to discuss the need of weapons for Bosnia during the Bosnian War. Mahathir also opened the bridge of the Malaysian-Bosnian and Herzegovinian friendship in the Bosnian capital Sarajevo.[96] On 11 November 2009, he also chaired closed-door meeting of leading investors at the Malaysia Global Business Forum – Bosnia, which was also attended by then president Haris Silajdžić.[97]

Among developing and Islamic countries, Mahathir is generally respected.[77] This is particularly due to Malaysia's relatively high economic growth as well as Mahathir's support towards liberal Muslim values.[98] Malaysia has good relations with Indonesia,[99] and has maintained strong relations with Kazakhstan.[100]

On 14 October 2017, referencing the 1MDB scandal, Mahathir said of Najib; "a prime minister who came from 'Bugis pirates' is now leading Malaysia". He remarked "go back to Sulawesi", which aroused discontent from the Bugis descendants in Malaysia and Indonesia who protested against him.[132] It also disappointed the Sultan of Johor and the Sultan of Selangor, who are both of Bugis descent.[133] On 8 February 2018, Mahathir's Darjah Kerabat Al-Yunusi (DK Kelantan) was revoked by the Kelantan royal house, alongside two of his Pakatan Harapan colleagues, with no reason given.[134]

On 8 January 2018, Mahathir was announced as the Pakatan Harapan opposition alliance's prime ministerial candidate for the election to be held on 9 May 2018, seeking to oust his former ally Najib. Wan Azizah, wife of his former political enemy Anwar, ran as his deputy.[135] According to the election results disclosed on 10 May 2018, Pakatan Harapan had claimed victory, thus successfully propelling him to the prime ministerial seat once again.[136] He would then seek a pardon for Anwar, in order to allow him to take over the leadership.[137][138]

Mahathir welcomed the 2018 North Korea–United States summit. He said "the world should not treat North Korean leader Kim Jong-un with skepticism and instead learn from his new attitude towards bringing about peace".[146] In a joint press conference in Tokyo with Japan, Mahathir said: "We hoped for a successful outcome from the historic meeting",[147] adding that "Malaysia will re-open their embassy in North Korea as an end to the diplomatic row over the assassination of Kim Jong-nam last year".[148]

Mahathir said about China's treatment of its Uyghur Muslim minority in Xinjiang, "We can condemn [China] but the fact is that the condemnation alone would not achieve anything."[149]

Mahathir said he is in the opinion that Carrie Lam should resign as the Chief Executive of Hong Kong, fearing a repeat of the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests where Mainland China's authorities used soldiers from other regions to take very harsh action towards the protesters since they know the soldiers in the area will not do such things as they were the relatives of the protesters. He added that Lam already knew "the consequences of rejecting [the extradition] law" as herself was in a dilemma when she has to obey her Mainland masters.[150][151]

During a lecture to students in a university in Bangkok, Thailand, in October 2018, Mahathir stated that Malaysia would not "copy" Western nations' approach towards LGBT rights, indicating that these countries were exhibiting a disregard for the institutions of the traditional family and marriage, as the value system in Malaysia is good.[152]

Mahathir has stated that the killing of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi was unacceptable. Malaysia, he said, does not support the killing of government critics. "This is extreme cruelty, and it is not acceptable. We too have people that we do not like, but we don't kill them."[153]

On 3 January 2020, Iranian General Qasem Soleimani was assassinated by the United States, which heightened the existing tensions between the two countries. Mahathir compared the assassination of Soleimani with the killing of Jamal Khashoggi and said it was "illegal" and "immoral".[154]

In 2017, the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) granted hosting rights of the 2019 World Para Swimming Championships to Malaysia, who fought off competition from Great Britain.[155] This was done with the understanding that they would permit all qualified athletes to compete. In 2019, as part of a solidarity move with the Palestinian National Authority, Malaysia announced that they would ban Israeli athletes from the event in a move that was supported by 29 Malaysian non-governmental organizations.[156] The Malaysian Paralympic Council claimed they were following government policy, as Malaysia bans Israeli passport holders from entering the country.[157] Mahathir said that Israel is "a country which does not obey international laws" and that the world always follows what Israel says.[158] On 27 January 2019, Malaysia was stripped of their hosting rights because of the decision, and on 15 April 2019 London was announced as the replacement host.[159]

On 23 February 2020, political parties such as BERSATU, PAS and UMNO, and Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS), as well as a faction from within the People's Justice Party led by Azmin Ali held extraordinary meetings at various locations in the country. The high-level meetings which were held concurrently fueled speculation that there was an ongoing attempt to form a new governing coalition.[160] Once the BERSATU meeting had ended, Mahathir organised a gathering at his house attended by Azmin Ali as well as party leaders from PAS, UMNO, Warisan, and GPS. In the evening, Azmin Ali together with leaders of the parties that had previously gathered at Mahathir's residence sought and were granted an audience with the Agong. Later in the night, some 131 MPs including various opposition party leaders gathered at Sheraton Hotel, Petaling Jaya for a dinner party celebrating a "consensus" among MPs.[161][162] The same night, Anwar Ibrahim confirmed to party supporters at his residence after a religious event that there was indeed an attempt to create a new governing coalition by BERSATU and a faction of the PKR.[163][164]

On the morning of the next day, Anwar Ibrahim together with the Deputy Prime Minister Wan Azizah Ismail, Amanah President Mat Sabu, and Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng met Mahathir at his residence to seek clarification regarding the attempted formation of a new governing coalition that involved BERSATU.[165] It was later revealed by Anwar that Mahathir had said he had nothing to do with the attempt to form a new governing coalition.[166] In the afternoon, reports surfaced that Mahathir had submitted his resignation to the Yang di-Pertuan Agong.[167][168] The Agong accepted Mahathir's resignation, but appointed him as interim prime minister.[169][170][171] Anwar later stated that Mahathir had resigned despite his appeals because he refused to work with UMNO, who would be a component party of the new coalition.[172] On 29 February, the Agong appointed Muhyiddin Yassin, the president of the Malaysian United Indigenous Party, as prime minister, determining that he was "most likely to have received the trust of the majority" of MPs. Muhyiddin was sworn in as prime minister the following day.[173] In response to Muhyiddin becoming prime minister, Mahathir formed a new party, Homeland Fighters' Party (PEJUANG), in August 2020. Four other MPs have joined the new party, including Mahathir's son Mukhriz Mahathir. The party has not yet been registered as an official party as of August 2020.[174]

Mahathir’s refusals to extradite Zakir Naik, an Indian Islamic preacher who has been accused of money laundering and hate speech by Indian authorities,[175] has led to domestic and international criticism. Local critics have been skeptical of Mahathir's motives in his protection of Naik on the grounds that the preacher will not receive a fair trial in India.[176] However, the Interpol has issued a statement of July 12, 2019, stating that the charges submitted by the Indian government failed to comply with its rules.[177] The mistreatment of Muslims in India which have worsened in recent years, are widely reported by human rights agencies including Human Rights Watch [178] [179] Critics of Zakir Naik have accused him of misquoting religious texts and preaching which borders on hate speech and even defending terrorism, which resulted in some Malaysian ministers calling for his expulsion.[180] Naik has also come under fire recently for making comments against both the Malaysian Chinese and Malaysian Indians, and was questioned for 10 hours by Malaysian police for a speech in August 2019 where he said that Hindus in Malaysia had "100 times more rights" than Muslims in India and that Chinese Malaysians were only guests of the country. Naik who received permanent residence in Malaysia, a multi-racial country, later apologized for his remarks. [181]

Skeptics claim that Mahathir is merely using Naik as a political pawn, given that Mahathir has extradited others from Malaysia in similar situations, including Turkish national Arif Komis and his family in August 2019.[182] The Malaysian government did not halt the return to Turkey of Komis who was holding a UNHCR refugee card, with his family with young children. Amidst protests by human rights groups, Malaysian federal minister, Khalid Samad, informed reporters that police had evidence showing that Komis was involved in "terrorism".[183] Komis was charged by the Turkish government of being a member of an armed terrorist organization, Fetullah Terrorist Organization, of which its US-based leader, Fetullah Gullen, a Turkish cleric, was accused of the failed coup in 2016 which left 251 people dead and nearly 2,200 injured.[184]

Accusations of anti-semitism against Mahathir Mohamad can be traced to a speech that he made before a 57-nation Islamic summit in Malaysia on October 17, 2003, where he accused the Jews of "ruling the world by proxy" as "they get others to fight and die for them".[185] Among the quotations attributed to Mahathir are "The Jews are not merely hook-nosed, but understand money instinctively".[186] However, Malaysia has no record of military involvement in the Israel-Arab conflict in the Middle East. During Mahathir's speech before the Organization of the Islamic Cooperation, hosted in Kuala Lumpur in October 2003, he was quoted as saying: "We are actually quite strong. 1.3 billion [Muslims] cannot be simply wiped out. The Europeans killed 6 million Jews out of 12 million. But today the Jews rule this world by proxy".[187] Mahathir later rejected that his speech was anti-Semitic and insisted that his comments were "taken out of context".[188] A week after his speech, Mahathir told the Bangkok Post, "In my speech I condemned all violence, even the suicide bombings, and I told all Muslims it's about time we stopped all these things and paused to think and do something that is much more productive." Mahathir also accused the media of being selective in the portions of the wide-ranging speech they reported, "I even quoted from the Koran, which says that when the enemy offers to make peace you must accept. I told the Muslims you must accept even if the terms are bad. You have to negotiate. This is the teaching of Islam. All that was in my speech. But those things were blacked out." Although Mahathir's venting has been characterized as bluster, and not a declaration of war against Israel, it provoked a response from Australian Prime Minister John Howard, via Melbourne radio that "any invocation of rivalry between Jews and Muslims is very unhelpful. The religions of both groups exhort each other to live together in peace, and are opposed to terrorism". Malaysia has refused to resume normal diplomatic ties with Israel until a two-state solution is reached between Israel and Palestine.[189] However, it does not appear that Mahathir's polarizing rhetoric is providing any diplomatic solutions.

On 29 October 2020, in the aftermath of the 2020 Nice stabbing, Mohamad posted controversial remarks on his blog. Regarding the murder of Samuel Paty, Mahathir said it was against "the teachings of Islam",[190] and "the killing is not an act that as a Muslim I would approve".[191] He also said: "The French in the course of their history has killed millions of people. Many were Muslims. Muslims have a right to be angry and to kill millions of French people for the massacres of the past. But by and large the Muslims have not applied the ‘eye for an eye’ law. Muslims don’t. The French shouldn’t. Instead the French should teach their people to respect other people’s feeling."[190] Mahathir's post was later circulated on his Twitter account.[192][193] His tweet was latter labeled by Twitter for "glorifying violence".[194][193]

Mahathir was also criticized for stoking tensions and hatred by former Australian ambassador to France Brendan Berne, Australian prime minister Scott Morrison, and French secretary of state for digital affairs Cédric O; the latter of whom called for the suspension of Mahathir's Twitter account. Berne also demanded context regarding Mahathir's comments and stated that Mahathir comments don't represent Muslims.[195] Malaysian cleric and politician Fathul Bari Mat Jahya condemned Mahathir's remarks, calling them "reprehensible tribalism" and declaring that they contradicted Islamic teachings. He also urged Mahathir to take heart the lesson behind the Christchurch mosque shootings.[196][197] Former Prime Minister Najib Razak opined that Mahathir's words had been taken out of context but advocated removing Mahathir's social media accounts "before he does more damage."[198]

Mahathir responded that his comments were taken out of context and he was not "promoting massacre of the French." After Facebook and Twitter removed his posts, Mahathir criticised the social media platform's decision to remove his posts, accusing them of shielding those who had offended Muslims and made fun of the Prophet Muhammad. Sarawak Deputy Chief Minister James Jemut Masing, United States Ambassador to Malaysia Kamala Shirin Lakhdhir, and Australian High Commissioner in Malaysia Andrew Goledzinowski also criticised Mahathir's remarks as unrepresentative of Malaysia and for advocating violence.[199][200]

•  Malaysia:
  • Grand Commander of the Order of the Defender of the Realm (SMN) – Tun (2003)[201]
•  Federal Territory (Malaysia):
  • Grand Knight of the Order of the Territorial Crown (SUMW) – Datuk Seri Utama (2008)[201]
•  Johor:
  • Gold Medal of the Sultan Ibrahim Medal (PIS) (1985)[202]
  • Knight Grand Commander of the Order of the Crown of Johor (SPMJ) – Dato' (1979)[203]
  • Grand Commander of the Royal Family Order of Johor (DKI) (1989)[204]
•  Kedah:
  • Knight Grand Companion of the Order of Loyalty to the Royal House of Kedah (SSDK) – Dato' Seri (1977)[201]
  • Kedah Supreme Order of Merit (DUK) (1988)[201]
  • Member of the Royal Family Order of Kedah (DK) (2003)[201]
•  Kelantan:
  • Royal Family Order of Kelantan (DK) (2002),[201] revoked 2018[205])
•  Malacca:
  • Grand Commander of the Order of Malacca (DGSM) – Datuk Seri[201]
  • Knight Grand Commander of the Order of Malacca (DUNM) – Datuk Seri Utama[201]
•  Negeri Sembilan:
  • Principal Grand Knight of the Order of Loyalty to Negeri Sembilan (SPNS) – Dato' Seri Utama (1981)[201]
  • Royal Family Order of Negeri Sembilan (DKNS) (1982)[202]
•  Pahang:
  • Grand Knight of the Order of Sultan Ahmad Shah of Pahang (SSAP) – Dato' Sri (1977)[201]
•  Penang:
  • Knight Grand Commander of the Order of the Defender of State (DUPN) – Dato' Seri Utama (1981)[201]
•  Perak:
  • Grand Knight of the Order of Cura Si Manja Kini (SPCM) – Dato' Seri (1981)[201]
•  Perlis:
  • Member of the Perlis Family Order of the Gallant Prince Syed Putra Jamalullail (DK) (1995)[201]
•  Sabah:
  • Grand Commander of the Order of Kinabalu (SPDK) – Datuk Seri Panglima (1981)[201]
•  Sarawak:
  • Knight Grand Commander of the Order of the Star of Hornbill Sarawak (DP) – Datuk Patinggi (1980)[201]
  • Knight Grand Commander of the Order of the Star of Sarawak (SBS) – Pehin Sri (2003)[201]
•  Selangor:
  • Knight Grand Commander of the Order of the Crown of Selangor (SPMS) – Dato' Seri (1978),[202] returned 2017[206])
  • Royal Family Order of Selangor First Class (DK) (2003),[202] returned 2017[206])
•  Terengganu:
  • Member Grand Companion of the Order of Sultan Mahmud I of Terengganu (SSMT) – Dato' Seri (1982)[207]

Mahathir with Vladimir Putin and then Yang-di Pertuan Agong Syed Sirajuddin in 2003. The day this photograph was taken Putin bestowed the Order of Friendship upon Mahathir.

•  Argentina:
  • Order of the Liberator General San Martín (1991)[202]
•  Bosnia and Herzegovina:
  • Order of the Dragon of Bosnia (1996)[202]
•  Brunei:
  • Royal Family Order of Brunei 1st Class (DK (Laila Utama)) (1997)[202]
•  Chile:
  • Order of Merit (1991)[202]
•  Cuba:
  • Order of José Martí (1997)[202]
•  Djibouti:
  • Commander of the Order of the Great Star of Djibouti (1998)[202]
•  Japan:
  • Grand Cordon of the Order of the Rising Sun (1991)[202]
  • Grand Cordon of the Order of the Paulownia Flowers (2018)[208]
•  Kuwait:
  • Collar of the Order of Mubarak the Great (1997)[202]
•  Lebanon:
  • Grand Cordon of the Order of Merit (1997)[202]
•  Mali:
  • Grand Cross of the National Order of Mali (1984)[202]
•  Mexico:
  • Grand Cross of the Order of the Aztec Eagle (1991)[202]
•  Pakistan:
  • Order of Pakistan (NPk) (2019)[209][210]
•  Poland:
  • Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the Republic of Poland (2002)[202]
•  Russia:
  • Order of Friendship (2003)[211]
•  South Korea:
  • Grand Gwanghwa Medal of the Order of Diplomatic Service Merit (1983)[202]
•  Sweden:
  • Commander Grand Cross of the Order of the Polar Star (KmstkNO) (1996)[202]
•  Thailand:
  • Knight Grand Cordon (Special Class) of the Order of the White Elephant (KGE) (1981)[202]
•  Turkey:
  • Order of the Republic (2019)[212]
•  Uruguay
  • Medal of the Oriental Republic of Uruguay (1996)[213]
•  Venezuela:
  • Order of the Liberator (1990)[202]

•  Albania:
  • Honorary citizenship of Tirana (1993)[202]
•  India:
  • Jawaharlal Nehru Award for International Understanding (1994)[214]
•  Pakistan:
  • Order of Great Leader (Nishan-e-Quaid-i-Azam) (1984)[202][210]
•  Saudi Arabia:
  • King Faisal International Prize for Service to Islam (1997)[202]
•  United Nations:
  • U Thant Peace Award (1999)[202]

Yang-di Pertuan Besar Ja’afar of Negeri Sembilan, the Chancellor of the National University of Malaysia (Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia), presents Mahathir with a Honorary Doctorate in Philosophy.

•  Malaysia:
  • Honorary Ph.D. degree in Management and Engineering from University of Technology, Malaysia (2003)[202]
  • Honorary Litt.D. degree from International Islamic University Malaysia (2004)[202]
  • Honorary Ph.D. degree in Islamic Thoughts from University of Malaya (2004)[202]
  • Honorary Ph.D. degree in Engineering and Technology from PETRONAS University of Technology (2004)[202]
  • Honorary Ph.D. degree in Government and Political Science from MARA University of Technology (2004)[202]
  • Honorary Ph.D. degree in Law from National University of Malaysia (2004)[202]
  • Honorary Ph.D. degree in Knowledge Science from Multimedia University (2004)[202]
  • Honorary Ph.D. degree in Global Peace and National Reconciliation from Perdana University (2018)[215]
  • Honorary Ph.D. degree in Business Management from Asia School of Business (2019)[216]
•  China:
  • Honorary Ph.D. degree from Tsinghua University (2004)[202]
•  Egypt:
  • Honorary Ph.D. degree in Literature from Al-Azhar University (1998)[202]
•  Japan:
  • Honorary Ph.D. degree from Meiji University (2001)[202]
  • Honorary Ph.D. degree in Laws from Keio University (2004)[217]
  • Honorary Ph.D. degree from Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University (2018)[218]
  • Honorary Ph.D. degree from Tsukuba University (2018)[219]
  • Honorary Ph.D. degree from International University of Japan (2019)[220]
  • Honorary Ph.D. degree in Humane letters from Doshisha University (2019)[221]
•  Mongolia:
  • Honorary Ph.D. degree in Humanities from National University of Mongolia (1997)[202]
•  Philippines:
  • Honorary Ph.D. degree from University of Santo Tomas (2012)[222]
•  Qatar:
  • Honorary Ph.D. degree from Qatar University (2019)[223]
•  Singapore:
  • Honorary Ph.D. degree in Laws from National University of Singapore (2018)[91]
•  Thailand:
  • Honorary Ph.D. degree in Social Leadership, Business and Politics from Rangsit University (2018)[224]
•  Turkey:
  • Honorary Ph.D. degree in Political Science and Public Administration from Yildirim Beyazit University (2019)[225]

• Time magazine named Mahathir as one of the 100 most influential people in the world in 2019.[226]

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• Milne, R. S.; Mauzy, Diane K. (1999). Malaysian Politics under Mahathir. Routledge. ISBN 0-415-17143-1.
• Morais, J. Victor (1982). Mahathir: A Profile in Courage. Eastern Universities Press. OCLC 8687329.
• Sankaran, Ramanathan; Mohd Hamdan Adnan (1988). Malaysia's 1986 General Election: the Urban-Rural Dichotomy. Institute of Southeast Asian Studies. ISBN 981-3035-12-9.
• Stewart, Ian (2003). The Mahathir Legacy: a Nation Divided, a Region at Risk. Allen & Unwin. ISBN 1-86508-977-X.
• Wain, Barry (2010). Malaysian Maverick: Mahathir Mohamad in Turbulent Times. Palgrave Macmillan. ISBN 978-0-230-23873-2.
• James Chin & Joern Dosch. Malaysia Post Mahathir: a decade of change?. Marshall Cavendish. 2016. ISBN 9814677558