Word: anwar
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Dates: during 2000-2009
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...hardly seems the perfect candidate for a Muslim-majority democracy. Opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim spent six years in jail, charged with corruption and sodomy. Earlier this year, he was again slapped with a sex charge when a male former aide accused the 61-year-old politician of rape. But on Aug. 26 Malaysia's most charismatic politician completed a stunning political comeback by winning a parliamentary seat in a by-election in his home state of Penang. "It's a signal that the people are ready for change, and that they believe only Anwar can make that change," says Bridget...
...Anwar's ambitions are about much more than just his own political future. Though a small tropical nation, Malaysia has served as a role model in a region often gripped by authoritarianism and riven by factional strife. It has a proud tradition of electoral politics, relatively smooth transfers of power and an ability to achieve social harmony despite its racial and religious diversity...
...Anwar was not the only one who had to endure a rough campaign season. Residents in the Permatang Pauh constituency have lived with banners strung up throughout their neighborhoods trumpeting Anwar's alleged transgressions, while giant video screens at street corners in the area replayed video clips of Saiful's televised accusations. "I told my teenage daughter not to look up at the banners," said Fatih. "It was so terrible, so shameful the way they attack Anwar. Praise...
...many, Anwar's sweep is a clear indicator that voters - at least in this part of the country - are ready to bring the charismatic politician back onto the national stage. "It is a decisive signal that the people want and are ready for change and they believe only Anwar can make that change," says Bridget Welsh, a professor of South East Asian politics at Johns Hopkins University. According to Welsh, Anwar's victory could also give strength to demands in the ruling party for Abdullah, the current prime minister who has promised to step down within two years, to resign...
...Anwar can't afford to get too comfortable in his post-win glow. He still has plenty of political hurdles to clear after he is sworn into parliament this week - chiefly, his upcoming trial, which opens on Sept. 10 in Kuala Lumpur. The government told parliament earlier this month that prosecutors have a strong case and promised a fair trial. Anwar has countered, saying with corruption and collusion at historical highs, a fair trial will be impossible and has requested the government drop the Attorney General's case. As Welsh warns: "The political heat [will] cool off during Ramadan next...