Malaysia

A fugitive preacher ignites controversy in Malaysia
A fugitive preacher ignites controversy in Malaysia
Zakir Naik is an Indian preacher of Islam who currently calls Malaysia home. Described by the Washington Post as a “rock star of tele-evangelism”, he is also a fugitive, having…
In Malaysia, flipping over the script
In Malaysia, flipping over the script
When Sin Chew Daily, the largest Chinese daily in Malaysia, recently headlined a Ministry of Education proposal to introduce a few pages of calligraphy in the Malay-language…
Malaysia’s Mahathir has no interest in building a dynasty
Malaysia’s Mahathir has no interest in building a dynasty
The name Mukhriz Mahathir – son of Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad – is in the news once again, mostly by virtue of being the only child in the family to enter into…
Mahathir holds all the cards, again
Mahathir holds all the cards, again
The latest news coming out of Kuala Lumpur may alter the trajectory of Malaysian politics. On Wednesday night, 23 members of the Parti Keadilan Rakyet (PKR) central…
After the voting, personality beats policy in Southeast Asia
After the voting, personality beats policy in Southeast Asia
It has been an unusually intense time for elections across Southeast Asia in the past year with both a stunning upset and more predictable returns of incumbents. But the striking…
Why Mahathir is unlikely to make Anwar his successor
Why Mahathir is unlikely to make Anwar his successor
Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad’s latest promise that he “will not go more than three years” in the premiership is the latest in an ongoing saga of leadership succession…
Mahathir’s tilt to China smooths the way for Beijing in Southeast Asia
Mahathir’s tilt to China smooths the way for Beijing in Southeast Asia
In the months leading up to his dramatic return last year as Malaysia’s Prime Minister, Mahathir Mohamad had positioned himself as a strident critic of his predecessor’s approach…
Making a murderer: the assassination of Kim Jong-nam
Making a murderer: the assassination of Kim Jong-nam
Two years of James Bond-esque intrigue following Kim Jong-nam’s assassination in Malaysia have fizzled out, with backroom negotiations seeing murder charges dropped against the…
Domestic politics drive Malaysia’s abrupt global court U-turn
Domestic politics drive Malaysia’s abrupt global court U-turn
Well, that was short lived. With the rounds of applause that accompanied its historic decision to accede to the Rome Statute still reverberating, on 5 April Malaysia announced it…
‘New’ Malaysia: Four key challenges in the near term
Analyses
‘New’ Malaysia: Four key challenges in the near term
In the aftermath of Malaysia’s momentous regime change, the new government faces a number of challenges to implementing wholesale political reform.