KUALA LUMPUR, May 15 — Will the United States election have any bearing on its ties with Malaysia? Will a Democrat president be more favourable to a government led by Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi? Or will a Republican president prefer the charismatic Anwar Ibrahim and champion him as the model Muslim leader?
These are some questions being pondered by Barisan Nasional and Pakatan Rakyat politicians as they watch the Democratic nomination process reach its final stages with Barack Obama looking the favourite to face off Senator John McCain for the top prize in US politics.
Conventional wisdom suggests that the US has greater affection for Anwar, believing that he shares their democratic ideals of freedom of speech and unlike many other leaders in the developing and Muslim world, less inclined to follow the path of confrontation with the West.
They also have deep respect for him because he has not espoused anti-Jew sentiments to win support and was ready to face jail time in 1998 rather than accept a political compromise from Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad and fade away into oblivion.
He has strong connections with both Democrats and Republicans. When Anwar was named one of the 100 most influential people in the world by Time magazine, Paul Wolfowitz, the former US deputy secretary of defence, penned his citation.
It read: "This devout Muslim leader was an impressive and eloquent advocate of tolerance, democracy and human rights. So we were shocked by his arrest and trial in 1998 on charges of corruption and sodomy. I felt his real 'crime' had been to challenge Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, whose impressive record will be forever stained by his treatment of Anwar.
"I joined Senator Sam Nunn and others to speak out in Anwar’s defence. When he was finally released from prison in 2004, US policy on Iraq was unpopular in Malaysia, and Anwar was harshly critical. It would have been easy for him to disown our friendship, but he is not that kind of person. He kept the channels of dialogue open, even while making clear our disagreements."
Anwar, 60, is back in the centre of Malaysian politics. The coalition led by his wife Wan Azizah has become the main opposition bloc. His future role can be determined only by Malaysians. One can hope that they will embrace his brand of tolerance, valuing dialogue across political differences and that this courageous leader will continue to play a leading role on the world stage’’
But it now appears that Anwar is not the only Malaysian leader who has caught the eye of Americans in the run-up to their own elections. In an opinion piece in the Washington Times, Stuart Eizenstat, a former senior official in the Clinton administration, said that it was important for the US to pay close attention to the transformation taking place in Malaysia.
He noted that Abdullah has responded to electoral calls for changes by introducing reforms designed to maintain a democratic society for the long term.
"By making the country’s institutions more transparent and independent, the Badawi government is promoting a system also more likely to be resilient in turbulent economic times...In the end whether Mr Badawi’s dexterity will keep him in power to serve a full term is yet to be determined, but what he has set in motion deserves the support of the United States," said the former deputy secretary of the Treasury.
Both Anwar and Abdullah may be quietly pleased with the support they are receiving from US opinion makers but both of them know that it would not go down well politically in Malaysia to be too close to American politicians or interests. In Parliament this week, Datuk Mukhriz Mahathir questioned Anwar’s ties with the US and drew attention to the Wolfowitz endorsement.
Mukhriz wanted to know why one of the chief strategists of the US war against Iraq had described Anwar in such glowing terms.
"Why should Anwar be in cahoots with this murderer of more than one million Iraqis?" he asked.
He also questioned Anwar’s links with the neo-conservative NGO Foundation of the Future, and said that among its source of funds was the US State Department.
"The question is, why should Anwar - who is directly involved in an organisation of questionable background and is a close friend of the neo-conservative disciple who has killed Muslims in Iraq - be allowed to take over the leadership of this beloved country?
"Certainly not! As long as there is life in this body, Umno will stand firm in defending the sovereignty of our country!" said Mukhriz, the son of Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad.
Dr Mahathir has also criticised Abdullah for being too soft on US and not borrowing a page from his manual on foreign policy confrontation with the Bush administration. Still he has not been able to fire on all cylinders because it was revealed that his government paid lobbyist Jack Abramoff US$S1.2 million to set up a meeting between Dr Mahathir and President Bush in 2001.
This episode clearly shows one of the dilemmas facing any Malaysian leader vis-à-vis the US. Publicly, any Malaysian PM cannot be seen to be dancing to the tune of the US or agreeing with its policies and decisions too readily. Not with the US reputation in the Muslim world, including Malaysia, at its lowest point.
But realistically, Malaysia cannot afford to be ambivalent about the US. Malaysia is America’s 10th largest trading partner and remains a strong source of foreign direct investment. Even during the worst of times in bilateral ties, Dr Mahathir had to reach out to President Bush to ensure that trade relations were not affected.
This is what Abdullah, Anwar or any other Malaysian PM will have to do when the new US president is sworn in next year. Between now and then, the Americans will also be assessing Malaysia’s political landscape and its main players.
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